Rece van der JagtCourtesy of family
Patrice (Rece) Paige van der Jagt: Daughter. Comedienne. Adventurer. Aunt extraordinaire. Born March 23, 1993, in Oakville, Ont.; died June 22, 2023, at home in Oakville, from cancer; aged 30.
We always called her Rece even though we named her Patrice – a name she liked about as much as she did her red hair. It was a name she never used, but after her cancer diagnosis at age 28 she was hailed as Patrice in every doctor’s office, clinic and hospital in accordance with her health card. If one of them happened to remember that she had a preferred name, it mistakenly became Pat or Patty. “My name is Rece, the Pat is silent,” she would repeat with exasperation.
Rece was a thrill-seeker from birth when she entered the world without much warning while her mother was still at home, delivered by her father. Her six-year-old brother was sent to the front door to wait for the ambulance to arrive and her four-year-old sister was shooed to the nursery to collect blankets. That was the first and only time Rece arrived early. Punctuality was not exactly her forte.
Rece had the whimsy and bravado of the youngest child and her antics were laughingly encouraged by her family. She grew up adventurous and without fear, and was game to try just about anything – the first to dive off a cliff, fly upside down and backward on a zip line, or taste a strange new delicacy much to her squeamish sister’s distress. Having all the qualities of ADHD – creativity, interpersonal intuition, energetic enthusiasm and an attunement to nature – she also grew up with a messy room and a slew of lost phones and homework, which naturally led to the occasional mother-daughter standoff.
But Rece made it her mission to make people around her feel happy. If you were the target of her playful teasing and impressions, even you couldn’t help howling with laughter.
Never one for formal academic pursuits, but always resourceful, Rece earned a high school English credit by taking a class trip to Italy. Later, her Fanshawe College tourism program was cut short by her quest for a more hands-on travel experience. She made her way to 17 countries in her 30 short years – trips that included coaxing baby turtles into the sea at sunset and trekking across a jungle island in the early hours to sleuth out Komodo dragons in Indonesia.
Rece had no problem taking a fish off a hook, was down to earth, outdoorsy and sporty, but also craved her makeup, highlights, mani-pedis and reality TV shows. She led her life instinctively with an innate ability to read people and charm them. She thrived at various server positions and a sales role at Harley Davidson, all giving her good fodder for her irreverent impersonations.
Rece connected with all animals. Soon after meeting her beloved Drew 11 years ago (later to become her fiancé), they rescued Lucy, a Staffordshire terrier mix. In a cruel twist of fate, Lucy broke her leg and died of cancer just a year before Rece herself was given the same diagnosis.
But most of all, Rece adored children, especially her eight nieces and nephews who gravitated to her quirky funny faces and her big goofy dance moves. The kids were a huge part of her world and if you were lucky enough to be present when she played with them and witnessed their faces, the pure joy and excitement radiating from each of them was dazzling and infectious.
Rece was strong, brave and unwilling to give up. Before she died, she endured 30 rounds of chemo, multiple medical procedures and major surgeries, with ongoing debilitating pain. Incredibly, she remained positive and took every new setback in stride, ready to do whatever was necessary and somehow also summon the grace to show kindness to each bad news provider. She had an extraordinary presence and will always be a shining star for her family and friends.
Jacqueline van der Jagt is Rece’s mother
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Lives Lived celebrates the everyday, extraordinary, unheralded lives of Canadians who have recently passed. To learn how to share the story of a family member or friend, go online to tgam.ca/livesguide