Obituary of Ian Timothy Tiede

Ian Timothy Tiede passed away near Marshall, Saskatchewan on Friday, November 17, 2017 at the age of 17 years.

Ian is survived by: his father, Tim Tiede; his mother, Christine Frey (Laura); his maternal grandmother, Judy Anderton; his maternal grandfather, Bernie Anderton; his paternal grandmother, Ruth Tiede; his five uncles, six aunts, fourteen cousins, seven second cousins, one step brother, two step sisters, two nephews;  and numerous other relatives and friends.

The funeral service for Ian will be conducted from Three Links Hall, Marshall, Saskatchewan on Thursday, November 23, 2017 at 2:00 PM.

Donations in memory of Ian may be made to the Lloydminster Motor Club. 

Eulogy for Ian Timothy Tiede

November 23, 2017

Hi, My name is Darcy McFarlane.  I’ve had the pleasure of teaching Ian in his passion area of Mechanics, and am honoured to be giving his eulogy here today.

    In the early mornings of April, 1999, Christine Anderton Tiede wasn’t feeling very well, and wasn’t getting over it.  Fueled by women’s intuition, she shared her excitement of a positive pregnancy test with her husband, Tim.  The new parents to be shared in the joy and wonder of a babe growing within, coupled with excitement and worries of becoming parents.

    2 weeks overdue, Christine finally went into labour; and labour it was.  After many hours, the Doctor determined the baby would need to come into the world by C-section.  And soon it was, that moment of miracle and truth,  revealing a new, perfect, baby boy.  On January 19, 2000, in Kelowna, B.C., Ian Timothy Tiede took his place with Christine and Tim’s family.

    His baby days were pretty typical, but around 6 months, Ian showed difficulty breathing.  He was admitted on a diagnosis of pneumonia, but wasn’t responding to treatments.  After two weeks, he was sent to Vancouver hospital for further testing from specialists.  There, it was confirmed Baby Ian had SCIDS: Severe Combined Immunodeficiency Disease. Extremely rare, the odds are about 1 in 500,000 births.  Thus began the complicated process of accessing the right kind of blood and meds to keep Ian healthy – a consideration that would be present for the rest of his life.

    The little family adjusted to this new normal, and Ian grew to be a wonderful little boy, just the same as any other little boy.  Like other tots, he had his favorite stuffed animals, blankie, and toys, and of course, gravitated towards anything with wheels.  He was a bundle of joy, love and fun for his parents and everyone else.  

    When he began his school career, Ian proved to the world just how smart and bright he was.  Whether in his early days or recent, any teacher will tell you: he was a good student. His report cards showed consistent grades of A’s over the years.  Ian was certainly amongst the A list in Mechanics class, always the first to arrive and last to leave, making sure every detail was taken care of before signing off.  He displayed many characteristics deserving of Baron pride in his recent years at LCHS.  Just a couple weeks ago, Ian spent a good deal of time, after and during school, helping with lights and sound for the Remembrance Day service.  Some of the performing students reflected this week “we couldn’t have done that performance without him”.  That statement spoke volumes about Ian’s quiet nature: behind the scenes, but always working like a dog to help wherever he could.

    Pets were always important to Ian.  He had a white dog called Icy. And after that, some favourite cats named Pistol and Cocoa.  After they passed, Ian asked his Dad for more.  Tim said he could have ONE.  Well, Ian’s idea of ONE was TWO by anyone else’s count. And 2 grey tabbies, one male and one female, [dubbed Visa and Mastercard], came into their home, eventually producing a good sized litter.  Of course, Ian couldn’t keep all these kittens; but was determined to find homes for them all.  On one occasion, he was trying to convince a girl to take one home.  The girl worried that her parents wouldn’t be too pleased about it. To which Ian said, “It’s easier to ask for forgiveness than permission.”  This more or less describes the way Ian lived his life.

