In Passing: Willfred Buttjes

Wilfred Buttjes passed away on December 19, 2011 at the age of 93. Wilfred was born in Germany in 1918. He received his Engineer of Architecture diploma from the Staatsbauschule Oldenburg Academy of Architecture and CIvil Engineering. In 1952, Wilfred moved his family to Canada. After working for a time with McCarter Nairne & Partners, he joined the AIBC in 1959. He was later certified by the Royal Architectural Institute of Canada in 1977. Through his firm, The Buttjes Group, Wilfred was involved in some of the first high-rise projects in Vancouver’s West End. Over his career he received the Massey medal for Architecture ( for the Canyon Manor in North Vancouver) along with an AIBC Design Award and a number of Canadian Housing Design awards. He retired from practice in 1986. He is survived by Ria, his wife of 67 years, and children Andrew, Mareike and Dirk.