The Legacy of
Sheila Baxter, Registered Nurse and Addiction Treatment Therapist

Sheila Baxter was a practicing Registered Nurse for 58 long years, right up until the day she went into hospital. Although nobody would have believed it because of her health, energy, youthful appearance, and zest for life, she was 80 years old. She had no intention of ever retiring; she knew she had many more people to help.

Early Years

Sheila was born in Duncan and spent her early years in the Cowichan Valley. She was especially fond of her time in Cobble Hill, where she attended the Cobble Hill School (now Old School Coffee) and Bonner High (now George Bonner Elementary) from 1957–61, and was very close to her extended Ukrainian family in Duncan. Her aunts, uncles, and cousins remained very dear to her heart throughout her lifetime. Sheila also attended Max Cameron in Powell River in 1961–62 before graduating from Vic High in 1963.

Nursing

Sheila was inspired by one of her beloved aunts, Hazel, to pursue a career in nursing. She graduated from the Royal Jubilee Hospital (RJH) Nursing program in 1968. Upon graduation at the age of just 23, she became the evening shift Charge Nurse for the 30-bed Neurosurgical Unit at RJH. Her years in training, her fellow RJH nurses, and their many nursing reunions always remained some of her fondest memories.

Sheila's incredible career between Victoria, Nanaimo, and the Comox Valley spanned psychiatry, intermediate care, brain and spinal surgery, post-operative recovery, paramedical nursing, and, most notably, mental health addiction treatment.

In the 70s and 80s, she worked at Comox's St. Joseph's Hospital Psychiatric Unit, as Nurse Manager for multiple doctors' offices in Courtenay, and in pre-op and recovery at the Cumberland Hospital. In the 90s, she juggled being Manager of Care at a 12-bed mental health rehabilitation centre with operating a paramedical services company and being a Community Mental Health Nurse in the Comox Valley.

In 1999, Sheila established Western Canada's first laser therapy clinic treating mental health and addictions, Laser Centers for Health, and worked tirelessly to establish protocols that actually worked. She didn't want repeat customers; she wanted to heal people completely.

In the 27 years of running her two addiction treatment centres in Victoria and Nanaimo, she treated a whopping 17,000 patients on Vancouver Island. She pioneered this little-known treatment and swam against the current to have it recognized. She believed in it, because she had created a method that she saw was changing people's lives. Long after most would have retired, she persisted in her mission to treat as many people as possible, and help free them from their addictions. What many don't realize is that she continued to fund this business from her own pocket for many years simply because she saw its ability to heal people, and she felt a duty to continue treating people in the way only she knew how.

After she passed away, we discovered that Laser Centers for Health has just been awarded Nanaimo's Consumers Choice Award for Addiction Treatment. It would have meant the absolute world for her to have known.

The depth of her care toward her patients cannot be overstated. During her entire stay in hospital, including in the last conversation with her daughter, she continuously expressed deep worry about her patients. She had every intention of coming back to her clinic so that she could help more people.

Personal Life & Family

In the 70s she spent a year travelling by ship and by car to 31 countries in Asia, New Zealand, Australia, Africa, and Europe. It remained one of the best years of her entire life. Later, she continued to work while raising her daughter with love, dedication, and pride in the Comox Valley.

Sheila leaves behind her daughter, Crystal Sawyer, Crystal's partner Mark Leung, her grandson, Tristan Sawyer-Rey, and many members of her extended Ukrainian family in B.C. and Manitoba, all of whom she loved beyond measure. Nothing lit up her life like her grandson. He was her pride and joy, and the one person who could take her away from her patients.

Celebration of Life

We would be very grateful and honoured to have your presence at her Celebration of Life. Details and registration below.

If Sheila touched your life, or if you would like to support Crystal and Tristan, you are warmly invited to this special gathering of her family, friends, colleagues, and patients, to remember her, to share what she meant to you, and to celebrate the life she lived. Please register below to attend, so that we can plan accordingly.

If you have something in her favourite colour, deep purple (even a tie or a flower), please wear that to honour her.

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Sharing Your Connection

We know that Sheila touched many thousands of lives. It is extremely meaningful for us to understand the impact she had on the world, and welcome you to share how she has impacted your life at her Celebration of Life. We invite all types of memories, thoughts, and stories, whether funny, heartfelt, insightful, or otherwise. Crystal will be in touch as she puts together the program for the event.

I would love to share something at the event

I may have photos/videos of Sheila to share

Please list the names of the other adults who will accompany you Please list the names of the children/youths (under 19) who will accompany you Please let us know about any dietary or accessibility needs Submit

If you would like to donate, there is a GoFundMe to support her family and the memorial.

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Please don't say, "I'm sorry for your loss." Documenting Sheila's legacy is important to us. Please tell us what Sheila meant to you, so that we can collect your stories in a way that is meaningful for her family and future descendants.

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