Glen Harper, a legendary curler in the Cowichan Valley and beyond, and the namesake of the building that houses the Duncan Curling Club, has died.
The 92-year-old Harper was a two-time winner of the BC MenB次元官网网址檚 Curling Championship, in 1960 and 1963, among many other titles, and was such an integral part of the Duncan Curling Club that the club renamed its facility in his honour in 2012.
Harper went to the Brier twice as the B.C. menB次元官网网址檚 champion, and contended for national titles on three other occasions: twice after winning the B.C. mixed championship on teams that included his wife, Marg, and once as the provincial senior champion.
B次元官网网址淗e never won a Canadian championship at any level,B次元官网网址� HarperB次元官网网址檚 daughter, Bonnie Segger, noted. B次元官网网址淭hat was heartbreaking.B次元官网网址�
More than just an accomplished curler, Harper was a cornerstone of the sport in the Cowichan Valley. He and his father, Ron, helped get curling started in Duncan when they opened the first club in a quonset hut on James Street. When the roof of that structure started rotting, he spearheaded fundraising efforts for a new building on Sherman Road.
B次元官网网址淚t was a big community effort,B次元官网网址� Segger said of the fundraising campaign. B次元官网网址淎 lot of people were involved.B次元官网网址�
Completed in 1967, it was eventually renamed for Harper 45 years later. Harper was overcome with emotion when the club announced the new name for the building during its 60th annual menB次元官网网址檚 bonspiel in January 2012.
B次元官网网址淪ometimes those honours donB次元官网网址檛 come until after youB次元官网网址檙e gone,B次元官网网址� Segger noted.
Current Duncan Curling Club board chair Brent Dellebuur said the entire organization was saddened by the loss of someone who was an integral part of the club for such a long time.
B次元官网网址淚t will leave a loss in the curling community, for sure,B次元官网网址� Dellebuur said. B次元官网网址淓verybody who has ever curled in the Duncan Curling Club is aware of Glen Harper and what his impact was.B次元官网网址�
Although he hadnB次元官网网址檛 competed for many years, Harper would still show up to watch bonspiels.
B次元官网网址淓verybody knew who he was and why he was there,B次元官网网址� Dellebuur said. B次元官网网址淭he love of the sport remained even though he was unable to participate.
B次元官网网址淚tB次元官网网址檚 hard to visualize the club with him not being around.B次元官网网址�
As a businessman, Harper was a committed supporter of sports and other activities in the Cowichan Valley. He moved to Duncan from McCreary, Manitoba in 1947, and founded G.L. Harper Scrap Metal & Demolition in 1963. That business later became Islandwide Selkirk Recycling, then Steel Pacific Recycling, and is now owned by Schnitzer Steel Industries. He spent more than 50 years in the business before he B次元官网网址渞etiredB次元官网网址� around 2004 or 2005.
B次元官网网址淎 lot of people knew him for that as much as curling,B次元官网网址� said Segger, who worked alongside her dad, as did her two sistersB次元官网网址� husbands.
As much time as he put into curling and work, Segger said family was an even bigger priority for him.
B次元官网网址淗e loved to have family around,B次元官网网址� she said. B次元官网网址淗e was a family-first man.B次元官网网址�
Marg, HarperB次元官网网址檚 longtime teammate on and off the ice, died in 2014, and he was also predeceased by his son, Laurie, who drowned tragically in the Cowichan River at the age of two and a half. He is survived by three daughters, Glenda Barrett, Bonnie Segger and Cathy Waters, as well as five grandchildren and six great-grandchildren.
B次元官网网址淗e was an amazing dad,B次元官网网址� Segger said. B次元官网网址淗e was always strong and steady. He was very ethical, always ready to lend a hand. He didnB次元官网网址檛 say a lot, but he was always there. He always had our backs. He was generous. He raised us to care for each other.B次元官网网址�
Segger said that her father died around 1 a.m. on Aug. 3, at the Cerwydden care home in Duncan, where he lived for the last four and a half years. Although he had several different health issues in recent years, he was B次元官网网址渟uper contentB次元官网网址� at Cerwydden, and his daughters were able to take him out for ice cream B次元官网网址� a favourite treat B次元官网网址� frequently.
B次元官网网址淭he last three weeks, all of a sudden he was in a lot of pain,B次元官网网址� Segger said. B次元官网网址淏ut he was very brave and never complained to the very end. WeB次元官网网址檙e very proud of him. We were grateful to have him in our lives for so long.B次元官网网址�
