Michael Bernard Beck was born in Swaffham, Norfolk, England on October 29, 1938, welcomed by his beloved parents, Harry Nelson Beck and Primrose Deborah (Shaul) Beck, along with his sisters, Betty and Leila, and his brother, Barry. Fondly called “Mick” by his British friends and family, Mike enjoyed a childhood full of adventures and hard work. He built model airplanes and little boats with his brother as the outlines of their engineering passions took shape. However, a childhood in England while WWII raged around them meant that they grew up quickly, learning the values of economy and innovation, and the strength of tight-knit families. These lessons became enduring hallmarks of their lives.
In 1957, Mike joined the British Royal Air Force, training as a technician on radar systems of spy planes. Service in the forces was a family-held virtue, with his father having fought in WWI and with first Betty and then Barry having joined the RAF for their national service. In the early 1960s, Mike found a new and all-consuming purpose that gave passion and direction to the rest of his life; while listening to a Billy Graham crusade over the radio one evening in his barracks, he became a Christian. Shortly thereafter, he was assigned a new RAF posting to Aden, Yemen. Though his fellow servicemen viewed this appointment with chagrin, Mike experienced in the southern tip of the Arabian Peninsula further life- defining encounters: first, he met members of a team of missionaries whom he would later join in bringing medical, agricultural, educational, hydrological, and engineering support to impoverished families in the Middle East; and, second, he had his first serendipitous meeting with the young nurse who would, eight years later, become his first wife, Esther.
After marrying in Swaffham, England on March 29, 1969, Mike and Esther (Johnson) Beck continued together what became their life-long journey of caring for those with needs greater than their own. They welcomed their only child, Deborah Pauline Leila, while in Ethiopia in August of 1972. For the next 35 years, they served with the mission team, living, working, and travelling around the world; following Esther’s diagnoses of metastasized cancer and Alzheimer’s disease, they retired in early 2003 to join their daughter in the town of Caronport, SK for Esther’s final years. While there, they continued, despite their own challenges and griefs, to love and support the students of Briercrest’s College, Seminary, and Academy, along with many of the immigrant families in Moose Jaw, Regina, and Saskatoon. Esther went Home to Heaven on May 24, 2006.
Mike was not just once-blessed, but twice-blessed, with love. On November 24, 2007, Mike married Grace Vandervort, a fellow nurse with whom Esther had served in Eritrea. Grace had even been the midwife who assisted at the delivery of Mike and Esther’s daughter decades before. Having been family friends over the years, Grace and Mike found comfort and companionship with each other and enjoyed 15 precious years together, travelling, listening to stories and sermons, and making memories on their unexpected journey. As he had demonstrated servant love to Esther during her tragic illnesses, Mike likewise cared for Grace during her battle with chronic lung disease. On September 21, 2022, Grace, like Esther, preceded Mike to the halls of Heaven.
One of the most precious of Mike’s earthly joys was the gift of his granddaughter, Eliana, born to his daughter and son-in-law, Deborah (Beck) and Marcelo Ike. Whether spending hours on the floor with her stacking wooden blocks that he had made by hand or pushing her around in the wheelbarrow in the backyard, Mike loved his “little girl.” In the latter years, while Mike was losing his grasp on words and understanding during his swift and consuming relationship with dementia, he would visit with Eliana and her labrador retriever, Yūki—and they all found comfort in the language that does not need words, Love.
On February 9, 2024, Mike was welcomed into the arms of Jesus and those of his loved ones who had journeyed there before him—his parents, siblings, wives, and many dear friends. We who remain grieve, his loss and will, until we join him, miss his wisdom, patience, gentleness, commitment, passion, generosity, and faithfulness—but we find joy in our sadness as we hold in our hearts the hope of his freedom from pain and sorrow and the fulfillment of his faith as he has finally met his Saviour, face to Face.
A “Celebration of Life” service will be held in Mike’s honour at 1:00pm on Saturday, March 2, 2024 in Hildebrand Chapel, Caronport, SK. Friends and family around the world can join us online at www.caronport.church/video.
Submitted by Deborah Ike on behalf of our family who remain, along with the families they have formed: granddaughter, Eliana Ike; nieces, daughters of Barry: Ena Fry, Elizabeth Madichie, and Lorraine Maan; niece, daughter of Leila: Marilyn Franklin; and nieces and nephew, children of Betty: Virginia, Chris, Michelle, Suzanne, and Nikki; our immediate and extended family through Esther (Johnson) Beck and our family through Grace (Vandervort) Beck.
In living memory of Mike, a memorial planting will be made by W.J. Jones & Son Ltd. Please sign the memorial register at website: www.wjjonesandson.com (Obituaries).