Obituary of Leslie Bowman

Leslie Bowman passed away in Lloydminster, Alberta on Friday, December 26th, 2014 at the age of 81 years. He is survived by his loving wife Dorothy; three children: Cheryl (Darren) Larry and their children: Johnathon and Steven; Harold (Lorie) Bowman and their children: Bryce and Ryan; Brent (Jodi) Bowman and their children: Braydon and Katie and by one sister: Carole (Barren) Graham. The funeral service for Leslie Bowman will be conducted from The Dewberry Hall on Tuesday, December 30 at 2:00 P.M. Leslie Lloyd Bowman was born July 8, 1933 at Islay, Alberta. His mother and dad were living with Grandma and Grandpa Bowman at the time, so he went home to get lots of loving from not only doting grandparents, but Aunt Dora too. When he was 1 1/2, he moved straight north of Islay to a rented farm across the road from where Eric and Peggy Elliott live. When he was 3, the family moved again to NE-18-52-4, where he resided until his passing. If you knew Les as an adult, you wouldn't be surprised to know that that mischievous streak started very early. One story he told often was when he was four or five and visiting at his grandparents. Grandpa Rene was on his way for a pail of water with pail in one hand and gun in the other. Halfway to the well he layed down the gun and told Les not to touch. When he turned around Les picked up the gun and luckily shot over his head.... Grandpa Rene was a little angry and Les said when he grabbed him he ripped his brand-new overalls but didn't spank him. Rene needed that patience because another time Les cut a hole in his leather jacket to get a good piece of leather to use for his sling-shot. That sling-shot was a favorite toy and he was a good shot..... One day the hired man was building on the roof of the grainery and Les was trying to scare him. The stone he shot got a little too close, hit the hired man on the head and he fell off the grainery. Les took his first 9 years of schooling at the Deer Lake School. He rode his horse the 1 1/2 miles back and forth to school. He rode bareback, and in the winter he would gallop his horse to try to stay warm. All the kids stabled their horses in the school barn. One day at noon hour Les decided he should show the other boys how to ride a bucking bronc. He climbed on the horse, dug in with his heels and much to Les' surprise the horses back legs went through the wall of the barn and the horse hung there by his back legs. Les grew up at a time when there was no TV, so there was lots of time for crokinoe, cards and learning from his dad how to play the fiddle. There were lots of chores on the farm; cows to milk, pigs and turkeys and chickens to feed, wood and water to carry in and pails to empty. When Joe Philbin returned from the war he took on the job of educating the local boys about the birds and the bees. It took Dorothy many years to re-educate him. He had beautiful handwriting, and dazzled the Grandchildren with his Math skills. His sister Willa was 7 years younger, and Carole was 14 years younger. He was extremely close to both of them and to his parents. He and Willa had fond memories of doubling to school, though she sometimes complained that he made the horse go too fast. Les especially loved playing ball, and Willa and Carole were his catchers. Their hands stung! Through the years, Les kept a really close relationship with them; spending quality time, sharing work and fun, holidays and long visits. For grade 10, Les went to school in Kitscoty, and boarded in the dorm. The housemistress was stern, the boys had to peel the potatoes, wash dishes and clean, and two hours of homework were mandatory every night. Memorial Slideshow: <iframe width="560" height="315" src="//www.youtube.com/embed/3yiRXQwLKJA" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen=""></iframe> Eulogy Leslie Lloyd Bowman was born July 8, 1933 at lslay, Alberta. His mother and dad were living with Grandma and Grandpa Bowman at the time, so he went home to get lots of loving from not only doting Grandparents, but Aunt Dora too. When he was 1 1/2, he moved straight north of lslay to a rented farm across the road from where Eric and Peggy Elliott live. When he was 3, the family moved again to NE-18-52-4, where he resided until his passing. If you knew Les as an adult, you wouldn't be surprised to know that that mischievous streak started very early. One story he told often was when he was four or five and visiting at his grandparents. Grandpa Rene was on his way for a pail of water with pail in one hand and gun in the other. Halfway to the well he laid down the gun and told Les not to touch. When he turned around Les picked up the gun and luckily shot over his head .... Grandpa Rene was a little angry and Les said when he grabbed