He was the type of man you'd be proud to have for a granddad.
That's how Dale Saip, the Vancouver Giants vice-president of business development and member of the Delta school board, summed up Gordie Howe, the hockey legend and fine gentleman who passed away at 88 last week.
Howe had a Delta connection as a co-owner of the Western Hockey League Giants, whose training facility is located at the Ladner Leisure Centre. Howe, who paid several visits to Ladner, including during the expansion of the leisure centre, was known as Mr. Hockey, but Saip is quick to point out the hall of famer was much more.
"In your life you get to meet people that are known as heroes, but when you meet them you're disappointed because they're just not what you thought they would be. Gordie was completely opposite. He was all you would ever want to be and more," said Saip.
"He was what you wanted your dad, your uncle, your granddad or whatever to be. He was kind, gracious to people, had time for everybody. As much as he was a fierce competitor in the hockey rink, he was a wonderful human being."
Noting he had known him for many years, Saip said the way Howe treated people made him a quality human being.
"He was a generous man and respectful and humble. He was a good farm boy from Saskatchewan who played the game he loved well and always considered himself to be very fortunate and blessed to be able to do something like that for a living," he said.
Saip recalled a story Howe told him about how he'd gone back to Saskatchewan to see his father, who worked for the City of Saskatoon, and found himself having to haul concrete with a work crew.
"He said he didn't want to do that but it helped with his shoulders. Man, he had a good set of shoulders on him," laughed Saip.
Local businessman Ron Toigo, the Giants' majority owner, said Howe stayed in South Delta every time he came to the Lower Mainland, his last visit being in 2013. He also described him as "a wonderful human being and a kid at heart."
On the team's website, Toigo said it was a sad day when hearing the news.
"He had an impact on everyone in our organization. It's been a difficult period for us, losing both Pat and now Gordie in such a short period of time," he said.
Another Giants partowner, Pat Quinn, passed away late in 2014.
