Donald Wayne Brattly

Donald Wayne Brattly, aka Woodtick, 77, of Parksville, B.C., passed away peacefully on Friday, September 17, 2021 at the Palliative Care wing of the Nanaimo General Hospital.  Don was born on June 8, 1944 in Camrose, A.B.  The third of three children, to parents Steve and Gwen Brattly, Don worked on the family farm with siblings Lloyd and Merle in New Norway, until he worked for Frank Troppman in 1965, becoming a carpenter in 1968.  Don then worked for Avery Construction in Stettler, A.B. until 1970 when he moved his family to the interior of B.C., in Blueberry Creek, working at Cominco and the Wanita Dam in Trail, B.C.  Don then joined MacMillan Bloedel as a carpenter in Port Alberni, B.C., before moving to Nanaimo, B.C. and working in the pulp mill in 1979 – retiring from Weyerhaeuser (MacMillan Bloedel successor) in 1999.   Don then worked for Delwood manufacturing, building pocket doors in Nanaimo, until 2005, when he became retired full-time and threw himself into his hobbies.  These included black-power shooting, volunteering with the Nanaimo Fish & Game club (President for 3 years), and elk and deer hunting.  But perhaps his greatest enjoyment was making, by hand, wooden children’s toys under the banner of Woodtick Toys for the past 30 years.  This was a labour of love for Don and he particularly enjoyed the faces of kids that truly enjoyed having a toy purchased for them that he has made. 

Throughout it all Don has been joined by wife Barbara (Selin) married in Camrose, A.B., in 1966 (55 years in August 2021), son Scott (Edmonton, A.B.), born in 1967 and daughter Yolanda (Parksville, B.C.), born in 1970.  Don is survived by all three, along with Scott’s wife, Juanita and their daughters, Olivia and Sophie, as well as a multitude of extended family and friends.  Don is predeceased by his parents, Steve and Gwen, older brother, Lloyd Brattly, and older sister, Merle Irvine. 

The Yates funeral home has posted a place to allow family and friends to leave messages of condolences at www.yatesmemorial.ca.  Given the impacts of the pandemic, there will be no celebration of life of Don, but instead, the family will find a time during the summer of 2022 where his remains can be spread near Cranbrook, B.C. – his favourite hunting area.  The family asks that in lieu of flowers or other gifts, that a donation to the Canadian Liver Foundation be made in Don’s name:  https://www.liver.ca/.