BC mourns sheep advocate

A tireless advocate for the BC sheep sector has died.

Barbara Ydenberg of Wind’s Reach Farm in Langley passed away April 26 following an incredibly short battle with cancer.

Born in California, Ydenberg moved to BC with her family to a farm near Fort Langley in 1971. She joined Pony Club and rode in many dressage and jumping events, becoming a skilled rider. But most of all she loved the animals themselves, and caring for them was a greater joy than the sport.

Ydenberg attended Simon Fraser University, where she earned a B.Sc. in biology and met her husband Ron. Soon after their marriage in 1979, they moved to Oxford, England, where Ron attended graduate school and Barb worked as a research laboratory technician in the John Radcliffe Hospital.

The family returned to BC in 1982, and after two decades as a teacher with the local school district, Ydenberg moved the family to Wind’s Reach Farm.

The great pride and joy of her life, the farm became home to horses, chickens as well as Clun Forest Sheep as well as an assortment of cats and dogs.

Ydenberg served extensively on industry boards and on committees across Canada. She was secretary (four years) then president (eight years) for the Lower Mainland Sheep Producers Association, served as president of the BC Sheep Federation, BC Purebred Sheep Breeders Association and BC representative at the Canadian Sheep Federation as well as the Canadian Wool Growers Co-operative.

She frequently represented the BC sheep industry in Victoria, voicing producers’ needs and views to staff at the BC Ministry of Agriculture and Food.

She would do her best to help anyone starting out in the sheep industry and with those who have been in the industry for decades. She never forgot shepherds after they retired and made sure contact with them continued long after.

Ydenberg lived her best life though the end of 2024, climbing haystacks and slinging water buckets at an active and healthy 70 years of age.

The cancer that made itself known in the first months of 2025 progressed so fast that there was no time for her friends and family to adjust. Her family will be eternally grateful to their Wind’s Reach community that came together to help as the situation quickly became too much.

They are also grateful to the doctors, nurses and the other support team members that fought every step of the way.

Ydenberg is survived by her husband Ron, sons Casey (Agata) and Aaron (Karine), and grandchildren Natalie (13), Zoe (9), and Maxim (3). She also left behind 101 sheep, and many pets.

A Celebration of Life will take place June 12 at the Fort Langley Community Hall. In lieu of flowers, memorial donations to a charity supporting animal welfare are appreciated.