Michael John Woollends (Plainview)

Thank you for being here today to honour and celebrate the life of my father, Michael, who was, in every sense of the word, extraordinary. Born of old world valor, my father, the son of a Royal Marine, carried with him a legacy of service and honor. A man of incredible dedication and compassion, qualities that defined not only his life but his career in medicine. He graduated from the University of British Columbia Faculty of Medicine in 1968, stepping into a calling that would span decades and touch countless lives. He went on to specialize in both Emergency Medicine and Family Medicine, a reflection of his desire to be there in people's most urgent, vulnerable moments, as well as their everyday health and well being. Whether he was responding to life threatening emergencies or providing the steady care of a family doctor, my dad brought the same calm, capable and deeply human presence to every patient he saw. He was also recognized for his excellence and commitment by becoming a Fellow of the American College of Surgeons - a testament not just to his skill, but to the respect he earned from his peers across borders.

There's a story that says everything you need to know about my dad. One winter, during a fierce snowstorm in Bentley, Alberta, a woman went into labor. The roads were impassable and the weather unforgiving. But that did not deter him, he strapped on his skis and made his way through the storm to the hospital because someone needed him and that was enough for him as he was always driven by a deep sense of duty and love for humanity.

Yet, he was not serious or stoic, far from it - he was the embodiment of joy and warmth, a truly gregarious soul who lit up every room he entered. With a sharp wit and a hearty laugh, he had an uncanny ability to make people feel at ease, often turning ordinary moments into unforgettable memories. He was endlessly jovial, loving and exuberant, a man who embodied life with open arms and an open heart. To know him was to feel joy, he was warmth itself.

But beyond all of that, beyond the doctor, the friend, the gentleman - he was our rock, our champion, our mentor who never let us doubt how very deeply we were loved. He was patient, he was proud - of us and the life we shared, always leading our family with grace.

To my mother- he was her soul mate, her steady compassion during the fifty years pf marriage. She told me once, "He was the one I prayed for before I even knew his name." Even now, in this heartbreak, her love hasn't ended. It continues - quietly, fiercely - because real love doesn't go away. It lives on in memory, in the life they built and in the way she still says his name with softness. On her behalf and in her words, "He was the love of my life and I will carry him with me for the rest of mine."

So today we do not just mourn his passing. We celebrate a life lived nobly. We remember a man who walked through the world with the soul of a knight, not one who wore armor or carried a sword but one who fought for good in the world with compassion, wisdom, laughter and integrity.

Thank you dad, for showing us what it means to live with purpose, to love without condition and to give without expecting anything in return.

Rest well, noble heart, we will carry your light, your laughter and your legacy forward - always.

Footprints On The Sands Of Time

Tell me not, in mournful numbers,

Life is but an empty dream! –

For the soul is dead that slumbers,

And things are not what they seem.

Life is real! Life is earnest!

And the grave is not its goal;

Dust thou art, to dust returnest,

Was not spoken of the soul.

Not enjoyment, and not sorrow,

Is our destined end or way;

But to act, that each to-morrow

Find us farther than to-day.

Art is long, and Time is fleeting,

And our hearts, though stout and brave,

Still, like muffled drums, are beating

Funeral marches to the grave.

Trust no Future, howe’er pleasant!

Let the dead Past bury its dead!

Act, — act in the living Present!

Heart within, and God o’erhead!

Lives of great men all remind us

We can make our lives sublime,

And, departing, leave behind us

Footprints on the sands of time;

Footprints, that perhaps another,

Sailing o’er life’s solemn main,

A forlorn and shipwrecked brother,

Seeing, shall take heart again.

Let us, then, be up and doing,

With a heart for any fate;

Still achieving, still pursuing,

Learn to labor and to wait.

Henry Wadsworth Longfellow

Michael John Woollends, aged 81, passed away at his home in Plainview, Texas, September the 10th, 2025. Michael was born in London, England, on May the 7th, 1944. He was the son of the late Earnest and Peggy Woollends. Earnest was a Gordon Highlander who served in World War II in the Gordon Highland Regiment. His father encouraged him to attend medical school and become a doctor, and Michael attended and graduated from the University of British Columbia as a M.D., a Doctor of Medicine. Michael practiced medicine for nearly thirty years, and was a gentle, lighthearted, and often quiet man. In his lifetime, Michael was known and loved for his boyish sense of humor and his enjoyment of life. He is survived by his son, Michael Alexander Woollends, his daughter, Sara L. M. Woollends, and his wife, Alice Woollends.