Dale Keith Cory

It is with profound sadness that we announce the sudden passing of Dale Keith Cory at his home in Brandon, Manitoba on May 17, 2023, at the age of 63. Beloved husband, father, brother, uncle, nephew and friend, Dale leaves to mourn his wife of 32 years Susan, son Matthew, daughters Chelsea (Theo) and Emma, brothers Mark, (Michelle), Owen (Melanie), Paul, Neil (Leslie), sister Myra (Rob), brother-in-law Ron (Pat), nephews Craig, Michael, Jackson, Ryan, Jeff, and Curtis, and nieces Alyssa, Samantha, and Nicole, as well as several extended family members and friends. Dale was predeceased by brother Blair, sister Marsha, parents Jim and Marjorie, and grandparents Bert and Eva Cory and Stanley and Carolyn Wood. 

Dale was born with twin brother Mark on July 1, 1959, and was third of eight children. He enjoyed growing up in a large family in his hometown of Wawanesa, Manitoba and loved living on the banks of the Souris River where nature was at his doorstep. Dale attended Wawanesa Collegiate and greatly respected his teachers’ positive influence on his education and would often share happy memories of his years at school. Dale enjoyed canoeing, camping and cross-country skiing, and his love of the outdoors led him to work with the bees with cousins Myrna and Richard at Clark Apiaries for several years. 

He was an avid sports fanatic, played hockey, baseball and backyard football, and was a lifelong fan of Boston Bruins, Saskatchewan Roughriders and Baltimore Orioles. Dale shared common sports interests and friendly rivalries with his brothers. Phone calls with his siblings always included sports talk.

Dale was a caregiver all his life, first as a big brother to younger siblings at home, and when he lived with sister Marsha and brother-in-law Gordon in Winnipeg while attending Red River College, helping to care for his nephews Craig and Michael. In September 1990 Dale married the love of his life, Susan, and together they raised their three children in Brandon. When their kids were young, Dale operated a licensed family home daycare so that he could stay home with them. In his Casey Jr. Daycare Dale provided a strong and reliable father figure to dozens of children in the community. Later, Dale worked as a direct service provider to help men with cognitive and physical challenges manage daily tasks and he formed close bonds with his clients over the years. 

Dale loved rock music, drumming and painting, and nurtured his kids’ creative, artistic and musical pursuits. He was especially proud that all three of his children were university graduates. Dale was a family man who loved being at home enjoying simple pleasures like gardening, yard work, coffee in the back yard and chatting with family and friends who came to visit. The family ritual of camping with Susan and the kids at Manipogo Provincial Park and Adam Lake every summer was very important to him. Dale was a kind and gentle soul with a heart of gold who always put other people first, and his loss leaves a hole that can never be filled. 

A funeral service to honour Dale’s life will be held at the Wawanesa United Church at 11:00am on Tuesday, May 30, 2023. All are welcome to attend. In lieu of flowers, donations in Dale’s name may be given to the Heart and Stroke Foundation of Canada.

“If the sun refused to shine, I would still be loving you. When mountains crumble to the sea, there will still be you and me.”

(from “Thank You” by Jimmy Page/Robert Plant, Led Zeppelin)

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