Donald Michael Leslie Shorting

23 Responses

1. To the family of Dr. Don Shorting, we are so sorry for the loss of your father.Don was a very good and long time friend of are family here in Bellingham, my wife and I will miss visiting Don on yearly trip to Victoria. I am sure he is now talking stamps and postcards with my dad Tripo. Take care and God bless

2. My heart goes out to Don’s family at this time of loss. He was the most caring and amazing person who came to visit my husband Jim every week when Jim was very unwell. Don had so many stories to tell and we both looked forward to his visits.
   So many hockey trips and so many memories. Don will never be forgotten.

3. I met Don through Postcrossing, it was such a pleasurer to exchange postcards, stamps and letter correspondence with him. He cares about his work and passionate about stamp collecting. After he founds out I like fish photos, he went out his way to find me a astonishing photo fish postcard, it was so precious to me! When I received the letter from Donna, I felt something happened to Don, after I read the letter, I was very sad. Don, I will always remember your friendship and your kindness.

4. Regina Dietrich

   Unfortunately, I only met Don Shorting once during our holiday in Canada
   June 2019. I met him at a hotel in Victoria, where he worked as a stamp enthusiast. He talked about his work together with children and young people in the stamp clubs. Don was accommodating in an empathetic way and interested in his fellow human beings. Especially to the young generation he tried to approach with his passion for stamps and to develop their interest in this beautiful hobby. So our grandson Fabian (11 years) also enjoyed a letter from Canada with very nice stamps. I am very grateful for the unfortunately only short correspondence with Don, because he was particularly sympathetic to me because of his diverse interests and as a family man. We are very sad, our thoughts are with Don and his family. My family and I wish you all the strength to get through this difficult time.

5. Thank you for letting me know. I’m not the best at expressing feelings. When I received your letter I gulped and said ‘oh no’ before opening envelope. It is with deep sadness hearing about his passing. He was our family physician for many years. Such kindness and devotion to us. When I moved to Fraser Valley in 1989 we exchanged Xmas cards and I continued throughout the years sending stamps. My heart goes out to all of the family. He used to make a point of stopping by for a cup of tea to elderly patients. Who does that now. Such a truly caring wonderful man. You are definitely one in a million and will be sadly missed by all.

   Death leaves a heartache no one can heal; Love leaves a memory no one can steal.

6. Dear Shorting family,
   I would like to offer the sincere condolences of the “Sammlergemeinschaft Rotthalmuenster e.V.”. We are a collectors society in Lower Bavaria, Germany. We had the pleasure to get acquainted with Don and to host him at our annual fair in February 2018.

   Until then, we used to have only a few participants from other European countries in those fairs. So I was very astonished when I was contacted by an 82 year old Canadian collector by eMail asking for details to complete his travel arrangements to our fair. At first I thought this is a joke but after one or two mails, I knew that he was serious. Up to that time, I did not know anybody his age who would dare to travel alone to a remote continent, without speaking the language, going to places a bit disconnected from public transporation where he did not know anybody before.
   But he had the courage and the passion to realize his plan and we were very grateful to help him by picking him up from the remote train station, organizing a place to stay and so on. I believe he has enjoyed his visit with us and his story has well deserved an article in the local newspaper.
   I am aware that Don’s family has lost a great and passionate character and I can only guess how painful his eternal departure must have been for all of them. Our thoughts are with them in these difficult times.

   Rest In Peace, Don! You have first impressed and then encouraged us. We have included you in our hearts and will always remember you.

   Sammlergemeinschaft Rotthalmuenster e.V.
   Hanspeter Zink (president)

7. I’m a Postcrosser who often corresponded wih Don to exchange stamps (his last mail was from Febriary 10, 2020).
   I was very saddened to receive your letter and I offer my sincere condolences.
   I knew Don was ill but he was very discret about it.
   I wish you all the courage to get through these difficult times.
   With all my friendships from France.

   Be careful with Covid-19 and stay home !!!

8. I only met Don once, about a year and a half ago, in his capacity as avid stamp person. I had a few thousand old stamps to give away and Don’s name was given to me. What a wonderful experience meeting such a kind-hearted, generous person! I loved his enthusiasm when he told me about going into public schools and turning students on to stamp collecting and helping them form stamp clubs. We talked about the wonderful side benefits of learning geography and history.

   Reading the above comments, I can see that Don was a much loved person who touched the hearts of many many people. His wholesome influence will live on. Blessings to all who are grieving his passing and blessings on his beautiful soul.

9. Don was involved for years with the Victoria Playmakers Hockey Tournament. Don was a member of the organizing committee almost from the outset. In addition as you may or may not know, keeping track of money with a gaggle of oldtimers is a daunting task. Don was excellent in this role and reminding us of our fiduciary duties. I received a message from the current Treasurer, Andy which reads:
   “Hello Wayne: Thank you for sending along this message. Don helped me transition into being Playmakers’ treasurer and was patient and generous with his time.”

   His quiet voice and manner, combined with his experience, resulted in action taken by the committee for various alternatives that were presented to us over time.

   Don established a strong relationship with the Japanese team that participated in our tournaments (they missed the 2011 Tournament due to the Tsunami in Japan). Don hosted each Japanese team that came to participate in the tournament at his house for an informal get together. He formed a very strong relationship with Mr. Sagiya, the original GM of the Mandai Memorials, which subsequently morphed into the Vanstars.

   As a result of this relationship, when the Victoria Oldtimers went to Japan for a hockey trip Mr. Sagiya hosted, Don, Allen, my wife, Jane and I to a wonderful 3-4 days touring historic areas of Japan.

   His quiet manner will be missed.

10. Dr. Don Shorting was a very important person in our lives! He guided us through the birth of our three children, cared for them as they grew…..helped us with aging parents and stood by us as we battled a life threating illness. He was always calm, always kind, always determined to make things better.
    He was a skilled surgeon and compassionate doctor. We were so fortunate to have him as our physician! As a mentor and as a friend.
    Our world is a better place because of Dr. Don and we are ever so grateful for his involvement in our lives.
    With our sincere sympathy.