By Janis Foster
Black Press Media contributor
Winifred Searle鈥檚 friends were stunned when she suddenly passed away following an accident at a fitness class.
But they were unsurprised by the generous legacies she left behind to enrich her community.
Although she was just a few days shy of 92, Searle was active, healthy and capable and in the midst of planning a trip with some of her many friends.
鈥淣o one expected her to die. She was so totally with it,鈥� said her friend Alison Pearson.
鈥淪he walked up and down hill to Kwomais Park every day but she wouldn鈥檛 let any of us walk with her, she said we were too slow,鈥� recalled neighbour Joanne Cunningham.
Searle was participating in an exercise class in White Rock in March 2016 when she lost her balance, fell against a concrete pillar and suffered a fatal head injury.
When Win passed on, 90 per cent of her estate went to charities, including generous bequests to Knowledge Network and the Brain Research Centre at UBC.
A regular attendee at courses at Third Age Learning at Kwantlen, she also made an endowment enabling TALK to offer an annual speaker series titled Compelling Conversations.
The first event is talk by Vancouver Sun columnist Douglas Todd, Can we experience unity in a metropolis of enclaves? on April 3 at 7 p.m. at the Melville Centre for Dialogue at KPU Richmond.
Born in England, Win had been an intrepid and independent woman all her life, travelling and working with a travelling judge in New Zealand before emigrating to Canada. 鈥淭hat was in the 鈥�50s when young women didn鈥檛 go travelling on their own,鈥� noted friend Sheenagh Brooks.
After moving to Vancouver Searle worked as 鈥渉igh-powered鈥� secretary at the UBC medical school and then at the Canadian Cancer Society.
She met Fred Searle, a widower, at the North Shore Hikers and they married in 1980 when she was in her 50s and he was in his 60s. The active couple were members of the The Golden Agers Vancouver Historical Society and enjoyed many long wilderness treks and camping trips over the years.
They became interested in moving to White Rock 鈥� but not until Fred, then in his 70s, had determined the wind and tides. 鈥淔red wanted to make sure the winds were good for his windsurfing. He didn鈥檛 want to come if the winds weren鈥檛 good,鈥� said friend Kay Pennant. 鈥淗e surfed into his 90s.鈥�
The Searles were members of the Unitarian Church in Vancouver and became founding members of South Fraser Unitarian Congregation in White Rock/South Surrey. They enjoyed Scottish dancing, hiking, golfing and entertaining.
Fred and Win鈥檚 names appeared in the local newspaper many times for their generous donations to local charities including the Peace Arch News Christmas Fund, the Peace Arch Hospital Foundation, Vancouver Foundation, Canuck Place and the Canadian Cancer Agency.
The couple were great believers in education and lifelong learning. Before Fred鈥檚 death in 2012, they established an Endowment Award at Kwantlen Polytechnic University for an annual student scholarship. The Fred and Win Searle Music Award provides an annual scholarship as a tribute to all the musicians who enriched their lives over the years.
鈥淭hey were very giving people 鈥攏ot just monetarily,鈥� said friend Mike Wilson. 鈥淭hey gave and gave of themselves. They offered caring friendships to all.鈥�
Admission to April 3 TALK conversation is free, however, registration required. Go to
