In Loving Memory-

John (Jack) Rehill Chambers

January 2, 1928 – July 5, 2025

It is with deep sadness that the John Chambers family announces the peaceful passing of our Dad, at Mountain Lake Seniors Community, where he had been a resident for the last eight months.

Dad was predeceased by his loving wife of 74 years Eleanor, his parents Olive and John Cecil Chambers; his brother George, his sisters Ruth Makay and Muriel Kinahan and his daughter-in-law Janine Chambers.

Dad was born in Regina, Saskatchewan. He was the second of the four children of Olive and Cecil Chambers. The Chambers family moved to Nelson, BC in the 1930s after a short stay in the Castlegar/Robson area on their route from the prairies.

Like many of his generation, Dad left school at an early age and worked at a variety of jobs in Nelson including the JC Muir Freight Company, the Kootenay Valley Co-Op Dairy and then the Canadian Pacific Railroad. Dad was extremely proud of the driving skills he acquired while hauling freight and delivering milk. Much to our mother’s chagrin, it was Dad’s mission to drive our old family station wagon up every logging road and abandoned mining trail in the west Kootenays in pursuit of the best huckleberry patch or the perfect trout stream. The original SUV. It wasn’t until dad’s eyesight failed him at age 95 that he gave up his driver’s license. The CPR was where Dad made his career. He started out in 1950 as an apprentice boiler maker, during the days of steam engines and paddle wheelers, then transitioned to a diesel electrician and eventually retired as a Diesel Shop Foreman in 1985. The CPR was the perfect place for Dad to hone his many skills. From boiler maker, to electrician, to welder, to plumber, to mechanic, Dad could wear any hat to take on the task required to get the trains rolling again.

Dad met Mom (Eleanor) in 1945 as World War II was coming to an end. They were married on April 26, 1950. Eleanor and Jack purchased an old farmhouse at the top of Carbonate Street and made it their family home for the next 37 years. After Dad’s retirement from the CPR, Eleanor and Jack moved to their new home at 17 Mile where they thoroughly enjoyed 20 years of lakeside living. In their retirement, Dad liked to fish and work in the yard but most of all, he loved to sit on their deck overlooking the lake and regale all who visited with stories of his many adventures of a life well lived. Dad was a storyteller of the first order.

It's difficult to sum up in just a few words what Dad meant to our family. Dad didn’t suffer fools, but he was always there to lend a hand to someone who was in need. Family member, neighbor, friend, or complete stranger, it didn’t matter to Dad. If someone needed help, he was on it. He was a great example to us all and he displayed a work ethic that was unmatched even when he was well into his eighties. In Dad’s world, there was never a task that could wait until tomorrow. If it needed to be done, it was done.

Left to mourn our Dad are his sister-in-law Sue Gelinas, his sons, Jack Jr. (Lynn), Jim, Ken (Cindy); his grandsons Michael (Lydia), Dan (Lareena), Chris (Carlie), Jason (Kim) and Ken (Beth), his great grandchildren Alice, Chloe, Cashus, Nolan and Ryan as well as numerous nieces and nephews spread across Canada and the western United States.

Jack’s family would like to express their sincere thanks to the doctors and staff of the Kootenay Lake Hospital and the Mountain Lake Seniors Community for their loving care of our Dad for this last year. You are true angels.

Typical of our Dad, he did not want anybody to make a fuss over him so our family will not be hosting a celebration of life or memorial service.

Friends wishing to make a donation in Dad’s memory can do so to the Kootenay Lake Hospital Foundation.