Sat, May 13, 2023 2:00 pm - 3:00 pm
This service will be live streamed from this page today at 2pm
Click here to view the time and date in your time zone
Click here to view the Order of Service
- Join us in person
- Unitarian Church Of Vancouver, 949 W 49th Ave, Vancouver BC V5Z 2T1
- Join us online
- please click on the video below from 2pm PDT
It is with sadness and joy that we remember Gay Kuchta, who passed away peacefully at home on June 15, 2021 at the age of 77. She is survived by children Nicola and Andrew (Karen); step-daughters Leslie (Jim) and Allison; grandchildren Wells, Raine, Emily (Riley), and Patrick (Ashely); four great-grandchildren; brother Bob (Liz) and family; beloved cousins and their offspring; and countless friends and colleagues.
Gay is keenly missed by all who knew her. The reasons are legion but include her lively mind, generosity of spirit, dry humour, thoughtfulness, and boundless energy.
Gay grew up in post-war Liverpool, UK, to parents who instilled in her a profound commitment to family, curiosity and critical thinking, service, social justice, humanist philosophy, and passion for the outdoors. She sailed to Canada in 1967, docking in Montreal in time for Expo 67, and within a year of arriving in Vancouver Gay had joined the cutting edge team at the Canadian Arthritis & Rheumatism Society (now: Mary Pack Arthritis Program).
Gay shone in everything she did. Two of her proudest achievements were being the first OT to receive the American College of Rheumatology Distinguished Clinician Merit Award in 2006 (the second received it in 2013); and co-authoring “Occupational and Physical Therapy for Children with Rheumatic Diseases: A Clinical Handbook” (Routledge 2008) with her longtime physiotherapist colleague and friend, Iris Davidson.
Gay’s curiosity for life and learning led her to the Unitarian Church of Vancouver, where she found a like-minded community and lifelong friendships. It led her to explore ‘her backyard’, as she called it, with friends and family: hiking, cycling, kayaking, and camping throughout BC and Canada (and beyond). Gay was an avid gardener and voracious reader, and might be missed most for her ability to recommend your next great read.
A celebration of Gay’s life will be held on May 13 at 2pm at the Unitarian Church of Vancouver. Reception to follow in the Hewett Centre from 3-5pm.
Join us in person: 949 W 49th Ave, Vancouver BC V5Z 2T1. The service will be live-streamed and available on this page.
The sanctuary and Hewett Centre are both accessible buildings.
No flowers. Dress to celebrate.
Donations gratefully received to:
● Dying with Dignity,
● UBC Occupational Sciences and Occupational Therapy Research Fund,
● Women Against Violence Against Women,
● Federation of British Columbia Naturalists
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