February 22, 1944 – May 2, 2020
We are sad to announce that Allen Leroy Wilcke passed away on May 2, 2020 at age 76 in Claresholm, Alberta. Allen was a selfless father, a loyal husband, and a generous friend. We miss seeing his loving smile and hearing his resonant voice. Our grief is deep and our hearts are heavy.
Allen was born February 22, 1944 in Olds, Alberta, to Esther Wilcke (Kaiser) and Hans (Jack) Wilcke. As the son of a Baptist minister whose church appointments required the family to relocate frequently, Allen was raised in Tacoma, Washington, Linton, North Dakota, Stafford, Kansas, and St. Paul, Minnesota. In St. Paul, Allen met his wife Peggy Lou Witt; they married in 1966. After attending the North American Baptist seminary in Sioux Falls, South Dakota, Allen arrived in Leduc, where he briefly pastored at the Baptist church.
Allen and Peggy eventually settled in the Crowsnest Pass in 1973 and raised their sons Jonathon and Ian. In 2001, Allen and Peggy moved to Claresholm, Alberta, where Allen retired as the Executive Director of the Chinook Educational Consortium in 2010.
Allen loved the outdoors and was an avid hiker, camper, hunter, fisherman, and cross-country skier. He had a passion for bicycle touring and later in life trained for and participated in long distance bicycling trips. Allen also loved subsistence farming, gardening, inventing, and building. He had an insatiable appetite for books and a passion for learning.
Allen was the Executive Director of the Chinook Educational Consortium from 1982-2001. He helped provide post-secondary and vocational education programs for adults in Claresholm, Pincher Creek, and the Crowsnest Pass at a time when no such programs were available outside of the city. He also developed some of the first long distance telecommunication classes in Southern Alberta and was responsible for creating valuable vocational programs, such as the well-attended L.P.N. program in Claresholm.
He is survived by his two sons and their spouses: Jonathon Wilcke (Nikki Reimer) and Ian Wilcke (Care York); he is predeceased by his wife, Peggy Wilcke (2018).
Allen requested that there be no funeral service.
The family regrets that, in our bereavement, we were unable to make this announcement sooner.