him he ripped his brand-new overalls but didn't spank him. Rene needed that patience because another time Les cut a hole in his leather jacket to get a good piece of leather to use for his sling-shot. That sling-shot was a favourite toy and he was a good shot ..... One day the hired man was building on the roof of the granary and Les was trying to scare him. The stone he shot got a little too close, hit the hired man on the head and he fell off the granary. Les took his first 9 years of schooling at the Deer Lake School. He rode his horse the 1 1/2 miles back and forth to school. He rode bareback, and in the winter he would gallop his horse to try to stay warm. All the kids stabled their horses in the school barn. One day at noon hour Les decided he should show the other boys how to ride a bucking bronco. He climbed on the horse, dug in with his heels and much to Les' surprise the horses back legs went through the wall of the barn and the horse hung there by his back legs. Les grew up at a time when there was no TV, so there was lots of time for crokinole, cards and I earning from his dad how to play the fiddle. There were lots of chores on the farm; cows to milk, pigs and turkeys and chickens to feed, wood and water to carry in and pails to empty. When Joe Philbin returned from the war he took on the job of educating the local boys about the birds and the bees. lt took Dorothy many years to re-educate him. He had beautiful handwriting, and dazzled the Grandchildren with his Math skills. His sister Willa was 7 years younger, and Carole was 14 years younger. He was extremely close to both of them and to his parents. He and Willa had fond memories of doubling to school, though she sometimes complained that he made the horse go too fast. Les especially loved playing ball, and Willa and Carole were his catchers. Their hands stung! Through the years, Les kept a really close relationship with them; spending quality time, sharing work and fun, holidays and long visits. For grade 10, Les went to school in Kitscoty, and boarded in the dorm. The housemistress was stern, the boys had to peel the potatoes, wash dishes and clean, and two hours of homework were mandatory every night. When Carole was 5 and Les 19, they sang the song &quot;Are you Mine?&quot; at the talent show in lslay. They won first prize. Les and his niece Teri shared the same birth date, Much later, Grandson Ryan was also born on July 8. In 1960 Les purchased the 3 quarters his Dad owned, and Durvvard and Margaret semi -retired in Vermilion. He spent many fun times at the neighbours: the Deford's, Mabel and Bernie Garnier's, Jimmy and Verna Armstrong's and with Dever and Lenore and the Prouds. ln the spring Les and Bob Proud and Eugene DeFord hunted muskrats and beavers. There was always a good excuse to stop back at Defords for Marys chocolate cake with the brown sugar icing, and lots of laughter. Les loved to go to Mabel and Bernie's, often he rode his horse straight across the field and they would see him coming. Out came the cards, and a night of laughter. When it was cold, they played a game of bounce the ball against the wall, to Warm Up. Les loved all sports, and he was super competitive. He especially loved baseball, and he pitched for Clandonald, Derwent, and the local Dewberry team. On JuIy 1, 1964 he played at the GreenLawn Old Timers picnic, and then went to the dance, and he drove Dorothy Mathison home in his black 1959 Chev Impala. They were married April 16, 1966. They settled down on the farm, and in the fall of 1967, some of Joe Philbins good advice paid off. Les and Dorothy were blessed with a brown eyed baby girl named Cheryl. Les shot a deer the same day, and he told Dorothy's grandma that now he had three deer. Harold was born in October of 1970, and they were thrilled to have a son. Brent completed the family in February of 1975, an d Les and Dorothy always said he was their bonus. Les was fond of his nieces and nephews, and when Melanie came to live with us in 1977 she had a special place in his heart. Our new house was built that year. They made lots of memories. Les had a good work ethic, and the kids all learned to work. They fixed fences, picked rocks, helped with cows, cleaned chickens, hauled bales and helped with crop in the spring and fall, and have fond memories of doing it. There was always a big garden too. Fun times were ball and hockey games, visiting neighbours and family, first of July picnic and fair, and the first time the kids saw the mountains, and the trip to Disneyland with the Grahams. When the kids were little, Les and Dorothy started to go to church, and their faith became very important to them. Family camp holds a lot of fun memories for everyone. The family grew with son in law Darren and