Laura passed away quietly on Christmas Eve at the age of 97. She had been in palliative care since December 21st and was comforted to the end with her three children nearby, Delvin, Dean and Ferne. She was a kind and gentle soul.
Laura was born in 1919, the youngest of 13 children of Charles and Tinselina Bray of Wolseley Saskatchewan. Laura married Ralph Chatterson in Wells BC and in 1945 moved to Kimberley where the prairie girl came to love the mountains.
Laura was a musician. She started out playing for dances in rural Saskatchewan community halls as part of a band with her brothers. She told fascinating stories of riding 15 miles to the dance hall in a horse drawn sleigh through the snowdrifts at 20 below after she and her sisters had made the sandwiches for the midnight snacks.
Laura taught piano lessons for fifty years. She gave inspiration to hundreds of pupils in her career which saw her move from Kimberley to Calgary, Wolseley and finally back to Kimberley. Throughout her time in Kimberley she was an avid gardener and enjoyed many outings with her naturalist friends observing and photographing birds and flowers.
In 2009 she moved to Joseph Creek Village where she was treated so well by the caring staff. She loved her kids, her eight grandkids and ten great grandkids and always enjoyed a visit and a game of crib.
In the last few months she had several stays in the East Kootenay Regional Hospital. The family would like to thank Dr. Ross Dawson and the third floor staff for the sensitive, kind, and gentle care they provided.
The family will be receiving visitors to pay their respects and share memories of Laura at her apartment #129 at Joseph Creek Village on Friday, December 30th from 2:00 to 4:00PM. Final interment will be at Wolseley Cemetery near the Bray family already at rest there.
Laura Marion (Bray) Chatterson
August 7th 1919 - Dec. 24th 2016