Beryl Bryant (nee Dickens) || Obituary

Beryl Bryant (nee Dickens), much-loved daughter, sister, niece, aunt, stepmother, cousin, and dear friend of many in the USA and Canada, passed away on April 15, 2023, at the age of 82 in Paris where she had made her home for the past many years.

She was preceded in death by her parents, Emily and Len Dickens; stepmother, Kath Dickens; and special Auntie and Uncle, Pat, and Frank Morrison; and cousin, Wayne. Beryl is survived by her brother, Richard (Dick)Dickens; niece, Linda (Jeff);  nephew, Brian (Catherine); their children, step-daughter, Enid Price and family; step-son, Tom Bryant (the 3^rd); and cousins, Melody Morrison, Roy, and Jean Crocker.

The Dickens family immigrated from England to Canada in 1952 making their home near Colborne, Ontario. With the sudden passing of their Mum, Beryl and Dick became part of the Morrison family and grew up with Wayne and Melody on the farm nearby. Beryl’s life-long love for animals included all the ‘critters’ on the farm, especially Len the horse and as time went on her beloved dogs, an adorable pet skunk and the birds and wildlife she nurtured in the beautiful gardens she would create wherever she lived.

Beryl trained as a nurse in Whitby Ontario, practiced in British Columbia and in Galveston where she met, married, and settled down in Paris with Tom Bryant, a doctor with proud roots in East Texas.

Beryl was blessed with the heart of an adventurer. She was kind, generous, funny, stubborn, and fiercely independent. She was proud of her family and her English heritage. Over the years she acquired a unique accent, one with English roots, made richer by her very Canadian childhood mixed in with the addition of an East Texas drawl. She and Tom traveled and had a busy and happy life in Paris, all the while never losing touch with her circle of much-loved friends and family in and from Colborne.

 As a teenager and a young nurse, Beryl was a quiet and lovely presence. She was also a tomboy and never happier than being outdoors. She will be remembered for her beauty, both inside and out, her creative talents in needlepoint, home decorating, and gardening, and most of all for her life-long exercise of deeply held, old-fashioned values of loyalty, honesty, and kindness.

Her family extends grateful thanks to the doctors, nurses, and hospice staff at the Paris hospital for their gentle care during Beryl’s last days and to friends and relatives for much-appreciated words of condolence. Our dear Beryl will be much missed but forever in our hearts.  Her ashes will be taken home to Canada as per her wishes.   

 Online condolences may be sent to the Bryant family by visiting www.fry-gibbs.com