Doris Aitken was born in Edmonton in 1925. She grew up there and later her family moved to Toronto. After high school, she worked at the blood bank and then the National Life Insurance Company.
Doris explained, "I used to babysit occasionally for a family who lived across the street. When I told the mother of the family that I was going to Edmonton to visit a childhood girlfriend she told me that her brother Bill Aitken was a student at the University of Alberta and that I should look him up. I explained that I would not phone him but if he wanted to phone me that would be fine. To make a long story short he did phone me and we went on a blind date. It was love at first sight and one date led to another. We both knew that I had to return to Toronto; Bill didn't want me to leave so he asked me to marry him and of course I said yes. I returned to Toronto wearing an engagement ring."
Bill Aitken was born in Prince George in 1920, the second son of John and Catherine Aitken. John Aitken arrived in Prince George in 1912 employed by Foley, Welch and Stewart, the company co-holding the contract to build the railway bridge over the Fraser River.
Bill attended King George V elementary and Baron Byng high school; as a young boy he had a paper route with the Prince George Citizen.
He enlisted in the army and after serving overseas he returned to Canada to begin his studies to become a dentist. At that point in time, there was no school of dentistry in British Columbia so he enrolled at the University of Alberta in Edmonton.
Bill and Doris were married in Toronto in 1950 and after a honeymoon at Niagara Falls, they returned to Edmonton where Bill completed his dental degree. He graduated in 1952 after which Doris, Bill and their infant son moved to Prince George where Bill started his dental practice in the Thorsness Building on Fifth Avenue across from the present-day bowling alley.
After some years, a partnership was formed between Bill Ferry (lawyer), Dr. Bill Aitken, Dr. Jack Newby (dentist) and Dr. Ian Evans (optometrist). They built a new office building on the southwest corner of Fourth Avenue and Quebec Street and using the first initial of each of their last names they named it the FANE building. They moved into the new building in 1960.
Bill and Doris have three children: John who lives in Cabo San Lucas; Heather (Randy) of Prince George; and Diane (Ken) of Regina. They have four grandchildren and Doris now enjoys her seven great-grandchildren with one more due in June.
Bill retired in 1988 and sadly he passed away in 2008.
In the early 60s, there were only six dentists in Prince George and with the arrival of the pulp mills and the resulting rapid population growth they all had to work long hours. Bill and his colleagues successfully began recruiting more dentists to move to Prince George.
Along with his career, Bill was a founding director of the Native Friendship Centre, served on the Prince George school board and worked as a volunteer for the local Heritage Society and the Save the Nechako Society.
The Provincial Dental Association presented Bill with its annual Dentist of the Year award recognizing his community involvement.
Doris was a stay-at-home mom. She volunteered in the Boy Scout movement and Girl Guides as a leader and held a position as district commissioner of Girl Guides.
She was also the annual Girl Guide Cookie Coordinator for several years and her family fondly remembers the basement being filled with cases of Girl Guide cookies.
Her community involvement included serving as a board member for the Elder Citizens Recreation Association, volunteer work with the annual Prince George Music Festivals and fundraising for the United Way.
She has been a member of the United Church since moving to Prince George and is now a lifetime member. As a part of the United Church Women, she spent many years volunteering at St. Michaels Thrift Shop. Bill and Doris were part of the building committee which raised funds to build the addition to the church. They both sang in the Knox Church Choir and at nearly 92 years of age Doris is still singing in the church choir.
Doris and Bill spent many years driving for Meals on Wheels.
When the children had completed high school, Doris went to work as the receptionist in Bill's dental office. Bill liked that because he would not have to learn a new name for his receptionist as the retiring receptionist's name was also Doris. Doris said, "Many patients asked how I could stand being with my husband all day in the office. I just laughed and said it was easy as I kept my back to him at work."
Doris became a member of the Weavers and Spinners Guild fulfilling an early in life desire to learn to weave.
Doris and Bill loved being outdoors and were always very active together, enjoying tennis and walking to and from work. They belonged to The Skyline Hikers of the Canadian Rockies for many years and hiked in awe of the scenery of the Rockies. They loved to travel internationally visiting China, Siberia, Australia, Europe and the United Kingdom and in 1967 they travelled across Canada with the children.
Their favorite spot for the family was the little cabin on Cluculz Lake built in 1930. It was the first summer cabin built on the lake and is now being enjoyed by the family's fifth generation.
When asked about her life, Doris replied, "It couldn't be better."
