Obituary of Dennis Bruce Towers

Dennis Bruce Towers

June 26, 1947 to February 7, 2024

Dennis Bruce Towers was born in Galahad on June 26, 1947, the second son of Mark and Irene Towers of Alliance, and younger brother of Stanley.  Another brother, Ronald joined the family four years later.

Denny spent his entire 76 years on the farm that his parents farmed.  When his father passed suddenly in 1969, he was thrust into the monumental task of operating the farm himself and helping his mother and brother adjust to their new situation.  He was often found seeking advice from close neighbors Roy Rands and Lyle Graviston and his future father-in-law Ernest Pickles.

In 1964 a young Castor girl sparked his interest and in 1970 he married the love of his life, Laura Pickles.  Together they moved a 1918 house to the farm where it was modernized and became a cozy home for their family of David, born in 1971 and twins Diana and Christine in 1975.

Denny was never a fan of homework – although he said he did it one night – or books of any kind, but he loved nature and cattle and farming and might have skipped the odd day of school to go custom baling with his cousin and buddy Ken Towers. 

He also loved sports and excelled at fastball as a catcher or shortstop, winning several trophies when the Alliance Bandits competed in the Flagstaff Fastball League.  Laura and the children never missed being in the stands to cheer him on.  Hockey was also a favorite sport, playing on kid’s teams and graduating to the Alliance Rockets Hockey team while still in high school.   When he no longer played, he taught the kids how to play hockey and ball, coaching the 10 and under hockey boys from the time Dave was 4 years old.  More than once their little car was filled to the brim with family and hockey players as they headed off to a game in a nearby community.   Sometimes he was called upon to umpire one of the kid’s ballgames and it really hurt when he had to call “, strike” on his 10 year old daughter.  His answer to her sad face was “It was a good one hon”.   When the girls reached junior high there was volleyball as well, and he loved to follow the team to their tournaments.  Later we travelled all over the province with the Spartans Volleyball club of Killam.  Many of the acquaintances met while involved in sports were good friends for life.

Denny had a knack for engaging strangers in conversation and when the family was done shopping, he was often found on a bench in a mall enjoying a new friend. He always said a stranger was just a friend he hadn’t met yet.

Back at the farm he took great pride in his cowherd and had a good eye for selecting cattle that would produce large healthy calves.  His crops had to be seeded in STRAIGHT rows long before GPS was heard of, and he would cringe when he noticed that Laura’s Garden rows were a little bent – she just said he could plant the garden himself if it was a problem! He also felt a lot of pride in the attractive farm yard they had developed together and was called on sometimes too often to keep the equipment in running order.  He always rose to the occasion even when his darling wife claimed that the garden equipment was just a bunch of junk.  – In fact, this struck him funny as he marched off to find tools for repair!

Though not a fan of meetings, he did spend several years on the Alliance Seed Cleaning Plant Board.  He was a charter member of the Alliance and District Agricultural Society when it formed in 1982 and later became a member of the Board.  He served many terms on that Board up until his untimely passing and was always involved in July 1^st and Santa Daze activities. While he was not a churchgoer, he supported Laura’s church activities as well as encouraging all of her other community involvements.  He was often pulled in to assist with events and did so cheerfully. 

When David was finishing school in 1987 and there was no land available for him to be a full time member of the farming operation, there was an opportunity to purchase the UFA agency, so the family took it on.  David being only 18 could not be the official agent, so Denny filled the position, but David was the full-time operator with Mom helping out in the office.   If it was quiet, we could count on customers flocking in soon after Denny’s time at the coffee shop doing PR and BS. He seemed to be a people magnet! We continued in this business until David had an opportunity to go full time farmer in 1999.

Denny’s family and friends were the most important part of his life and he always had time to stop and have a little visit. 

He fell ill suddenly in January and passed away on February 7 exactly 5 weeks after his cancer diagnosis. 

He leaves to cherish his memory his loving wife Laura; son David; daughter Christine (Steven Cookson); as well as brothers Stanley and Ronald (Donna) and their family Jason (Stephenie) and children Mya and Cooper, and Mark (Cathy) and son Bentley.  Also his very special sister-in-law Elaine Pickles and brother-in-law Walter Pickles (friend Deanna Crookshanks) and his family - Kerry (Carmen) Pickles and family Jared (Jamie) Pickles, Wyatt Pickles and Chyanne Pickles; son Trevor Pickles and his son Ty; son Curtis (Cristy) and their sons Tanner and Kody. 

His greatest sorrow was the loss of daughter Diana and her fiancé Craig MacEachern.  He was also predeceased by his parents, his parents-in-law Ernest and Verna Pickles, and sister-in-law Helen Pickles.

Celebration Of Life

Friday, February 16, 2024 at 2:00 P.M.

Alliance Community Hall, Alliance Alberta

Memorial Donations may be made to the Alliance Agricultural Society, Alliance United Church or to a charity of your choice.