Laila Bird

Laila Bird of Princeton, BC passed away peacefully on February 26, 2022 at the age of 86 years. She was predeceased by her father, Eric McKenzie Muncaster and her mother, Stella Coverdale; sister, Molly Brabants.

She will be remembered and sadly missed by her daughter, Sally Bird (Bruce), son Jesse Bird (Janet), son, William Bird and daughter, Nancy Hampson (Trevor); ex-husband, Dick Bird; grandchildren, Elizabeth and Stuart Hampson and Bradley Jager; great-grandchildren, Kelsey and Whitley Jager; and bother, Ian Muncaster. She will be sorely missed by Bruce, the dog and her kitties, Nipper and Tucker.

Laila had many interests including reading, gardening and cooking. She loved animals and always had bird feeders out so she could watch the birds.

One of Laila’s first jobs was with the Dutch Embassy in London, England, working in public relations. She took parties of journalists to Holland to see the rebuilt areas following the German occupation as the Dutch government was eager to show the world that the Netherlands was “back in business.”

She came to Canada in 1957 and lived with her brother in Montreal before moving with him to North Vancouver in 1958. Laila decided to stay there and that is where she met her husband, Dick. Together they started a pig farm in Ladner where they had Sally and later they bought land in South Langley where they built a pig farm and had the rest of their children. She earned extra money as a rural route mail carrier and various other jobs. Somehow, she also managed to volunteer with her children’s sports activities and was on the parent/teacher committee at school. Later she became an administrative assistant before retiring to Princeton to live with her son, Will and help him look after his cats and dogs while he went away to work in the mines.

Laila was diagnosed with colon cancer in 2014 and then the forest fire took their home in 2017. She was always thankful that she had the support of the Princeton community.

A Celebration of Laila’s Life will be held on Monday, March 28, 2022 at 1:00 p.m. at the Princeton Legion, 170 Bridge Street. Memorial tributes will be greatly accepted at your local hospital auxiliary.