CFNO - Pat and Gladys Duke

N. R. “Pat” Duke was born in England and immigrated to Canada in 1926. He worked in various capacities in and around Lumby and married Gladys in 1934. He served overseas in the Royal Canadian Engineers from 1939 to 1945. Pat was the mayor of Lumby for about 28 years beginning with the incorporation of the village in 1956. Aside from village council, he served in numerous organizations including the Lumby Legion, Lumby Chamber of Commerce, North Okanagan Regional District, Union of B.C. Municipalities and the Canadian Federation of Municipalities. He was instrumental in the building of the Lumby arena which bears his name. He was a tireless worker for the community, earning him the nickname “Mr. Lumby”. In 1991, he was awarded the Order of B.C.
Gladys Duke (nee Bessette) was a daughter of Napoleon and Josephine (nee Leblanc) Bessette, who were early pioneers in Lumby. She attended Normal School in Victoria and later helped in the family mill business. Gladys was very enterprising. She assisted in the war effort by working at Boeing in Vancouver, operating Nap’s Cafe in the 1940’s, starting and operating the Monashee Motel and finishing her working life with a successful career in real estate. During this time, she and Pat raised two children: Gail and Denis. She was a longtime member of the Catholic Women’s League and was very active in the Red Cross. Gladys was invaluable support to Pat in his service to the community.