by Joy Metcalfe
(click images to enlarge)

STAN YIP
Vancouver’s Most Beloved Concierge

As my good friend, Monica Hayes said, for someone who loved playing golf, the UBC golf club was the ideal venue last month for the Celebration of Life for Stan Yip, the 46-year veteran bellman, bell captain, director of guest services and Chef Concierge at the Westin Bayshore, who passed away May 18 at the age of 86.

Stan Yip, remembering one of the many celebrities to cross his threshold.

The event was emceed by Monica, the former advertising and PR director at the hotel, whose reminiscences brought laughter and tears as the story was unveiled.

Stan was born in Vancouver to parents who emigrated from China in the early 1900s. He worked at a number of jobs in his teens and early twenties before applying for a job at the new waterfront hotel that was looking for Chinese bellmen.

The hotel was The Bayshore Inn, the year was 1961, and Stan was 24 years old. The uniform was silk mandarin collar jackets, skull caps and coolie slippers. It really suited this good looking fellow, whose congeniality was so contagious. He made friends everywhere, with the hotel guests, fellow employees, and in Trader Vic’s next door.

Denis Forristal, the venerable former G.M. at the Bayshore, shared touching comments from hotel executives from around the world who had worked with Stanley.

As a founding member of the West Coast chapter of Les Clef d’Or, Diane Dillon talked of how instrumental this organization was in gaining membership to the exclusive International Association of Concierges worldwide.

Stan was also heavily involved in women’s soft ball as a coach and business manager of the Doc Blues. Pat Maguire, a player on the team, spoke of his calming and nurturing soul. Doc’s Blues was the last true club team to represent Canada at the World’s and the only women’s club team to win a world championship medal. His efforts made Stan a proud inductee of both the Canadian and B.C. Sports Hall of Fame.

Stan remained at the Westin Bayshore for 46 years, retiring at the age of 70.

His longtime friend Edwin Lee closed the eulogies with an emotional trip down memory lane, recounting their 70-year friendship.

More than 200 guests celebrated Stan’s life with Jane, his beautiful, petite wife of 65 years, along with their three children, Karen, Kasey and Ryan and six grandchildren, who spoke of their dad’s family values, a commitment to being the best you can be, and unconditional love.

And really, aren’t those the same values you want to instill in all your children and grandchildren?

Rest in peace, Stan Yip …

RALPH BOWER
A Remarkable Recovery

Loved a recent piece on Global TV with Jay Durant. It was all about former Vancouver Sun photographer and all-round, really nice human being, Ralph Bower.

Ralph Bower, with a camera from the golden age of photography.

Ralph has numerous awards, tributes, medals, and certificates of merit for his expertise with a camera, bringing his subjects to life with the click of a button.

We almost lost this treasured gentleman a few months back when he climbed up a ladder in his garage to get some lumber from a rafter. Sure enough, he slipped and crashed down onto the cement floor below, suffering several serious injuries including a fractured skull.

Remarkably, Ralph has recovered, with excellent medical attention and the loving care of his son Doug and daughter Kelly, and particularly of Joan, his loving partner for the past 67 years.

Ralph turned 89 on June 16 and was at Hastings Racecourse on Father’s Day, where a multitude of friends welcomed him with open arms …

FATHER GREG SMITH

There was a very special gala gala do in West Vancouver a couple of weeks ago. The occasion was somewhat like the impressive Changing of the Guard at Buckingham Palace, but a lot less pretentious and a lot more fun.

Father Greg Smith had been at West Vancouver’s Christ the Redeemer Catholic Church for the past 15 years and leaves now as Monsignor Greg Smith to head the parish of Holy Name in Vancouver. The Monsignor has been described as having the heart of a shepherd and the zeal of an apostle, with a gift for enriching relationships and creating a loving community.

One of his West Vancouver parishioners, who also happens to be a lawyer, calls him “a dynamo of a priest, a messenger of love and a trooper of compassionate comfort,” adding that he was much more than a spiritual director. Everything he did during those years was positive, uplifting, and forward thinking.

Never flustered, always finding humour and grace in whatever the situation, especially during the COVID years when technical problems interrupted the streaming of his services and sermons.

Father Jeff Thompson recalled a time when he and Father Greg were confined within the rectory walls together, no other company, no trips, no visits, nothing at all. But both are quite chatty, sharing personal anecdotes from their seminary shenanigans, discussing newspaper columns, books and plays and musicals with Father Greg spontaneously breaking into Broadway tunes.

Like Father Jeff, we have all been enriched by his presence, his patience and his abiding love.

There’s a Sanskrit poem that seems somehow appropriate.

“Slender at first, they quickly gather force
Growing in richness as they run their course;
Once started, they do not turn back again,
Rivers and years and friendships with good men.”

THE GODFATHER OF FIREWORKS
The Founder of Our Annual Event

Does anyone actually recall the name of the genius who began our fantastic summertime pyrotechnics show in Vancouver? His name is Raymond Greenwood and the year was 1990.

Ray and his wife Stephanie were in Montreal on business and took in their exciting fireworks display. Raymond returned home, itching to start plans for Vancouver’s own pyrotechnics extravaganza.

When Ray starts planning, just clear the decks. His good friend, the late John Plul, then-vice president of Radio CKNW, cleared it to broadcast the show, just as he did with what is now Global BC.

Ray brought Benson and Hedges on board to sponsor the event, cleared it with the mayor, and called it The Symphony of Fire.

So a little tip of the fedora to the irrepressible and wonderfully positive, Ray Greenwood …

A GATHERING OF THE CLAN
A Special Moment For The Metcalfes

Last Saturday the Metcalfe family, which now numbers more than 45, came from all parts of B.C. to celebrate the life and times of my late husband, Bill, and to sing Happy Birthday to me to mark my 90th birthday.

Joy, celebrating her 90th and remembering her beloved Bill.

My speech went like this…

”Bill Metcalfe was peering out of the upstairs window of his parents’ Metcalfe Café and Dining room at Boundary Bay when he noticed a small family trudging along the waterfront road with all their worldly possessions, suitcases, bags and boxes.

It was an extremely cold and blustery January 1st, 1947 and the wind off the water was freezing. In fact, it was so cold that day that the ocean actually froze!

Bill’s first thought was “who are these idiots out in weather like this? What are they doing here? And where are they going?”

My mother had rented a cottage at Boundary Bay, not knowing where or what Boundary Bay was, just after we had arrived from Winnipeg, and we were trundling all our possessions to our new home. The place was totally and completely deserted and I went on a bus to Ladner to school.

Because the Metcalfe’s owned the only store open during the winter, and Bill was the cashier, (which he hated) we did meet a lot.

That summer, I turned 14, and had the cutest purple sweater. It was a Saturday and I had to go for groceries. I was so excited to see him that I accidentally dropped a quarter. We both dived for it and crashed our heads together. It really hurt and I started to cry.

Bill instantly put his arms around me – just as he has done for the past 74 years!”

After Bill’s passing in March, I found an old store bill and on the back of it was his scribbled speech at our 40th wedding anniversary at the Hotel Vancouver. In it, he recalled the beginnings of our Boundary Bay love story.

He said, “Even then, beyond any doubt, here was the girl that I wanted to spend my life with – and I have – with, hopefully, many more years to come.”

Rest in peace, my darling …