LAWRENCE ROBERT CHESTER -

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LAWRENCE ROBERT CHESTER 1951 - 2013 Lawrence Robert Chester passed away on January 28, 2013 after a five year struggle with a progressive disease. He was born on May 31, 1951 to the late Leslie Chester and Christine (nee Chartrand). He is survived by his long-time partner Maureen Mitchells Omichinski, former wife Wendy (nee Stephenson) and sons Noel and Jesse, as well as sister Gail McClinchey (Don), brother Don (Sally), sister Janet Miller (Scott), numerous nephews and nieces, and good friend Sara the dog. Lawrence was very proud of his family and his Transcona roots, and he loved telling stories about his past. From his grandfather's dairy farm called Chester Farm, to his father's service in the Second World War in Europe, these were regular topics of conversation. He grew up in a tiny two-bedroom house, located where Costco now stands, which at that time was completely surrounded by prairie. Lawrence's mother died of ovarian cancer when he was only nine years old and his father raised the family on his own. Lawrence never wished to dwell on this time in his life but it left an indelible mark and made him want to live the fullest life he possibly could. It was at Murdoch MacKay Collegiate that he first met his wife-to-be, Wendy. Lawrence had a passion for cars - his first one being a dark blue '56 Chevy. In the last few years of his life, he restored a '64 Pontiac Acadian, which he would proudly rev on his property. Lawrence took great delight laughing and spending time with friends and family. On occasion, he and his buddies would carry on with good conversation until the early morning sunrise. In 1975 Lawrence graduated from Red River Community College with a diploma in Computer Technology. Shortly after Wendy and Lawrence were married at the United Church in Transcona in August 1975. Two days later they moved to Regina, where Lawrence started a job at Sasktel, and so began his lifelong career in the telecommunications industry. They enjoyed their life in Regina, where they made many friends. It was approximately a year and a half later that they moved back to Winnipeg, where Lawrence would take a job with MTS. In 1979 Lawrence and Wendy proudly purchased a home in Transcona and he became a father with the birth of his son, Noel. In 1982 Lawrence became the chief engineer in Canada for Base 10, an American military communications company located in Trenton, New Jersey. The youngest person to ever hold this position, over the following four years he prepared designs that were both innovative, sophisticated and simple. His ability to project manage large, complex projects grew and was widely recognized. In 1984 Lawrence and Wendy's family grew with the birth of their second son, Jesse. On his return to MTS, Lawrence was introduced to a boy with cerebral palsy who could not communicate verbally and was a resident of St. Amant Centre. Lawrence designed a table that was fitted to a wheelchair, which incorporated a light source and a bliss scroll technique , enabling the boy to communicate. Then there was Project IDA, which brought only the best into this new MTS fold. Of course, Lawrence worked on this advanced trial which delivered telephone, internet and alarm to the residents of Headingley. He was acknowledged as the kind of guy who made stuff work against all odds, right down to circuit design. Repeatedly Lawrence could be heard saying, "we can do that". That's how his co-workers and managers remember him. This phrase also rubbed off on his children. The Chester family motto is "we persevere", notes Noel, who is also completing his doctorate in engineering. Jesse recalls his Dad giving him a radio and a screw driver when he was five years of age, and encouraging him to take it apart, and put it back together again. He's now a heavy duty mechanic. When CanTalk (Canada) Inc., a telephone-based language service company, opened its doors, Lawrence came on board. He rose to the position of Executive Vice President, Product and Services. Lawrence led the company's information technology strategic direction. He led the implementation of the latest leading edge telecommunication switches and carrier systems including voice data and packet switching, as well as network technologies. What made Lawrence unique was his determination to overcome. He was always striving to design better ways of doing things. CanTalk Canada was a unique recipient of the inventive spirit which was Lawrence. For CanTalk's premiere client, also Canada's largest international carrier company, Teleglobe, he developed a global gateway that allowed voice- to-voice communication to be customized to any one of 90 languages on Teleglobe's worldwide network. His genius was taking Northern Telecom equipment and customizing it - making it do something that it hadn't been originally designed to do. Lawrence and Maureen were the best of friends. They shared a deep love of the country and their country home during their 15 years together. They biked, hiked and travelled most of the back roads of Manitoba. Maureen thinks that she probably accompanied Lawrence on his visits to almost every hardware store in the province. He could never stop by a rural hardware store without picking up a few extra bolts, nuts or nails. A kind and compassionate man, Lawrence always bought a couple of chocolate bars from the kids fundraising for the high school band. Girl Guide cookies were tasty and a worth while cause, so he bought those as well. And as for the person on the street who needed a hand out - he gave to that person as well. There was always something buzzing in his workshop. Lawrence built flower beds, bird feeders and benches, and also landscaped and planted gardens. He hauled more rocks and boulders and planted more trees than one could count. And then, after a long day of work around the yard, fun was Lawrence, Maureen and Sara the dog sitting on the tailgate of his truck - as the sun set and the crickets chirped. A funeral service is being held at 11:00 a.m. on Tuesday, February 5, 2013 at Wheeler Funeral Home, Cemetery Crematorium, 1800 Day Street in Transcona. Flowers are gratefully declined. People who wish to make donations may do so to Winnipeg Harvest or the Salvation Army. Funeral Arrangements in Care of Wheeler Funeral Home, Cemetery Crematorium 1800 Day Street 224-1525

As published in Winnipeg Free Press on Feb 02, 2013