Richard Pitre

1936 - 2017

Richard Joseph Pitre, beloved husband of Patricia Pitre, passed away peacefully in Taber on Saturday, March 11, 2017 at the age of 80 years.

 Relatives and friends were invited to Prayers at Southland Funeral Chapel, 5006 - 48 Avenue, Taber on Thursday, March 16, 2017 at 5:00 P.M.

 The Funeral Mass was celebrated at St. Augustine's Catholic Church, 5009 - 48 Avenue, Taber on Friday, March 17, 2017 at 11:00 A.M. 

 Richard is survived by his wife of fifty eight years Patricia; six sons Michel Pitre of Taber, Charles (Stephanie) Pitre of Coaldale, Armand (Shannon) Pitre of Lethbridge, Philip Pitre of Lethbridge, Lenard Pitre of Lethbridge and Morice (Geraldine) Pitre of Taber; daughter Nicole (Tim) Richard of Red Deer; seventeen grandchildren and ten great grandchildren. He is also survived by two  brothers  George (Vivian) Pitre of Bathurst of New Brunswick and Leo (Paula) Pitre of Cornwall, Ontario; six sisters Anna Bertin of Bathurst, New Brunswick,  Yvonne (George) Saulnier of Bathurst, New Brunswick, Anita Poirier of Atikokan, Ontario, Brigitte (Raymond) Gosselin Atikokan, Ontario,  Simonne (Roger) Daigle of Ottawa, Ontario and Lorraine (Alain) Gravel of Sherbrooke, Quebec; brother-in-law Emile Comeau of Saint John, New Brunswick.  

 He was predeceased by his brother Alphie Pitre, sister Jeanette Comeau, and brothers-in-law Don Bertin and Cyprien Poirier, as well as  sister-in-law Theresa Pitre.

 Richard was born on July 28, 1936 in Bathurst, New Brunswick to John G. Pitre and Marie Cathrine Aube. He was a beloved Grandfather, Father, Brother, Uncle and Friend.  He was a local celebrity known as "The Bike Man", "Mr. Pitre" and "The Real Santa."  Richard lived larger than life and was an accomplished jack of all trades and a quirky inventer of crazy bicycles that he proudly showed in parades and shows all over the United States and Canada, as the Taber Wild Riders.  He was a coach for the MD of Taber cycling team for the Southern Alberta Summer Games for eighteen years, boasting many consecutive first place finishes with the team. Richard won many awards in his lifetime, including The Gordon Hacking Memorial for Outstanding Contributions Taber Minor Hockey, Alberta Citizen of the Year and also Canadian Citizen Of The Year.  He had his fifteen minutes of fame on TV, radio, magazines and newspapers all over the United States and Canada. One of his Santa videos even made it to America's Funniest Home Videos. For most of his life he was deeply involved in Minor Hockey, bicycle racing and repair, and he thoroughly enjoyed life and helping others. Richard will be sorely missed by his family and friends. 

 If friends so desire, memorial tributes in Richard’s name may be made directly to STARS, 1441 Aviation Park NE, PO Box 570, Calgary, Alberta T2E 8M7 (www.stars.ca) or the Spinal Cord Injury Association Alberta, 305, 11010 - 101 Street N.W., Edmonton, Alberta T5H 4B9 or to the Canadian Diabetes Association, 204, 2323 - 32 Avenue NE, Calgary, Alberta T2E 6Z3 (www.diabetes.ca) or to the Canadian National Institute for the Blind (CNIB), 410 Stafford Drive South, Lethbridge, Alberta T1J 2L2.  

 We would like to thank everyone involved in the preparation and services.