With great sorrow, we say goodbye to our beloved husband, father, grandfather, brother, uncle and friend.
Rob was born in Fort William, Ontario where he resided until 1964. The family then moved to Victoria. From then onwards, he would always call the green land and blue sea of the west coast his home. During high school, Rob excelled in academics, rugby and horsemanship. He travelled back to Ontario to the University of Guelph for his BSc and then returned to the University of Victoria for further degrees. Rob was an exceptional, innovative and respected chemistry and biology teacher at Oak Bay, Lansdowne and Victoria High School. His leadership strengths led him to being President of the GVTA and vice-principal at Victoria High School, Spectrum and Central Middle School. He finished his career as the Director of Human Resources, Educational Staffing for SD 61.
Rob was a lover of new technology, and an excellent and creative chef. He was an avid sailor. He built and refurbished his two sailboats, Loon Harbour and Stewball. He raced on his own boats and as crew on friends’ boats in many regattas and Swiftsures. He turned his sights to motorcycles after retirement, riding his BMW 17,000 km across Canada this summer to Newfoundland. In all his activities, Rob taught others the joys of his chosen sports and was always willing to offer help, support, and inspiration.
Sadly, Rob was diagnosed with pancreatic cancer in late November and died three weeks later. He leaves to mourn and celebrate a life well lived, Cheryl, his wife of forty-three years; Emma (Jacob Galati) and Carly (Kyle Goodwin), his cherished daughters; and Rei Galati, his treasured granddaughter. He will be truly missed by his sister Susan (Glen); brothers Don (Pat) and Richard (Susie) and sister-in-law Karen, and his nieces and nephews. Rob has left behind many valued friends and colleagues.
We wish to thank Dr. Bill Shoichet, Rob’s GP, and the many health care professionals who took such great care of Rob, especially those at the Royal Jubilee Hospital Floors 4N and 8S. Thanks also to our family and friends for their continued love and support.
At Rob’s request, there will be a family celebration at a later time.
In lieu of flowers, please consider a donation to the Mustard Seed.
McCall Gardens
www.mccallgardens.com
12 Responses
To Rob’s family,
I worked with Rob at Lansdowne Jr. High for a year and never forgot his kindness, his intelligent mind, and his calm and caring nature. He was a very special man and I learned a great deal of life skills by his example. He had such a wonderful way of working with people that made them feel listened to, accepted unconditionally, and you left his presence a much better person than when you first encountered him. My husband and I also had sailboats so we had many conversations around his love of the water also.
He will leave a huge hole in your lives and I hope that the wonderful memories you all shared together will help heal the grief over time. (Wendy) Kate Fitzgerald
I am so sorry to learn of Rob’s (Mr. Chapple’s) passing and offer sincere condolences to Mrs. Chapple and to the family. I had the good fortune to have Mr. Chapple teach me Chemistry 11 at Oak Bay High, and although I never had any particular aptitude for science, he was one of those teachers who demonstrated such a passion for their subject that it was passed on to the student. I hope you are comforted by his strong legacy in education in this province. My thoughts and prayers are with your family at this most difficult time.
Sincerely, Jennifer Power