Merle John Grott

May 10, 1939 - December 5, 2024

In loving memory ~

'I've been so lucky in my life.'

On December 5, 2024, Merle Grott passed away peacefully in the Vernon Jubilee Hospital and we lost a kind, devoted husband, father, grandfather, brother, uncle and friend. Merle lived a full, interesting life and despite health challenges in his later years, maintained his positive attitude, sense of humour and predilection for bursting, unprompted, into song.

Merle was born in Hanna, Alberta to Dorothy and John Grott and grew up with his siblings Jim, Marilyn, and Helen. Money was tight, and Merle worked at a butcher shop while still in school, learning skills that served him well in his later years when many sides of beef were cut and packaged in the basement of his home on Rutgers Bay. Academically and athletically gifted, Merle excelled at hockey and football, and was awarded a military scholarship to Royal Roads University in Victoria. Growing up in dry, arid Hanna, the lush beauty of Victoria came as pleasant and unimaginable surprise.

Military duties varied from blasting through the mountains to clear Rogers Pass in the Rockies to serving as a military escort for debutantes in Seattle and Vancouver. Merle finished his studies at the Royal Military College in Kingston graduating with a BSc. While in Kingston, he met Marlene who was a nursing student at Queens. They married in Winnipeg and lived in Welland and Dryden ON before moving back to Winnipeg in 1968 with their three children Lesley, David, and Lori.

While in Winnipeg, Merle continued his long career in education as a teacher, vice-principal and principal beginning and ending at Fort Richmond Collegiate. 'Mr. Grott' had a tremendous respect for and dedication to his students. He went out of his way to assist them in any way that he could, no matter their sometimes delinquent ways. He had a freakishly amazing memory and would, at any given time, run into a student in the hallway and greet them not only with their name but also the class that they should have been attending at that very time.

Merle had a love for technology and a curiosity for learning. He developed his own photos in the darkroom, owned among the first available calculators and personal computers produced, taught himself to program and spent summers at the University of Manitoba creating a scheduling system for the school using punch cards on the university mainframe. He also maintained his love for sports and athletics. He coached the high school basketball team as well as his kids sports teams. He started jogging in his thirties and continued into his fifties never letting the -30 Winnipeg winters deter him. He spent many hours ferrying kids to skating rinks, swimming pools, sports fields and attending their many competitions and games.

Travel appealed to Merle's sense of adventure and he managed to visit many countries for work and pleasure. He travelled to the (then) Soviet Union with FRC students and represented the school division on trips to Setagaya, Japan. He spent a year in Hong Kong as principal of the Canadian school and from his base in Hong Kong journeyed widely to Australia, Thailand, the Philippines, Malaysia and throughout South East Asia.

Upon retirement, Merle moved to White Lake, BC, where he met his love, Frieda, and built his dream home on the lake. Merle continued his travels with Frieda to New Orleans, Las Vegas, California, and Seattle with many trips to Alberta, Winnipeg and Montreal to visit family. Merle and Frieda led an active life immersed in nature and enjoying special times together. For almost 30 years, they opened their home to many visiting family members and friends and welcomed all to join in their idyllic lakeside lifestyle including campfires, music, boating trips, fishing, beloved dogs, hikes up the mountain, a glass of wine on the deck, and a hot tub under the stars.

Merle may be gone from this earth but his legacy lives on in his wife, his children, his grandchildren, Stephen and GIllian, his large extended family and in the many who have been touched by him over the years.

A Celebration of Life will take place January 26, 1:00PM at Bowers Funeral Service in Salmon Arm.