Eileen Williston
Eileen Williston was born in Manitoba, and came to the west coast before World War II. It was here that she married physics teacher Walter Doff Thumm, and it was his gift of his first royalty cheque for the text book he had written that set her on her travels all over Europe. After his death in 1977 she bought a home in Gibsons, B.C. and settled down to write. She was a founding member of the SunCoast Writers' Forge and The Festival of the Written Arts, and served on the Festival board for six years. In 1985 she married an old friend, Ray Williston, and together they explored the world until her death from cancer on April 3, 1996.
Eileen completed two books in her lifetime. The first was a walking guide to Kitchener, Ontario, where she spent many years with her first husband, and the second was her travel book, Rainbows at Noon. She was at work on the third when she died, and it was completed by Betty Keller.
Eileen completed two books in her lifetime. The first was a walking guide to Kitchener, Ontario, where she spent many years with her first husband, and the second was her travel book, Rainbows at Noon. She was at work on the third when she died, and it was completed by Betty Keller.
RAINBOWS AT NOON
(Quintessential Press, 1993)
is a travel book with a difference. In it, Eileen wanders the highways and byways of the British Isles, staying in out-of-the-way hotels and B & Bs and getting to know the locals. She travels to the Isle of Skye to find the home of her ancestors and walks Hadrian's Wall as it meanders through fields of grazing sheep. The line drawings which accompany the delightfully humorous text are by June Sherwood.
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(Quintessential Press, 1993)
is a travel book with a difference. In it, Eileen wanders the highways and byways of the British Isles, staying in out-of-the-way hotels and B & Bs and getting to know the locals. She travels to the Isle of Skye to find the home of her ancestors and walks Hadrian's Wall as it meanders through fields of grazing sheep. The line drawings which accompany the delightfully humorous text are by June Sherwood.
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FORESTS, POWER AND POLICY: The Legacy of Ray Williston
(The Caitlin Press, 1997), co-authored with Betty Keller. This is the story of the career of Eileen's second husband, Ray Williston, who served as MLA for the Prince George area from 1953 until 1972. He was one of the most influential politicians in B.C. during the turbulent 1950s and 1960s, serving as minister of lands and forests and then acting as the province's representative during the lengthy Columbia River Treaty negotiations. Williston Lake behind the Bennett Dam in northern B.C. is named for him.
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(The Caitlin Press, 1997), co-authored with Betty Keller. This is the story of the career of Eileen's second husband, Ray Williston, who served as MLA for the Prince George area from 1953 until 1972. He was one of the most influential politicians in B.C. during the turbulent 1950s and 1960s, serving as minister of lands and forests and then acting as the province's representative during the lengthy Columbia River Treaty negotiations. Williston Lake behind the Bennett Dam in northern B.C. is named for him.
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