A funeral service for one of Red Deer’s most celebrated citizens will be held on Thursday.
City councillor and devoted keeper of Red Deer’s history Michael Dawe passed away on Christmas Eve. A funeral service is set for 1 p.m. at Gaetz Memorial United Church, 4780 Ross Street. To accommodate the expected attendance a live video feed can be seen at Parkland Pavilion at Westerner Park. A reception will follow at Parkland Pavilion at 3 p.m. A public viewing will be held at Eventide Funeral Home, 4820 45th St. from 6-8 p.m. on Wednesday.
Dawe was a fifth-generation Red Deerian and also spent time at the family’s property in Norglenwold. He became the city’s first full-time archivist in 1979, a post he held until 2017.
He was named Red Deer’s Citizen of the Year in 2013 and twice voted “Most Beloved Citizen” by the readers of the Red Deer Express. His work with local schools earned him “Citizen of the Year” honours from the Alberta Teachers’ Association Council on School Administration and he received a Minister of Veterans’ Affairs Commendation for his work with veterans.
He was the author of six books and contributed hundreds of history columns to the Red Deer Advocate and other central Alberta weeklies. His last Advocate column submitted two days before his death and running on Dec. 27 celebrated the life of colourful North Red Deer mayor Percy Ernest Kent.
A dedicated volunteer, Dawe served on numerous boards and committees, was a founding member of the Alberta Archives Society, trustee on the David Thompson Health Authority and Red Deer Hospital Board and was a member of the Red Deer East Rotary Club for more than 35 years.
Dawe was known as much for his warm and friendly personality as for his love of his hometown.
“Genuinely interested in all he met, Michael made time for everyone who cared to have a chat with him — and those people were many,” reads his obituary. “An incredibly astute observer of human nature, Michael loved the ridiculous and the sublime in all of us, never judged our weaknesses or foibles, and celebrated us at our sometimes questionable best.
“The quality of acute observation and kindly acceptance was arguably what also made him a fine historian. He was possessed of the rare gift of making all people feel both interesting and heard.”
Dawe was predeceased by his parents, G.H. Dawe (Harold) Dawe and L.J. (Jean) Dawe. G.H. Dawe Community Centre was named after his father, a noted educator and library champion. He is survived by daughter Janvier Williams, close friend Beverly Williams, a brother and sister and numerous nieces and nephews.