01/15/2026
Jennifer "Jen" Lee Tompkins
April 14, 1975 - January 13, 2026
Jennifer “Jen” Lee Tompkins passed away peacefully surrounded by family on January 13, 2026, in Creston, BC at the age of 50 after a short battle with cancer.
Jen, or Jennie as she was known by friends and family, was born and raised in Calgary, Alberta on an acreage where she had many pets, including horses, cats, hamsters, budgies, fish, a hermit crab and a pair of geese. As an animal lover, she became a vegetarian at a young age. She was always doing something in the kitchen, even as a small child, and was a marvellous cook and baker.
In her twenties, she attended UNBC to study environmental science, worked in tree planting camps in northern BC and travelled the world. She spent a year in Australia, cycled through Central America, and did a solo bike trip through Southeast Asia. She came back to Calgary to do a certificate in herbalism at Mount Royal College, where she excelled.
She moved to the Kootenays in 2008, living first in Kaslo, where she worked in the kitchen at the Bluebell Café, then in Meadow Creek at an off-grid cabin often visited by grizzly bears. Coming to Calgary on a visit during that time, she showed her horrified mother a bruise on her hip from the recoil of the shotgun she had been using to chase grizzlies away from the carrots in the garden. Most recently she lived in Crawford Bay where she worked at Red’s Café. In recent years she developed a passion for photography. Her favourite subjects included her pets, the mountains and landscape around Kootenay Lake, the northern lights, wild plants and tiny
creatures. She lived the most natural lifestyle possible, enjoyed walking in the forest with her animals, hunting mushrooms, growing vegetables, and spending time with her family and friends. She was an incredibly kind person, and she was kind and loving to the end.
Jen was predeceased by her father, Brad Tompkins, and her grandparents Gordon and Jessie Miller.
She is survived by her mother, Jeanne Tompkins, her sister Amy (Will) Tompkins, her brother Joe Chisholm, her nieces Lola Crossman, Sadie Crossman and Kelsey Chisholm, her nephew Kyle Chisholm, and many aunts, uncles and cousins, as well as many dear friends. She is also survived by her beloved pets, Ned the dog and cats Callie and Wesley.
There will be a celebration of life for Jen in the spring in Crawford Bay.
Memorial donations can be made to the Canadian Cancer Society or an animal-related charity of one’s choice.
Friends wishing to offer condolences may do so at www.crestonvalleyfuneralservices.ca
