Sadly, Dan McMurray passed away on February 15, 2012. His work continues.

I am sad to report that Dan McMurray passed away on February 15, 2012 at his home in Wynndel, British Columbia. Dan was 69 years old.

The funeral service was held on Wednesday February 22, 2012 at the G.F. Oliver Funeral Chapel, with Pastor Brian Atmore officiating.

At the service, Dan's brother Cameron McMurray read the following eulogy. 

EULOGY - DAN MCMURRAY

An adventurer at heart and a generous and kind man by nature, Dan will be dearly missed
by all those who have come to know him.

Dan lived life to its fullest, loved fishing, and loved being in remote places, or in his
garden and orchard. When he was retiring from the lighthouses in 2002, he went onto
his computer on the lighthouse and researched weather patterns to find a place with the
best climate for gardening and growing grapes. He found Wynndel, with its long growing
season and good soil, and when he retired from 28 years of service as BC lighthouse
keeper, settled in Wynndel.

Dan took to gardening much like everything he did – forcefully and wholeheartedly.
Many hours he labored in his garden and green house, and he became passionate about
preserving heritage seeds. He developed and grew over 400 varieties of tomatoes and
collected many seeds of vegetable varieties. He shared the harvest from his garden and
orchard with his neighbors, friends, and local churches.

Dan never shied away from challenging tasks, be it growing tomatoes, or the curve balls
life threw at him. He was widowed twice, but in his mid-sixties he fell in love again with
a woman named Shaoling, and he was happier than I’ve seen him in decades. Not a man
of words, he demonstrated his love for his friends and family by his actions.

He is survived by his beloved wife Shaoling, his brother Cameron and sister Vicki, his
his sons Cameron and Grant, and granddaughter Cherine.

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Stories of Dan and his life as a gardener, fisherman, lighthouse keeper and beloved family member were shared by the funeral attendees, and the poem "Desiderata" - which epitomized so much of Dan's life - was read.

The heritage seeds that Dan collected and catalogued are being catalogued, and his work will be carried on by a local seed bank in Creston.