Tribute

Rolf Gartman aged 88 passed away of a heart attack on November 30, 2021, in Oliver, BC.

He was a fun adventurous self made and unique man who had a knack for getting friends and future friends together with a smile that would light up a room.

He will be missed by all fortunate enough to have known him.

He was born and raised in Osnabruck, Germany where he trained to become an orthopedist.

He emigrated to Canada in 1953 and worked on a ranch in McBride, BC for 2 years. He then moved to Vancouver and fell in love with the city.  He worked in his trained profession at UBC for a year. Then found more money could be made working in a mill. Over the next few years, he worked in many professions including Directorship in the Oil and Gas business, starting his own cleaning company, moving and storage company and partnering in several hotels. Being a perfectionist, he worked hard and successfully at anything he put his hand to.

Rolf originally moved to Oliver in 1973 with first wife Elaine and his sons Clifford and Christopher. They ran an orchard and raised Appaloosa horses. He moved back to Vancouver in 1975.

In 1990, Rolf returned to Oliver with Jacquie, his wife of 44 years. They had a long and adventurous life traveling in their RV and enjoying all that lifestyle offers making a large extended family too numerous to mention.   He was famous for making waffles for the masses including the CMDRA race teams and Rv’ing friends who enjoyed many over the years.

In 2015 Rolf was asked to officiate a wedding for extended family Matt and Georgie Devalient.  It was one his proudest moments and Matt remembers Rolf helping to remember his lines and at the end Rolf summed it up. We are all crazy, you just need to meet someone with the same crazy as you.

His last long trip was a Holland America Panama Cruise which he did not think was a good idea but ended up enjoying it enough that he planned to do another cruise one day.

Rolf is survived by his wife Jacquie, his sons Clifford and Christopher, brother Dieter Gartman (Violet and children Colleen (children Michael and Grace) and Duane (Billie and son Bam) granddaughters: Jennifer Guillou (Rick Drury and daughter Ella), Laura Callahan (Sean and children Alida and Emett), and Krystal Wright (Nathan and children Jaxon and Jason).  Sister-in-law Gillian Bennewith (Bruce and children Robert and Derek Bideshi), Extended family Raj Gill (Gurpreet), Darshon Gill (Surjit) and several cousins and family in Germany

He was predeceased by his mother Mathilda, father Wilhelm Gartman, stepfather Michael Klinger, in-laws Phyllis and Harry Pargiter, cousin, Bodo Feldman

Rolf’s favourite poem was written by Ronald Watson titled Today

The morning is a fresh beginning, the hour when your world is new

The past is gone and all its drifting, the joy of hope is there for you

The evening is a falling curtain, the mantle covering all your care

The reward your faith makes certain

The Reassurance that God is fair.