Brian Michael STREHLER

1938 - 2023

STREHLER, Brian Michael
20 November, 1938 - 25 September, 2023

We are devastated to announce that Brian Strehler passed away in Delta Hospital on September 25 after a brief illness.
Brian will be missed by his wife of 61 years Jan (Stringer); son Andrew and his partner Zoë Dunn of Toronto; daughter Karyn and her husband Kevin Swanson of Tsawwassen; grandchildren Sarah Strehler (Chris Woodford), Aimee Strehler (James Watkins), Perrin Swanson (Claire Gooding) and Willow Swanson; and great-granddaughter Olivia (Sarah and Chris's daughter).

Brian was born and raised in Pinner, on the outskirts of London, England, only child to Eugen and Erna Strehler.

After doing military service in the Coldstream Guards, including guard duty at Buckingham Palace, Brian emigrated to Canada in 1960, settling in Toronto. There he met Jan, and they were married in 1961. They started their family in Toronto, then Brian's work took them back to London in the mid-1970s. The family returned to Canada in 1980, settling permanently in Tsawwassen, BC.

Brian had wide ranging interests and worked in several different fields over the years. In addition to his work for Planned Parenthood, both nationally and internationally, he spent several years managing a consular office in Vancouver, and then working at a customs brokerage in Surrey. He transitioned into retirement in the early 2000s.

He was truly a man of great wit and wisdom. He was an avid reader of fiction and non-fiction, and devoured books and magazines on current events, history, and more. He was also a talented writer and could craft anything from meaningful lines in a card, to thoughtful analysis in an article, to a full-length suspense novel. Of course, all his reading made him an expert at crossword puzzles!

Brian enjoyed traveling. He traveled extensively with International Planned Parenthood, and later enjoyed vacations throughout Europe, the US southwest, and across BC with Jan.

He cherished the annual family trip to Harrison Hot Springs, especially enjoying the summer weather relaxing with all the grandchildren. Despite living halfway across the country, Brian had a very close relationship with granddaughters Sarah and Aimee, who came to BC for a couple of weeks every summer while growing up. He was also incredibly supportive of his local grandchildren, Perrin and Willow, regularly attending gymnastics competitions, concerts, and much more.

Brian was incredibly funny, with a dry, subtle sense of humour most of the time, but he could burst out into pure silliness on occasion. Despite this humour, he was also very serious and wise when the occasion required.

Brian was a man of quiet and steadfast faith. Over the past couple of decades, he dedicated much time and energy to helping establish and build a ministry in Vancouver's Downtown Eastside through the St. James' Street Outreach program.

A memorial service will be held at 12 noon on October 14, 2023, at All Saints Anglican Church, 4755 Arthur Drive, Delta, BC.

In lieu of flowers, please consider a donation to Doctors Without Borders.