In the early evening hours on Sunday, December 15, 2013, John Mindek passed quietly in his own home in Elko, BC.
John Mindek was born in the small village of Sambron Czechoslovakia in 1927. At the age of 5, he and his mother joined his father in Canada. If not for his father not liking the taste of the water, they may have stayed on a sheep ranch on the prairies. Instead, they came to Fernie, BC. After a short while, the family moved to Michel/Natal where his father found work as a coal miner. Sadly, his mother died when he was 11 years old.
John spent his adolescent years in Michel/Natal where he developed an intense love of hunting and fishing in the Elk Valley. It was during this time that he became attracted to hunting in the Elko area … an attraction that would later define his life.
After completing high school, John furthered his education to become a teacher. One of his first teaching jobs was to open a new school at Cinema, BC. Though he only spent one year in the Cariboo, to listen to his fond stories of that time, one would have thought he spent most of his life there. His former students in the Elk Valley confirmed this by giving him the nickname “Cariboo”.
Finally, after leaving teaching and trying other occupations, in 1958 he had the opportunity to purchase a business in Elko. He became attracted to the area while hunting there as a young man and jumped at the opportunity to make Elko his home. Here, he struggled to raise a family and to build a thriving business that continues on.
He will be missed.
Respecting his final wishes, there will be no memorial services.