Obituary of John Marion

It is with great sadness we announce the passing of John Alberi Marion, lifetime resident of Dawson Creek, British Columbia, on Thursday, January 13, 2022, at the age of 77 years.

John (and twin brother Joe) were born to Alberi & Mary Marion on October 8^th, 1944 in Dawson Creek, British Columbia. He was the 3rd of 11 children. Even though they were a large family, the kids were all very close and did everything together. He attended school in Dawson Creek, graduating in 1963. After high school he worked in carpentry for Red Wagner for a year, and then went to work for the BC forest service in Hudson’s Hope for 2 years. In 1966, John enrolled in vocational school at BCIT in Burnaby for carpentry. He received his red seal in 1970. Paul Fredrickson, the designer of the Fredrickson metric square, was one of his instructors. John then continued working with Wagner Construction, where he eventually became a partner. In May of 1975 he met the love of his life, Debbie McAllister. They got married July 3rd of 1976 and built their first home. On July 22, 1977, they welcomed their first child, Tyler and then on April 17, 1980 their second son, Christen, was born. John, Debbie, and the boys built their forever home just north of Dawson Creek. John started his own company, John Marion Construction (later to be called JDTC Construction), in 1984. John worked extremely hard his whole life and built many homes in the area. Some of the larger projects he had a hand in building include the rec centre in Chetwynd, the chopstick plant in Fort Nelson, the Kin Arena, Brown’s Chev Olds, Revelstoke Building Supply, Central Middle School addition, work for the Pioneer Village, and converting the grain elevator and NAR station into the art gallery and museum. He also had a passion for building furniture and was so talented at it. He could think of a plan in his head and have it built in no time at all. John loved traveling to Mexico over the winter with his family when work was slow. So many great memories were made, in Mazatlán especially. As Tyler and Christen became young adults, a new favorite vacation spot emerged - Las Vegas!! John loved to go sit at the slot machines and go to shows. Many summers were spent camping and fishing, and he could out fish anyone. Not much was considered work, even getting firewood. John loved his boys and when his grandkids came, he beamed with pride.

In June of 2017 John was diagnosed with esophageal cancer. September of that year he went to Vancouver for surgery. As soon as he was able, he was right back to work. Nothing could slow him down. But in June of 2020, the cancer returned. Even through chemo, he would go out to his wood shop and build furniture. He fought long and hard until the bitter end. He passed with his family by his side.

John was predeceased by his parents, Alberi and Mary, his brothers Vernon, Teddy, Rene, and Oscar, and brothers-in-law Danny Yuen and Ken Carlson.

John will be lovingly remembered by his wife Debbie, sons Tyler (Leanne) and Christen (Robyn), grandchildren Gracie, Sabastian, Eli, Lyndyn, Jordy, Jack, Riley, and Codi; brothers Joe, Frank, and Vern; sisters Rosemary Carlson, Betty Yuen, and Julie (Larry) Kirkpatrick; best friend Bernie O’Reilly, and numerous cousins, nieces, nephews, and friends.

A celebration of life will be held at the family home on Friday, July 1^st, 2022. The family is currently setting up a bursary in honour of John. More details for donations will be available at a later date.

“GET TO WORK!” – John Marion

Very Respectfully, Reynars Funeral Home and Crematorium