Ron passed away peacefully on October 4, 2021 in Saanichton, BC. Born May 15, 1941 in Vancouver, BC, he is survived by his partner, Xisa Huang; former wife, Lorraine Jakimchuk; sister, Carol Uszkalo (John); sister-in-law, Colleen Jakimchuk; children, Linda Bull (Don) and Rick (Sherry); grandchildren, Sean (Chelsea), Lindsey (Ryan), Lucas, Carli, Marcus and Roy; great-grandchildren, Lucy, Calla, Keaton, Violet, Harlow and Oliver. Ron was predeceased by his daughter, Patricia and brother, Harry.
Ron graduated in 1962 from UBC with a BSc. Biology. He moved to Edmonton to work for the Canadian Wildlife Service before beginning his own business, Renewable Resources Consulting Services, Ltd. In addition, he was the founding President of the Alberta Society of Professional Biologists and registered as a professional biologist (R.P. Bio Ret.) in British Columbia.
Ron’s career as a consulting Wildlife Biologist took him many places; from the Arctic to Borneo, the legacy of Ron’s extensive research is far reaching.
As an astute observer of nature, Ron’s appreciation for beauty permeated throughout his life. Ron was an avid fisherman, hunter, horticulturist, writer, singer and philanthropist, who took great pleasure in promoting the welfare of the world around him. Above all, nothing was more precious to Ron than his family.
A Celebration of Ron’s life was held in the Sequoia Centre at McCall Gardens, Victoria, BC on Saturday, October 30, 2021 at 2:00 pm. Due to COVID Restrictions, in person attendance was by invitation only. All others were welcome to attend virtually via Zoom. Click on the image below to watch a recording of the service…
In lieu of flowers, donations can be made to one of the following:
The Ronald D. Jakimchuk Foundation for Wildlife and Biodiversity Research via the Victoria Foundation
https://www.valhallafoundationforecology.org/
Saanich Peninsula Hospital Foundation
Condolences may be offered to the family below.
McCall Gardens
www.mccallgardens.com
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Gordon Maclaren Bradley
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Ken McCourt For over 50 years I have enjoyed a friendship and countless wonderful experiences with Ron, first as his employee and later as his business partner. He was a generous, thoughtful man with a remarkable intellect and sense of humour. I am deeply saddened by his passing and will miss him greatly. My sincere condolences to Xisa and the Jakimchuk family.
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George Gromada Our heartfelt condolences to Xisa and the Jakimchuk family in this sad time. We moved in next to Ron and Xisa five years ago and felt so lucky to have them as neighbours. Ron shared some of his prized dahlias and bearded irises with us that will live on in our garden thanks to him.
Great neighbours are hard to find and we were blessed to share our property line with Ron.
George and Terri Gromada
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Terry and Sandra Mills Our condolences go out to Linda, Richard and all of Rons loved ones and family. We have fond memories of fishing at the “marker buoy” and sharing beach and meal times together . Ron was a wealth of knowledge and information and a most interesting conversationalist. He could tell life experience stories with wit and humour. He so appreciated nature and his lovely garden. We will always remember his kindness in our own time of mourning. He will be missed.
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Robert and Irene Ferrari Ron and I met in 1989 in a professional context. Our friendship was quickly established and grew over the years despite the distance and time zones that separated us. Ron was a remarkable person. His in depth knowledge and expertise in a wide range of fields from wildlife ecology, to gardening and political thought made him a true renaissance man.
Irene and I greatly enjoyed our many visits to his place: great conversation, excellent meals and many hours of fishing (despite motion sickness!).
He will be missed. Heartfelt condolences to Xisa and the Jakimchuk family.
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Jim O'Neil Jim & Joyce O’Neil
I was very sorry to hear about the passing of Ron. I was fortunate to have worked for RRCS between 1971 and 1976. I learned much from him, particularly the need to put in the time and required to achieve high quality work. I also remember Ron’s sharp wit and fine sense of humour.
