Harold Embry Wilde, known in life as Pat, was born March 17, 1930, youngest child of Peace pioneers George and Edith Wilde. In his early years, Pat worked the family farm in Willow Valley, 35 km west of Dawson Creek, where he and his wife, Vi, raised their 5 daughters. Everyone was welcome and no one ever went away hungry from Pat and Vi’s table. A man active in his community, Pat supported local events such as the Kiskatinaw Fall Fair, coached baseball, and helped build and improve many local facilities in the southwest Peace River country where he grew up.
A self-taught musician, for many years Pat played violin and banjo for community dances and enjoyed countless hours jamming old time tunes with friends and family. An avid outdoorsman, hunting and fishing were his favorite way of enhancing food supplies in the family pantry.
Pat’s professional career was in BC provincial highway construction. Through him, many young people got a start in life and others opportunity for income they may not have otherwise had. Over his 35-plus years building roads, Pat’s work included three separate runs through the Pine Pass, conquering the mud-flows of the Dome Creek-McBride connector, and the Highway 20 access at Williams Lake. He spent five years on the Bell Irving and Stewart-Cassiar routes, then constructed Fort Nelson’s 317 road. While at the district office he worked on all three Tumbler Ridge accesses, then back in construction, he built major sections of the two Coquihalla routes in the south.
He also worked on parts of the Okangan, Kootenay and Fraser Valley highway systems. Today, as his family, friends and neighbours travel BC, they carry many good memories of Pat, knowing that his footprints lie just below the pavement throughout this vast province. Midway through his career, Pat remarried and moved to Kelowna, BC, where he later retired. Time passed quickly as he supported his step family to maturity and dabbled in hobbies like rebuilding collector vehicles, tree fruit production, and gardening.
Pat passed away in Kelowna, BC, on September 2, 2012.  He leaves behind many children, grandchildren, and great grandchildren who will miss his quiet yet strong influence in their lives.  Pat was pre-deceased by his parents, George and Edith; siblings: May, Grace, Dorothy, and Frank; daughter Lois Sterling and grandson Clayton Wetherill. Pat is lovingly remembered by his wife Leona, his family and step family, and the many friends and neighbours who enjoyed his company over the years.