Felicity Nan Edwards
Oct 31, 1952 - Jan 05, 2018
Felicity Nan Edwards, 65 years of age of Canmore, Alberta,
died suddenly on January 5, 2018.
She was born in the Royal Victoria Hospital, Belfast, Northern Ireland, the daughter of Colin Edwards (b5/3/1925 - Salford, England) and Rosemary (née Pasmore) (b7/8/ 1927 - Mombasa, Kenya), and spent her first few years in Belfast before the family moved to Co Fermanagh. Here she developed a love for the environment and particularly the wild, west of Ireland during family holidays.
The eldest of four children, she is survived by her sisters, Hilary and Kerry and her brother, Tim; their spouses David Brown, Chris Lewis, and Aileen Edwards (née Young); her nieces and nephews, Hannah Edwards, Alistair Brown and his wife Claire (née Magowan), Andrew Edwards, and Angharad Lewis.
She married John Paul Fischbach on March 4, 1991 in Canmore
and, although they divorced in 2002, remained close.
Her early life was spent in Northern Ireland where her education started at The Collegiate School, Enniskillen, before transferring to Friends School, Lisburn (a Quaker Grammar School), and graduating from The New University of Ulster. She had two advanced degrees: an MSc in Human Ecology from the University of Calgary (1977) and an MA in Systems in Management at the University of Lancaster, England (1984).
For some 25 years, she worked with a range of clients: government (research and regulatory), industry and business (strategic planning and program review), as well as in community engagement processes (Canmore and others in Alberta, and including Aboriginal communities). She began her professional life with the Alberta Oil Sands Environmental Research Program (AOSERP) / Research Management Division of the Alberta Department of the Environment. For nine years, she was Director of Resource and Environment Management Programs at the Banff Centre for Continuing Education. For 22 years she was part of The CSE Group of independent consultants and also, for 15 of them, an associate faculty member of The School of Peace and Conflict Studies, Royal Roads University (Victoria, British Columbia). She was an innovator in the fields of conflict management and mediation, and designed and implemented processes that went beyond conventional public consultation to collaborative decision-making. Felicity was a provocative, powerful educator and mentor, inspiring many of the students and colleagues with whom she worked closely.
Felicity leaves the people of the Bow Valley with several legacies.
She was instrumental in helping the Canadian Rockies Public Schools undertake a process that resulted in "Inspiring Hearts and Minds", a consultative strategy for the future of education in the Bow Valley.
As co-architect with Carole Stark, of "Mining the Future", she oversaw a process for engaging the people of Canmore to create a vision for its future. She served as the Chair of the Friends of Banff National Park, assisted the board of the Bow Valley SPCA to develop its no-kill shelter, and was involved with the board of Canmore’s Pine Tree Players.
Felicity applied her dynamism, unbounded energy, and passion to everything she undertook, whether in the course of her work or in the nurturance of friendships and family connections. While she adhered to her motto, "Be reasonable; do it my way", she adapted to the circumstances: tough and determined when called for, flexible and conciliatory when needed.
To quote a friend: “There are many ripples in the pond that will signify our collective loss.”
An intimate, informal remembrance of Felicity Edwards’ life was held in Canmore on Saturday, March 3, 2018. Friends, neighbours, colleagues, and family convened at the Canmore Golf & Curling Club to share food, drink, music, conversation, and memories. Those who were touched or inspired by Felicity, and cared for her, were welcomed to attend and to bring with them their memories to share.
Those wishing to remember Felicity are encouraged to make a donation in her memory to: Doctors without Borders – Médecins Sans Frontières, the Bow Valley SPCA in Canmore, or a charity of their choice.
As she wished, her ashes will be spread on the west coast of Ireland.