I am glad to have known him.
Jim
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Anthony Surrendi From my earliest memories Ron was around. His friendship with my father was timeless and there was deep respect between them. The career path of the old school field biologist was not for the faint of heart, and took special people to trudge the wilderness to document and study the natural world. Ron Jackimchuk and Carl were such people. The tales told were sometimes unbelievable to anyone but a field biologist, but were commonplace and considered “part of the job”. Nature has re-claimed another one of its finest students and advocates, may you rest well, Ron. My condolences to the family, Ron will be missed by all that knew him.
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Gary Klassen and family Ron was a good friend and business partner for many years. He could be counted on to offer sage advice and make sound decisions in uncertain times. One of my favorite memories is going fishing with Ron many times. We always came back with fish that Ron would turn into a gourmet meal. Ron lived a full life and will be dearly missed by many. Goodbye and rest in peace my friend. Sincere condolences to the family.
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Chuck Fischer Chuck Fischer
I was very fortunate to have Ron as a friend and business partner for 47 years. We shared many good times together. He was a consummate professional with strong analytical and oratorical skills which served him well in a life lived to the fullest. He was one sharp individual and will be sorely missed by all who had the fortune to get to know him. Rest in peace my dear friend.
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Bob & Maggie Swann Ron will be missed as a friend and a wonderful neighbour. We usually saw him walking Chili Pepper or coming out for his paper. He always had a smile and we loved our chats. Ron knew so much about the trees & local foliage, he was a great teacher. We send our deepest condolences to Zisa and all of Ron’s family and his many friends. So sorry for your loss, may all your happy memories bring some comfort.
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Michele Dolan It is with great sadness that I express condolences to you, Ron’s family, friends and loved-ones. I will never sing nor hear the Messiah being sung, without thinking of the many times we shared the joy of music and singing together. I hope you are hearing music now, where ever you may be Ron.
With deepest sympathies to Xisa and his family, who he always spoke of with enormous love.Michele
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Melanie Thielmann I will always remember Ron as a kind, thoughtful, intelligent man. He was generous and always made you feel welcome in his presence. He will be missed.
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sally surrendi Ron was a great man of wit, business, letters, music, science and history. He will be greatly missed by all who had the pleasure of his acquaintance.
My sincere condolences to his family and Xisa … I know his absence will be profound and continuing.
Sally
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Lorna Visser Wayne and I are so sad about Ron’s passing. Ron was such a dear, generous, wonderful man. We are so very grateful that we had some time with Ron during a visit in April, it was a special time together. I will always remember Ron’s beaming pride in showing us his garden and the many varieties of daffodils that were so cheerfully blooming at that time. He was grinning just like in the photo posted above!
Ron was generous to our charitable organization, an enthusiastic supporter of our work to restore a local wetland. We will be honouring Ron by naming one of our newly created wetland ponds after him: a fitting legacy for a man who cared so deeply about nature.
Wayne McCrory & Lorna Visser (Valhalla Foundation for Ecology)
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Dan Quigley Ron or “ Clavius the third” as I used to call him was a good friend and I will miss him dearly
Ron was very astute and it was always a pleasure to chat with on various subjects
Over a glass of wineI remember many days where Ron and I would sit on the beach in port Renfrew just watching the wildlife birds and surf – I will always remember those times
My sincere condolences to his beloved family
Dan and Carol
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Ray Glasrud and Family Our Family will dearly miss our old friend Ron. Good Bye and rest easy OS.
I worked with Ronnie D, which he hated to be called, at RRCS starting in 1971 for several years. There were good times working on the Pembina River with Jim O’Neill and on the Old Crow flats with Lee Harding and bad times losing friends in the plane crashes. Ron was always there, steadfast and strong, revelling in the good times and making the hard times more bearable. He was the only guy I ever met who owned a Morgan convertible, bright yellow, and he did love that car and his collection of tweed caps…. as well as eating dry ribs at the lounge across the street. He lived a good life.