Obituary of Daniel "Dan the Man" Yule

It is with deep sadness that we announce the passing of our beloved “Dan the Man”, Daniel Anthony Yule, a long-time resident of Dawson Creek, British Columbia on Thursday, September 29, 2022, at the age of 69 years. Dan succumbed to a short battle with lung cancer and emphysema at the Dawson Creek Hospital

Dan’s sense of humour and ready smile were what first attracted Pat, although she initially thought he was much younger than her and not marriage material, so to speak. As she said at that time, “I’m not interested in marrying a baby husband or one whose hair is longer than mine!” Dan persisted, cut his hair, and proved to be just slightly older than Pat. 

Dan came from a blended family so left to mourn many who were connected to him through birth, but also the new family he gained, who welcomed him unreservedly when he married Pat.  Dan was particularly pleased to be accepted by Pat’s mom, whom he had been warned about. “She won’t like you, don’t worry about it, she never liked any of our boyfriends.” And whom he won over to the point she shared how much he reminded her of Pat’s dad George and his brothers in their younger years, and she allowed Dan to hug her in spite of her admission that she usually didn’t like to be hugged. 

Dan was born in Calgary on June 14, 1953. He was a true redneck during the early years of his life.  This was only restrained in later years when he accepted Jesus as his Lord and Savior, and married Pat. He sought to serve and obey his Savior and be a good, generous, and loving husband.  He spent his early years driving big rigs throughout British Columbia and Alberta, then turned to appliance and refrigeration repair after he required back surgery and could no longer handle the long-haul trucking.  He later joined the Dawson Co-Op as their maintenance man and retired from there in 2017.  His ready wit and quick smile soon earned him the nickname of “Dan the Man”. His uniform of blue coveralls, and his generous girth caused Pat to teasingly call him her big blue Smurf. Dan was a real salmon and halibut fishing fanatic and for some years enjoyed an annual trip to “Rupert” to fish, whether it was as a couples trip or “men only”.  Pat also enjoyed fishing so her only complaint was that one fishing trip wasn’t over before he was making plans for next year’s.

Dan and Pat were married in October 2000.  They were members of Dawson Creek Community church at the time and since the church building had not yet been renovated, the congregation was temporarily holding its Sunday services at Reynars through the generosity of the owners at that time.  Carol and Ernie also generously provided the use of the building for Dan and Pat’s wedding ceremony, and although some thought it a little strange, Pat proudly walked down the aisle to be joined in marriage to Dan, with our pastors at the time, David and Phyllis Roch, officiating.  With Dan’s passing, Pat entrusted his care to the new owners of Reynars, and it felt very fitting to have him return to Reynars just a few days short of their twenty-second wedding anniversary. 

Dan and Pat were married in their forties, so had no children of their own, but agreed that if the need arose, they would gladly care for any children within their immediate or extended family.  This need never did materialize so after several years of Pat’s pleading, Dan agreed to adopt a cat.  Thus, Bandit entered their lives, resulting in a love-hate relationship between Dan and pussycat. Bandit only occasionally condescended to being cuddled by Dan, and it often resulted in Dan’s being scratched or bitten and threatening to turn pussycat into a slipper!  Dan’s threats of “it’s either me or the cat!” and comments that “you love that cat more than me” generally resulted in a retort from Pat that she and pussycat weren’t going anywhere and generally Dan soon forgave all. This ongoing mini war did not prevent Dan from shedding a few tears when Bandit had a health emergency and there was a threat of losing him.

When Dan and Pat chose their engagement and wedding rings, Pat stated she did not want a solitaire, so they chose both an engagement ring and matching wedding rings that each contained three stones, not realizing at the time that these rings were commonly referred to as Trinity rings.  Those rings proved to be a further testimony of their love and commitment to each other and to Christ as they came to represent the Christ centered marriage they desired to have. 

Dan maintained his sense of humour to the end, and when he realized the end was near, he asked Pat to call the pastor, and then asked Pat to join him on the hospital bed so he could give her “one last cuddle”.  This required assistance from our amazing nurse, and once accomplished, Dan and Pat enjoyed a joke with the nurse that the pastor was going to walk through the door and find them in bed together.

Dan was cared for with great care and compassion during his last few days, from the amazing ambulance crew that transported him to hospital twice in 24 hours and popped their heads into his room that last night to share a few jokes and express concern for us, to the amazing nurses and doctors we encountered in Emergency. They went above and beyond to determine if there was any further treatment to offer and kept Dan pain free and helped him pass with dignity and respect.  Thank you to all involved,  but a special thank you to Sarah whom we know advocated behind the scenes for us and quickly accepted Dan’s apology when he realized he had offended her, to Sam who adjusted and readjusted equipment in an attempt to keep Dan comfortable, to our new pastor David, who responded to our call late at night, to Sidney who provided final nursing care, and to Doctors Ghanim and Sidhu who collaborated to keep Dan as comfortable as possible and honored his final wishes, and finally to Reynars to whom we entrusted our beloved Dan. 

With respect to Dan’s wishes, no formal service will be held. A family memorial will be planned for next summer, when we will return Dan to Newfoundland, where he and Pat became engaged and which he fell in love with the first time he visited “the Rock”.

Very Respectfully, Reynars Funeral Home and Crematorium