September 16, 1929 - December 20, 2021
In loving memory ~
We are sad to announce the passing of father, grandfather, step- grandfather and great grandfather, Emil Asbjorn Sletten. He will be missed by his children Laila (Kevin), Helge (Catherine) and Andrew, grandchildren Karsten, Kai (Kaitlyn), Grace and Emil, great grandchildren Wyatt and Watson, and step grandchildren, Michelle, Jennifer, James, Jessica and Natalie. Emil was predeceased by his wife, Alice, his mother and father, Emil and Hanna Georgsen, brothers Odd I, Karly, Odd II, Hakon, Einar, and sisters Gudrun and Edel.
Emil was born on Sept.16, 1929 in Skogvoll, Norway and was raised on the family farm. A hard worker, he began fishing in his teens, a vocation he enjoyed for decades. A master fisherman (and amazing cook), he trolled, gill-netted, long-lined, seined and packed a variety of species. Emil honed skills on deep sea boats and did a stint in the Norwegian navy. Fate intervened when Emil enrolled in the Farsund Seaman's School in his twenties. Here he met his loving wife, Alice.
After emigrating to Prince Rupert in the late 1950s, he worked on tugs, drove oil trucks, and was a scale man for the Prince Rupert Fisherman's Co-op. Emil fished with his cousin, Egil Elvan, on the Bering Sea and West Coast aboard several boats, and piloted the F/V Viking Sky to Montevideo, Uruguay in the 1990s. During that same decade, he traveled to Nicaragua and worked as a consultant aboard an Estonian long-liner. Throughout his fishing career, Emil owned four boats, the Tass, Norna II, Linjo Lee and the Alice Elida.
Alice emigrated to Canada at the beginning of May in 1958 and they married later that month. The couple settled in Prince Rupert and raised three children. Emil and Alice were active in the Sons of Norway Lodge and enjoyed card games, cultural activities and food. Family was important to Emil and whenever he was ashore, weekend retreats were often made with the Elvans.
In 1997, Emil built a cabin on the ancestral lands of his wife. He relished construction work and the cabin (with a lot of help from his nephew, Leif, over the years) became a place of solace for Emil where he made time for friends and family, while enjoying catches of seafood and Norwegian delicacies. The connection with his homeland helped ensure that Emil's family also maintained strong familial and cultural connections that remain today.
On June 23, 2005, Emil had a stroke that introduced significant obstacles to his life. In keeping with his character, however, Emil rarely strayed from the positive outlook and engaging smile for which he was well known. With the aid of his son, Andrew, he fished for a few years afterward on the Alice Elida until 2013. When Emil's health took a turn in 2018, he entered Acropolis Manor. Emil resided at Acropolis until his death on December 20, 2021. He was 92 years old. People who knew Emil describe him as a wonderful, happy, family man with a great big smile and gentle spirit. We agree. He will be missed.
Emil's family would like to thank the staff of Acropolis Manor for the care they showed him in the time he was a resident there.