Remembering Chef and Author Annie Campbell

Annie Campbell working in the kitchen at Voyageur Bistro. Photo SPIN.

Last month our community said farewell to local resident Annie Campbell who, after a brief stay at Kamloops Hospice, slipped away on the morning of Jan. 25.

At just 31 years old, Annie made an indelible impression on her home of Sun Peaks, both in the friendships she made and also through her career as a chef.

When a young person passes away it’s cliché to say to measure their life not by how long they lived, but by how many people they impacted, but in this case it rings true.

Annie Campbell poses with her cookbook at the publication’s launch in June 2018. File Photo

Thousands of people have memories of amazing meals at Voyageur Bistro where Annie worked for five years and created the menu and unique culinary identity popular with both locals and visitors. Her delicious soups, impressive charcuterie boards and hearty entrees have created warm memories for so many people from all over the world.

Unable to return to work after cancer treatment, Annie authored and created a cookbook, The Little Ladle Presents: Classic Canadian Fare (SPIN May 2018 ‘Chef makes lemonade from lemons’) which now graces the kitchens of her friends, family and fans and will continue to inspire them to cook and share meals together.

While Annie wasn’t a huge skier, she chose to make Sun Peaks her home because of the community and friends she found here. Like many of us, she had a second family here who rallied around her when she fell ill and gathered to celebrate her too-short life.

When her family spoke at her memorial gathering it was clear they understood why Annie loved Sun Peaks and why she chose to stay here at the end of her life.

While Annie and I were not close friends, it was an honour to witness her face her illness with optimism and grace. Watching her friends and the community come together around her was an important reminder to me not to take the people here for granted and how important true friends are.

Thank you Annie for the many amazing meals and laughs. Rest easy, Little Ladle.