Obituary of Richard Alan Bryden

To view Richard's livetsreamed service please click the link HERE

Richard Alan Bryden passed away peacefully early Christmas Day 2022, surrounded by love (both human and canine) in his own home, just five months short of his 100th birthday. He was active, independent, and fully engaged right to the end.

His kindness, patience, generosity, thoughtfulness, and penchant for bad puns will be sorely missed by all who knew him, especially his family for whom he was a constant source of calm reassurance and the rock we all relied upon.

A chemical engineer, Dick worked briefly for Lang Tanning before developing a new method to adhere cloth backing to vinyl and leaving to start his own vinyl wall covering business. He named his new product and his company Shirlite – after his cherished wife of 66 years, Shirley. He chose to keep working long after the usual retirement age, not selling the business until he was almost 80.

Even then, he continued occupying his time with travel, home renovations and construction projects at his beloved cottage in Honey Harbour, where he took up kayaking just last summer.

His passing leaves a gaping hole in the lives of sister Marjorie Donovan (Tonawanda, N.Y.), daughters Barb (Ghost Lake, Alta.) and Joan (Ottawa, with husband Wayne Kondro), granddaughters Jaime Luykenaar (Kevin- Calgary), Jennifer Smith (Marlon- Calgary) and Jill Bourget (Guy- Canmore), and great-grandchildren Aiden, Chloe, Ryder, Oskar, Leo, Eva, and Liv. To his daughters he was The. Best. Dad. Ever. To his grandchildren and great-grandchildren, he was the much-loved Gum. To his many nieces and nephews, the prized Uncle Dick.

He joins Shirley and their adored youngest daughter Lisa in the Great Beyond, along with parents Ruth and Richard and sister Sylvia, where we hope they are all now hugging, laughing, and walking dogs.

Visitation will be held at the Erb & Good Family Funeral Home, 171 King St. S., Waterloo, on Thursday, January 12, 2023, at 1:00-2:00 p.m. The celebration of life will follow in the funeral home chapel beginning at 2:00 p.m. All are welcome to the reception taking place in the fireside reception room following the service.

Condolences for the family and donations in lieu of flowers to the Sunnyside Foundation or to Drayton Entertainment may be arranged through www.erbgood.com.