Mrs. Debra Ann Blais

Mrs. Debra Blais, of Blackie Alberta, passed away at Bethany Riverview Care Facility in Calgary on December 24, 2020 at the age of 67 years. Deb is survived by husband Al, son Brant (Nicole), sister Jane Brunton, brother Michael Rahn (Sandra), nephew Steven Rahn (Andrea), niece Sara McMartin (Ian), nephew Rob Brunton (Julie) and niece Kelly Brunton. Debra was predeceased by her parents, Leda and David Rahn as well as her brother David. Debra was born in St Catharines, Ontario and at an early age (pre-school), her parents moved to Callander, Ontario, where they owned / operated a tourist camp along Lake Nipissing. She lived there until her grade 13 graduation. Deb was a gifted student and was always an honour student throughout her school years. As well, Debra was very athletic and in her final year of high school (grade 13), she won the all-Ontario senior girls 100 meter sprint and high jumping. Deb completed her post-secondary education in nursing (graduating top of her class) and was a registered nurse for many years. Deb had an incredible thirst for knowledge and took some additional courses at York University, in order to embark on a new career with Alpha Laval in Scarborough, Ontario. This turned into a transfer to Calgary as the marketing manager for the Calgary office, where Debra designed heat exchangers for the oil and gas industry. Alpha Laval eventually closed the Calgary operation and Debra transferred her skills to pharmaceutical sales, until their son, Brant, was born. At that point, Debra went back into nursing on a part time basis for a couple of years, eventually becoming a stay at home mom. Deb’s passion was her animals and she was very successful in showing her horse, Shokatina, in English and Western Pleasure in Alberta and Saskatchewan. Deb always had Labrador Retrievers and was passionate about obedience training with her dogs as well as field trial competitions, winning many ribbons in both categories. Once Debra and Al had purchased their first acreage, Deb decided to extend her love of animals to include Katahdin sheep. A move to Ontario for 6 years did not stop Deb from developing a sought after breed of sheep. Her reputation in that industry made it easy to sell the flock to local ranchers, due to the move back to the Calgary area. That move to Southern Alberta prompted a new project – alpacas. Debra had an amazing connection with these animals and grew the herd to 40 head. Of course, that did not prevent Debra and Al from experiencing some wonderful trips with their horses in Kananaskis country. Debra will be forever loved and missed. Due to covid, no service will be held at this time. Memorial donations in Deb’s honour can be made to the Alzheimer Society of Canada. Caring for the family is Lyle Reeves Funerals of High River (Craig Snodgrass) 403.652.4242.

Tributes

Mrs. Debra Ann Blais

August 2, 1953 - December 24, 2020