Daisy Lynne Tingley was born in Aldershot, England, in 1919. She grew up surviving the challenges and hardships of war, as the year of her birth marked the ending of WWI, and the Second World War would begin as she entered her twenties.
Tingley left England with her young son Tig aboard the HMS Franconia, a ship filled with fellow British war brides and their children, in March of 1945 as WWII drew to a close. The crossing of the Atlantic would take seven days, and although they sailed through some rough weather, access to a variety of food and fresh fruit after years of strict rationing were a welcomed luxury to Tingley and her son.
The Franconia landed in Halifax, and from there, Tingley and her son continued their long journey to a new life by travelling across Canada on the Canadian National Railway to Vancouver.
The final leg of their travel would see Tingley and her son taking a train north from Vancouver on the Pacific Great Eastern Railway, arriving at their final destination of Quesnel in May of 1945.
Tingley’s first home was with the Baker family, who owned and operated at dairy farm. The rural setting was quite a change of lifestyle for Tingley. However, she felt a sense of awe in the vastness and beauty of the land and quickly developed an appreciation for a peaceful and quiet life without blackouts and the need for air raid shelters.
Tingley would truly embrace the Canadian and Cariboo lifestyle over the 74 years she has lived in the region, falling deeply in love with the rugged country and the communities that call it home. She would marry Ceal Tingley, who hailed from the Queen Charlotte Islands and who would eventually run for the Conservative Party in the 1950s and later become the mayor of Quesnel from 1970 to 1976.
Tingley would raise four sons in Quesnel, who in turn would produce 10 grandchildren, who would bear 19 great-grandchildren, who have to this date delivered seven great-great-grandchildren.
The journey to Canada may have originally been a means to provide a better life for herself and her son Tig, but it is clear that Daisy Lynne Tingley has and continues to brighten and better the lives of countless members of the community and her own family.
Tingley’s family held a 100th birthday party for her Saturday, Dec. 14 at Dunrovin Park Lodge. She turns 100 on Dec. 19.
READ MORE: City of Quesnel will give Ceal Tingley Park back to Lhtako Dené Nation
editor@quesnelobserver.com
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