2024 Losses: Charlie Leake

     Back in the late 1970’s when we moved to McBride, we began to notice that once or twice a year a couple of fighter jets, flying very low, lower than the mountain peaks, would streak through the Valley, double back, then turn to proceed in the direction they were first going.  The roar of their engines, reverberating off the mountains, always left us wondering what was going on.

    We eventually learned that there was a guy, a retired Lt. Col. from the Royal Canadian Air Force, named Charlie Leake, who lived in the Valley, and whenever his old air force comrades were flying in  the area, they would affectionately make a detour to “buzz” Charlie’s house.

    We didn’t get to know Charlie until a couple of years later, when I began working at the BC Forest Service.  The Forest Service employed Charlie and his small plane during the summer to fly “Patrol” over the vast mountainous wilderness of our Forest District, looking for smoke that would indicate a forest fire.  My wife was hired to fly everyday with Charlie, over the mountain peaks, isolated river valleys, lakes, and glaciers, as the observer in the plane.

    Charlie and his wife Pat, some time ago left our winters behind, and moved down to Comox, BC on Vancouver Island.  The photo above was taken at Charlie’s Goodbye Party.  Comox has an Canadian Forces Air Base.  Charlie and Pat would periodically fly back to McBride for a visit on Charlie’s plane.  We had heard that Charlie, at the advanced age of 91, had just renewed his Pilot License for five more years.  Weeks later, he suddenly and unexpectedly died.

    Charlie had grown up in McBride, loved flying, and was always flying his plane around, and  organizing things at the McBride air field.  We would often run into Charlie when we would walk our dog down the tarmac of the airfield.  That field is now officially known as the Charlie Leake Field Aerodrome (photo below).  In the brief announcement in the Little McBride Paper, it referenced Charlie’s nickname, “Snarly”, which was certainly a misnomer, because to us that Charlie was always smiling, joking around, and friendly.

    Charlie Leake was one of those McBride characters that played a memorable part in our lives in the Robson Valley.  He is someone we will always remember.

        View my paintings at:  davidmarchant2.ca