    When it came to food, Ian was not your average connoisseur. He would be adventurous about a number of things, but not food.  He had a few favourites like pancakes, naked noodles, plain hotdogs with ketchup, Aunty Cathy’s brownies, cheese, and chocolate pudding.  He was content with his small list of things he liked to eat, and didn’t seem to tire of them.  Having seen Ian everyday at lunch, I think I would add little caesars pizza to that list.  But lately, we’ve learned, some of his friends were successful in getting him to actually try sushi, and Fries with McChicken sauce.  He must have been feeling especially brave to do this ☺.

    Even as a youngster, Ian marched to his own drum, and that came to mean he liked to collect…and, usually not part with.  His first collections were all about “Hot Wheels” cars, trucks and other toy vehicles. Next he added model kits, and LEGO kits; in which there is a substantial investment!  The house would often be, littered, with ongoing projects, laid out on every available surface.  And woe to anyone who wanted them moved.

His mother introduced him to an appreciation for old things.  Every chance he got he would check out antique and junk shops looking for dear old containers and other abandoned, but useful items that appealed to him.  If you were to see Ian’s “rooms”, all his collections are neatly arranged much like the displays in an antique shop. Whenever he showed His room to someone, he called it the Room of Awesomeness.  And you just knew by that twinkle in his eye too when he had a special treasure.  I can see it now, those days when he’d be grinning and waiting at the shop door, just itching to share. “you gotta see this!” Be it the first chain saw ever made that he found in a grain bin, or a stack of 1957 popular mechanics magazines, Ian knew a treasure when he saw it.

    This propensity for old, antique objects led Ian to a deep appreciation for old cars, trucks, snowmobiles, and motorbikes as well.  And much to his Dad’s chagrin ☺, he began to wheel, deal and bring home vehicles that many other guys wouldn’t bother with.  Ians wheeling and dealing was second nature, semi-professional.  During his help with Remembrance day I remember him answering the phone, in stride with the work he was doing, “yep, I can do 450, but that’s without extra rims and rubber, yep Saturday’s good” I remember asking Ian once how many vehicles he’s owned.  I have ‘em all written on a list he said 238, including ATV’s, only like 170 some actual vehicles.  But Ian always saw the potential in them, and hoped he would be the one to eventually rebuild, repair and refurbish those old relics, giving them a cool, second ‘life’.

    Through collecting, and loving old vehicles, Ian began a self-training process in the skills of mechanics.  He developed a keen diagnostic mind, and possessed the mechanical aptitude to carry out the repairs.  The kids comment in class that if I wasn’t available, Ian was the go to guy.  He always knew what was going on, and no matter who you were, he was always there to share his passion, knowledge and help.  Mechanics or otherwise, Ian was always a guy that would give, through hard work.  I recently recommended Ian for a temporary job helping a business move locations.  The comments came back “Man! That kid busted his butt! What a good kid!” In everything he did, I think that sums it up.

    Ian’s love for old things led to wandering through abandoned places seeing if old, rescuable things were left behind to collect. One of his friends just yesterday shared with me a picture of “Velvet Elvis” or so it came to be named.  Ian truly did develop an eye for unexpected beauty, and recently began to capture that beauty in a new hobby of photography.  He has many good pictures to show for this amongst his amazing antique collection.

    Involved with Lloyd motor club, and other like groups of friends, hanging out with guys and gals who shared his interests was also very important to Ian.  These were the people who enlarged his experiences – got him try new or different things.  Ian was quiet and humble, but sought after by many people.  Through buying and selling, I think Ian actually knew every person in the Lloydminster area.

    Ian’s passions, and genuine care for others was testified by all those that knew him.  Amidst this unique beauty that he curated however, existed momentary struggles with depressions and despair.  Although infrequent, and usually overcome, it was those struggles that took his life.  But Ian will be remembered for his passions, his love of cars, his care for people, his work ethic, and his eye for seeing something wonderful and rare in just about everything and everyone.  Survived and mourned by his family and friends, we pray for his soul, knowing full well that God sees the heart, and has already wrapped his loving arms around him, welcoming him to an eternal place of peace and rest.

Ian's funeral card can be viewed or downloaded from the link below.

https://indd.adobe.com/view/4af6dfe7-585a-4737-a8a4-3deed4f54001