VIVIAN JOAN HAMILTON (nee BELCHER) Vivian Joan Hamilton, born August 6, 1946 in Winnipeg at the St. Boniface Hospital, died February 1, 2014 at Juravinski Hospital in Hamilton, Ontario. She was predeceased by her mother Maude and her father William Arthur Belcher. She is survived by her daughter Tiffany (Todd Sawatzky), and numerous cousins, nieces, and nephews on the Belcher side in Manitoba and Alberta, and on the Hamilton side in Ontario. Viv's dad was in the Royal Canadian Air Force during and after the Second World War. The family was posted in Baden Baden for several years in the 1950s, and in different bases within Canada thereafter. She met her husband David in Ottawa. They were married in Portage la Prairie, Manitoba in 1968. Her daughter was born in Portage in 1973. Her husband was in the diplomatic corps and they served overseas in Paris, Rome, and Budapest. They returned to Canada in 1988. Viv returned to Winnipeg in 1990 and remained there until 2011, when she moved to Hamilton where she resided until the time of her death. She was a housewife overseas and worked as an embassy liaison for new families while in Hungary. She was a chef in Winnipeg and for many years boarded foreign students from Japan, Mexico and China. She had a passion for the beach and traveling and her greatest love was animals. She was a supporter of the Humane Society and PETA. She reflected fondly on her own travels, scooting around on her motorcycle in Italy, getting her boaters license at the St. James Legion, even though she never had a driver's license, and her career in cooking. As per her wishes there will be no service, just a gathering at a pub or restaurant to celebrate the happy times. As she always wanted to be by the water, her ashes will be interred at the family cottage. The family wishes to extend their thanks to the staff at Juravinski Hospital. Donations can be made to the Winnipeg Humane Society, 45 Hurst Way, Winnipeg, Manitoba, R3T 0R3.
As published in the Winnipeg Free Press on February 08, 2014
Note: David Hamilton, the former husband of Vivian is a retired Foreign Service Communicator (CM) and is believed to be living in Toronto.
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