Obituary of Alice May Thomson

It is with great sadness we announce the passing of Alice May Thomson, 89, of Coquitlam, BC on May 1, 2017. She was born in Lashburn, Saskatchewan and grew up in Westbank, British Columbia. She trained as a nurse in the Royal Columbian Hospital, New Westminster, BC, graduating in 1950. After graduating she worked at Pediatrics of the Royal Columbian Hospital, New Westminster, BC (1951), as Head Nurse of the Pentecostal Rest Home in North Burnaby, BC (1952) and at the Arlington General Hospital, Arlington, Washington (1953). Having heard of the need for a trained nurse in the Home for Aged Christians in Puerto Cabello, Venezuela, she expressed her desire to go as a missionary to Venezuela to the elders of several assemblies of Christians she had been in fellowship with: Arlington Gospel Hall (Arlington, Washington), Cedar Cottage Gospel Hall (Vancouver, BC) and Highway Road Gospel Hall (Westbank, BC). These three assemblies commended her as a missionary to Venezuela in 1954. In 1957 she married an Australian missionary who had arrived in Venezuela in 1956 (Neal Thomson). After marrying they both continued on in missionary work in Venezuela and Colombia until 2011 when they moved to Canada. Alice was engaged in the care of elderly Christians, children’s Sunday School, counselling of younger sisters and visitation of needy Christians additional to her duties as wife of a missionary and mother of two. Alice will be greatly missed by her husband, Neal; sons George (Darsy) and Edward (Aligda) and seven grandchildren: Michael, Mathew, Mirabel, Neal Jr, Helen, Melissa and Edward Jr. She will also be lovingly remembered by her sisters: Edith Bergsma, Frances Funnel and Jean Grice. Alice was predeceased by sisters, Olive Brundage and Mary Griffin; and brothers-in-law, Albert Funnel, Jack Griffin, John Bergsma, Edwin Brundage and Leslie Grice. The Funeral Service will be held jointly with her late husband Neal at 11:00 am on Friday, May 12, 2017 at the South Burnaby Gospel Hall, 6907 Elwell St, Burnaby, with interments to follow at 1:30 pm at the Surrey Centre Cemetery, 16671 Old McLellan Rd, Surrey.