Errol C. Hemingson

HEMINGSON Errol C., born February 23, 1938, passed away in his sleep in the early hours of Saturday, February 16, 2008 in the Palliative Care Ward at St. Paul's Hospital just a few days short of his 70th birthday. The second son of Norman and Ivy (nee Morrow) Hemingson, Errol was born in Portage La Prairie, Manitoba and is survived by his brother Vincent Hemingson and sister, Delores Hill. Errol is also survived by his sons Vince, Brad and Kent and his daughter Charlene Bienvenu, whom he had with his first wife, Sally Hemingson. Brad and Margaret Hemingson gifted Errol with three beautiful grandchildren, Stewart, Alastair and Mhairi. Errol served in the Royal Canadian Navy from 1958-1959 where he was stationed at HMCS Naden in Esquimalt, where like many young men from the prairies, he developed a profound love of the sea. After leaving the Navy and returning to Winnipeg, Manitoba, Errol was an accomplished salesman with Allis-Chalmers Rumley Ltd., traveling all across Western Canada. After deciding to spend more time at home with his family, Errol moved to Vancouver Island, where he owned several successful small businesses in the Parksville and Nanaimo areas. During this time Errol was an avid horseman and hobby farmer. Shortly after moving to the West Coast, Errol purchased the first of what were to be many sea-going vessels, from fishing boats and sail boats to pleasure cruisers. Errol was also an avid car and motorcycle enthusiast, a pilot and for a time had a Cessna 172 which he loved to fly. After moving to Vancouver in the early '80's, Errol was a well-known and affectionately controversial Howe Street stock promoter in the junior mining sector of the Vancouver Stock Exchange. A number of his public companies received a tremendous amount of publicity and it was a life-long dream of Errol's to find and put into production a working mine. Few things in life made him happier than the excitement of prospecting, staking claims and running a drilling program. He was a Vancouver stock promoter in the grand old tradition. There was no part of the mining business for which he was not fiercely passionate. He is perhaps best remembered for his company, Butler Mountain Minerals Corporation. After his first marriage ended in 1980, Errol remarried again in 1987 to Alexa Mieklejohn. Sadly, that marriage ended in divorce as well. In Errol's own words, "I had two wonderful wives, three beautiful sons and a daughter who was a miracle. That's not a bad life". Due to increasing problems with his health and a desire to spend more time in warmer climates, Errol sailed to Mexico in 1987 aboard his beloved ketch, the Stone Raven. It was the first of many trips to Mexico, the southern United States and the Caribbean. In his later years, Errol divided his time between Canada and the United States, and with his spirit of adventure still intact, traveled all over the world. Errol Hemingson was a cowboy, miner, sailor, bon vivant, and raconteur with a reputation for being able to talk the birds out of the trees. He was a larger than life figure who left an indelible impression, and a character in the grandest of traditions. A Celebration of Life Service will be held to remember Errol at the False Creek Yacht Club, 1661 Granville Street, on Sunday, March 9 starting at 3:00 PM. www.fcyc.com Any who knew Errol, family and friends, are welcome to attend. In lieu of flowers, Errol requested that donations be made to St. Paul's Hospital - www.providencehealthcare.ca For more information contact Vince Hemingson (604) 331-0333