January 18, 1934 - December 14, 2018
Cornelius Dietrich was born to Mary and William Redekopp in Chilliwack. The fourth of seven close siblings, he is survived by his brothers Ervin, Harold and Len, his four children, Esther, Camille, Janice and Howard and his four grandchildren, Raoul, Takara, Norman and Sean. Dick grew up working on the family farm, graduated from MEI and trained as a radio technician. His adventurous nature stood him in good stead when he and Nina and their young daughter crossed the ocean to Africa in 1966, to start what was to become 20 years of mission work in Swaziland, South Africa and Zambia with SIM. He designed and built recording studios, and over the years made and distributed many recordings that brought the message of Christ to otherwise unreached parts of southern Africa. Considerate of others to the end, Dick was always looking to lend a hand. A loving husband and father, he re-aligned his mission work so that he and Nina could focus on caring for their daughter Janice when she was tragically disabled at the age of 24. Always the gadget man, Dick taught himself to use the internet and, along with his brother David, learned video editing and made numerous productions for mission colleagues and friends. He lost his beloved Nina in 2016 and is also predeceased by his sister, Elfrieda and brothers David and Bill.
Thank you to the staff at Primrose Gardens in Abbotsford and the George Derby Centre in Burnaby for their care and kindness. Dick's life will be celebrated at Central Heights Church in Abbotsford on January 14, 2019 at 1 pm.