daughters in law Jodi and Lorie. And Les respected all three of them, and loved them too. Along came 6 terrific grandchildren, Johnathon and Steven, Brayden, Bryce, Katie and Ryan. Les wasn't a man to brag but he was extremely proud of his kids, and grandkids. And sometimes did brag about them a bit. By the time the grandkids came along, grandpa had more time for play. And the grandkids have good memories of time spent with him. Johnathon remembers grandpa teasing and tickling grandma, and also teasing her by popping out his teeth. Steven remembers a fun time building a tree swing, and grandpa out shovelling him in the granary. One of Brayden and Bryces, memories is shooting gophers and Brayden also enjoyed shooting muskrats with him last spring. Going to La Ponge with grandpa was a fun time for Bryce. In the morning the grandkids would climb into bed with grandma and grandpa and get told the story of the three little pigs. Grandpa was the big bad wolf, and he would knock on the headboard, and say in a big mean voice; LET ME IN OR ILL HUFF AND PUFF AND ILL BLOW YOUR HOUSE IN!!! Katie says it was really scary! This fall grandpa had already shut off the tractor, but when Katie asked for a ride, he started it again and went one more round. Grandpa and Ryan had a fun shooting gallery contest, and they planted the potatoes and watched them grow. Les loved beer and the odd shot. Dorothy said in his younger years there was the odd time he liked it too much. lf you want a funny story, ask Warren about the dry gin, or Maurice about moving the cows, or Jimmy about the 999 night. He was very honest and genuine. He never pretended to be more than he was, and he valued people for their character; not for what they could do for him. Les was very tolerant of others' idiosyncrasies; accepting and enjoying people for who they were. He was careful with his nickels and generous with his dollars. He bought very little for himself, and he made a game out of patching things up with little cost. Harold didn't know that you could buy parts until he went to work for Alvin Bowman. Vernon marvelled at his combine belts, and corrals. He thought for himself, and when he did something, it was because he thought was right not because someone else did. All 3 kids were put to sleep many times listening to the thump of Les' foot as he practiced the fiddle and kept time to the music. And if you were fortunate enough to spend the night, you would hear him stomping back and forth across the floor so that you would get up and visit. He was quick witted and Dorothy was always kept well entertained. He loved to dance, and he loved to play the fiddle, and he loved to sit at the kitchen table and visit. Many happy hours were spent around the pool table. Les carried on the Bowman tradition of hunting, trapping and skinning with his boys. He often said that he made enough money selling fur to pay for the 'new' house. What woman would allow their husband a skinning room - complete with fleas -in the basement? Deer hunting with his dad, neighbours and brothers-in-law was a lot of fun. He loved the yearly fishing trips to La Plonge with Barren and Carole, Brenda, Rick and company. Les and Dorothy were fortunate enough to travel, and especially enjoyed time spent in Hawaii. A special trip was the one to Europe with Darren and Cheryl and a highlight of that trip for Les was seeing his mothers birthplace in Ireland. He had a quiet faith and he lived it without talking much about it. So when he spoke about it people really listened. He was really supportive of Dorothy's Ladies Bible Study, and always made sure that the chores and his life was organized around it. He enjoyed having coffee with the ladies before study started, and he was genuinely fond of each of them, though he did joke about the darn ladies making the arm of his chair loose again. Dorothy didn't get many store-bought flowers, but Les brought crocuses every spring, and then a large array of all the other wild flowers as they bloomed. Sometimes when he fiddled at the jamborees, he would say 'I GUESS I SHOULD PLAY THIS FOR MY WIFE' and then he played &quot;have I told you lately that l love you?&quot; Christmas morning he gave her a beautiful ring. Until his surgery last December, he was extremely strong and healthy. He was proud of the fact that he was still farming and feeding cattle with square bales. Because he was quite a bit older than Dorothy, he loved the fact that people (even the doctors) believed he was 10-15 years younger than he was. He fought hard, but when he decided this was a battle he couldn't win, he knew where he was going and was at peace with it. Les wasn't quite perfect, but he was a good, good man. His life was well lived; and he was very well loved. We'll miss you.