Community in Mourning Over Loss

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Richie was a very handsome man. He met his lovely wife Audrey at a dance in Matsqui and they were married in 1949, celebrating nearly 66 years together. They lived in the Pinegrove (Fraser Hwy / Mt. Lehman Rd.) area and later on in Bradner where they raised their four children, Barry, Brenda, Kevin & Pauline. One of the things that always struck me was the incredible respect Richie and Audrey had for one another. Just watching the way they interacted was a great example for any young couple to follow. 

Richie had many talents besides becoming an expert on daffodils. He was a top-notch athlete, playing for many years with the Bradner Redshirts where he was well known for his deadly blast kicks and goal scoring. Richie was the produce manager at the Super Valu in Aldergrove and was even involved in the thwarting of a hapless thief who tried to enter the store via the much too narrow chimney. He loved Bradner and was an extremely community minded man. Whether it was helping out at the Bradner Community Hall, riding the community float as 'Dr. Liverwarts' or as we at the Bradner Barker came to know him 'The Old Thymer'.

He had an incredible sense of humour, and was well known as a talented writer and poet. Even though he was a formidable match for any writer with his sly sense of humour, there was an unmistakable gentleness to his writing, a kindness that endeared him to all who knew him. He loved nature, the farm; gardening and could be found outside puttering even in the winter. Richie always had a joke, a positive comment or words of encouragement. He never had a bad word to say about anyone – except maybe some of our politicians – and even that was done in a flippant way, without any meanness attached. He was well known for lending a helping hand to anyone who was in need.

The Fatkin family, including young Richie all participated in the work on the farm. He worked right from childhood (as did most young boys) even while attending Bradner Elementary School. No one had the equipment that we see today in the fields; the work was manual and hard. In November of 1947 the family business received a heavy blow via a devastating fire, but they carried on and it wasn’t long before they were up and running again

By Lynda Richard

Richard Harwood Fatkin, or Richie as we all knew him, was born June 25th, 1925 at his family farm on Myrtle Ave., right here in Bradner. His father Fenwick, had visited the area in the early 1900’s after settling in Vancouver from England. Fenwick noticed how well daffodils grew in Bradner and so he moved his family to the area in 1914. By 1928, he had the area's daffodil growers displaying their blooms in what was the first Bradner Flower Show. Little did he know what an incredible daffodil dynasty he had started.

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Eventually Richie came to be known by many as The Mayor of Bradner. In 2014 our guest for the Flower Show was the very famous Ciscoe Morris of KING5 TV. We had the privilege of showing Ciscoe around Bradner and one of the stops was to Richie and Audrey’s home. Ciscoe was really excited when we told him we were taking him to the Mayor’s house.  Imagine what Ciscoe thought when they were introduced, and after a couple of glasses of Richie’s famous (and very delicious) homemade wine, Richie piped up and told Ciscoe he was the Mayor of Bradner. “I’m the Mayor,” he said, “I spell that M-A-R-E!” Typical Richie!


I know it is cliché to say that that someone will be missed after they are gone. I have never felt these words ring truer than in Richie’s case. He was an incredible human being. Loved by all who had the honour of knowing him. There aren’t enough people like Richie in the world and now we’ve lost him. We still have the memories, we still have his legacy and we will never, ever, forget him. Like retiring a famous athlete’s number, there will never be another Mayor of Bradner.


Richie will be remembered on Sunday, April 19th at 1 pm during a memorial at Bradner Community Hall, 5305 Bradner Rd, Abbotsford.

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