Wally’s farewell

by Eliza Olson, President, Burns Bog Conservation Society

Wally Davyduke, 1936-2015

Burns Bog Society co-founder and “Captain of the Boardwalk”

Wally Davyduke was a founding member of the Burns Bog Conservation Society and the Burns Bog Conservation Foundation. He took over the supervision of the Delta Nature Reserve’s boardwalk construction in 2002. Proud of his work on the boardwalk, he would stop and ask users, “What do you think of the boardwalk?” When they said it was “wonderful,” he would beam with pride. He was Ikea’s worst nightmare, but he could build a boardwalk! Wally Davyduke died on February 20, 2015.

Wally and I joined Toastmasters Club in 1979. We were founding members.

After I had said, “Yes” to Wally’s [marriage] proposal, the next big question was, was I going to change my last name? Wally said that he didn’t care either way. I solved the problem by giving a speech called the “Modern Bride’s Dilemma” at Toastmasters.

Afterwards, Wally talked about watching the faces of the other men as I talked. I had presented issues that none of them had thought about. I kept my “previous name,” as Wally called it and he was always quick to let people know that he “wasn’t Mr. Olson. And so did I.

The final challenge before we got married was Wally’s smoking. I had a house up for sale, Wally had a house up for sale and we were buying a third. Wally smoked so much one weekend that I developed a massive headache. I went home, called him and said I was breaking off the engagement. I told him I didn’t want to start our marriage with me nagging him over his smoking. We would sell our houses, buy the third and then we would sell that one.

He quit smoking! This time he chose me over his cigarettes. The date? November 23, 1980. Later, Wally would tell people we didn’t get married for the tax break. I said it was so Wally wouldn’t forget the date. The government has since closed that loophole.

We got married in front of the fireplace in our new home with our friends and family. Our house became known as the “party house.” Wally and I got involved in politics; I had made the mistake of telling him on our first date that I belonged to his favourite political party. You should have seen the look on his face when I said that.

I encouraged him to run for president of the Canadian Merchant Service Guild. He encouraged me to run for Delta council. And that started our romance with Burns Bog. We worked to stop the development in 1988. Based on our experience with Toastmasters, we knew people would drift away from the group after the proposal was turned down. We knew we had won the battle, but not the war. The developers would be back and we had to be ready. So we started the Burns Bog Conservation Society. We joined the first board and stayed on the board for the next 27 years.

The membership directed the society to set up a foundation. They figured it sounded like a good idea. No one really knew the difference between a society and a foundation. The foundation’s purpose is to build a capital campaign and create an endowment fund to help operate it. Wally was a founding member of the Burns Bog Conservation Foundation as well. He returned to the Foundation’s board last year.

Wally took over the Delta Nature Reserve Committee in 2002.

He was all thumbs when it came to putting anything together; I have shelves to prove it, but he could build an amazing boardwalk. It was his pride and joy. I can only remember him telling me once that he was too ill to go down to the boardwalk. And that was the Monday before his passing. Wally beamed with pride when people would comment about the boardwalk. He enjoyed driving the little tractor carrying wood and nails back and forth to repair and build it. He was truly the “Captain of the Boardwalk.”

Wally was my biggest supporter. He encouraged me to take on challenges I couldn’t have done without him. He never wavered in his faith in me. “Buck up, old girl, you can do it,” he would say when things got bleak. We did a lot together. We were the only two non-scientists at the 1995 International Peat Society Congress in Scotland and again in 2008 in Ireland.

Wally received the Queen’s Jubilee Medal for his work with the Society. I overshadowed him but he never resented it. Wally was the “wind beneath my wings.” I promise to keep flying. Thank you for joining me in celebrating Wally’s life.

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