Tribute

Valorie Brown
January 27th, 1954 – January 3rd, 2023
On Tuesday January 3rd , 2023, Valorie Isabella Brown passed peacefully at the Christine Morrison Hospice in Mission, BC. Her stay in hospice was short and filled with loving visits from some of her favourite people. Most notably, New Year’s Eve was spent with her immediate family, laughing, eating Greek food, and sharing memories.

Valorie was a beloved wife, mother, daughter, and friend. She was survived by her loving husband Edward, who took great pride in caring for her during her final weeks; children Chantel (Daniel) and Justin (Sarah); stepchildren Sabrina, Donna and Michael (Andrea); mother Barbara, her step-grandchildren and her unborn biological grandchild Baby King.

Valorie was born and raised in Montreal QC and moved to British Columbia to be with her dear husband, Edward, in 1986. It was while living in Maple Ridge as a mother with young children that she started her long-time career with Starbucks and discovered her love of conversation and kindness shared with members of the community that also had a love of strong coffee. During her time with Starbucks, Valorie made many lifelong friends with coworkers and customers alike.

Valorie was passionate about what she loved; she loved her family, her animals, gardening and Starbucks coffee immensely. You would almost always find her tending to her incredible garden during her free time. She knew every plant’s name, species and origin like the back of her hand; she was especially excited about the surprise members of her plant family from bird droppings. She was kindly nicknamed the ‘Plant Doctor’ by her son-in-law Daniel, as she had to revive many plants her daughter Chantel had watered to death. When she wasn’t tending to her plants, she was chasing her dogs around the yard to retrieve whatever gardening tool they had stolen from her while always having a smile on her face doing so.

Valorie and Edward connected over their love for the wild hummingbirds that visited their yard and garden. They would start each day checking on the feeders and spent many hours watching the birds, and the bees spend their time in her marvelous garden. On days the weather wouldn’t cooperate, or she simply wanted a change of scenery, she would join her son Justin along the riverbanks fishing and enjoying the beautiful outdoors. Watching him pursue his favourite hobby and seeing him so happy brought her endless joy. On most Wednesday evenings, she would join Justin and Sarah for dinner at The Ranch, and if he were lucky, sometimes she would bring along Ed.

Valorie’s Celebration of Life will be held at that very spot, the Ranch, on Sunday, January 15th, between 1:00 – 4:00 pm. This celebration is open to the public and will be a comfortable environment for those who knew her and loved her to remember the shining light she brought into their lives. The Ranch is located at 21973 132 Ave, Maple Ridge, BC.

In lieu of flowers, it was Valorie’s wish to have a donation made to any local animal rescue/shelter in her name and memory.