Eugene Dolinsky

Please celebrate and honour the rich life of Eugene Vanzety Dolinsky, born September 13, 1932 in Ranfurly, Alberta, who passed June 29, 2022 in Golden, BC.

 Gene began his life on a farm during the Great Depression learning how to make the most  of everything.  He became a hard worker, valuing the farming and family life, teaching his children and grandchildren how to work outside on the acreage in Red Deer, and later in Vernon, BC. After he graduated from the Red Deer High school, he pursued a Dental degree from the University of Alberta, graduating in 1957.   

 Gene was a leader in the profession of dentistry, practicing first in Jasper, Alberta, then Red Deer where he began three successive clinics over 45 years of practice. He enjoyed working with children, and limited his practice to children’s dentistry and eventually Orthodontics. He was chief of staff for dentistry in the Red Deer General Hospital, founded the Central Alberta Dental Assistants’ Association, and was the first Canadian to practice Biobloc growth guidance Orthodontics, eventually teaching this skill to many other dentists. He loved his Orthodontic practice, creating thousands of beautiful smiles over his career. 

 He liked to create and build things, at the farm he and Bernice built in Red Deer. The projects included outbuildings for cows, horses, chickens and other fowl, food gardens, many carpentry projects, welding, and art projects of all types.  

 His passions included fishing, and he loved going out on annual trips to the interior and west coast with his fishing classmates every year. He also liked to ski in the winter and often took his family or carload of friends to the Rocky Mountains to ski together. His love of music prompted him to sing with and help organize barbershop choirs and quartets, and he valued his barbershop practices and performances.

 He volunteered as a member of the Kiwanis and Rotary Clubs, with the Red Deer Royals Community Band, as a patroller with the Canadian Ski Patrol System, with the Swedish club and Ukrainian clubs, Habitat for Humanity, and overseas dental missions to Honduras and Philippines. 

  Cultural events were important to Gene. He travelled to many countries. Celebrating important events such as Ukrainian Christmas, Gene enjoyed photography, leading the family each New Year in taping stories of the previous year so the family memories were recorded.

 Gene was a man who had a lot of initiative and was engaged in his activities, cared a lot about his family and wanted to make a difference in the world. Right up until his last days, he wished to help, rather than be helped. Gene’s wishes included donating to the Rotary Foundation (rotary.org), or Vernon Hospital (vjhfoundation.org).

 Eugene’s parents Tom and Irene Dolinsky, brother Ernie and sister Vera predeceased him. He is survived by sister Lyla Rankin (Vernon, BC); Bernice Dolinsky (Victoria, BC); children Jeff (Joan) Dolinsky (Golden, BC), Gina Dolinsky (Victoria, BC), Karla Dolinsky (Victoria, BC), Ralph (Jodi) Dolinsky (Abbotsford, BC); granddaughters Elise, Carmen, Sidrah and Samara.