Constant quest for knowledge led to career in natural medicine
Trudy Bricker of Waterloo; Born: June 18, 1944, in Graz, Austria; Died: March 24, 2024, complications from Alzheimer’s
From a 13-year-old who couldn’t speak English when her family landed in Canada to a recognized authority on natural healing, Trudy Bricker forged a unique path. Known in much of Ontario and parts of the United States as a naturopathic healer, Trudy was frequently a guest on television and radio.
Dave MacDonald was the station manager at Faith 93.7 in the early 2000s when Trudy broadcast a weekly show, “Christian Health Perspectives.”
“I remember her as very passionate,” he said. “She was very strong in her beliefs.”
“She was forever researching, updating with new methods in natural health,” her son, Shan Bricker, added.
Trudy was born on June 18, 1944, in Graz, Austria, an only child of Rudolph and Martina Vuger. The little family came to Canada in 1957 when Trudy was 13.
“They had Austrian associates here,” said her husband, Larry Bricker. “Initially they went to Merritt, B.C., and lived in a little cabin.”
Those early days were idyllic in many ways: catching salmon from the river, and enjoying the Rocky Mountains that must have reminded them of the Austrian Alps.
Despite their lovely surroundings, the family always seemed to struggle financially. They moved to Prescott, Ont., and then to Kitchener. With this new stability, Trudy was able to set a career path in health care.
She originally trained as a dental nurse, graduating in 1964 and working as both an administrator and assistant for several practices. It was in a Kitchener practice that she met Larry; a fortuitous meeting, as his own dentist had retired, so he was forced to find a new one.
He chose Dr. Doug Haller, a decision that would alter Larry’s life.
“I went because I had a sore tooth,” he said. “On my first visit, this lovely young lady came along.”
It was nurse Trudy Vuger, and Larry was totally smitten.
“When we met, her English was not that good,” said Larry, sympathetic to the young woman who had just started learning the language as a teenager.
Larry asked her out.
She refused. He asked again. She refused again, largely because she already had a beau, but then her boss intervened.
“Dr. Haller had told her I was a good catch,” said Larry.
Trudy must have been convinced, as the two married in 1966, the same year he graduated university.
Larry would spend his career as the University of Waterloo’s physics co-op co-ordinator.
Trudy left dentistry, but she had other plans. Her husband described her as “a go-getter,” someone who never did anything in half measures.
When their son was born, Trudy became a stay-at-home mom. Once Shan was old enough, Trudy took a job in a health food store and found that customers had a lot of questions. An idea began to take shape.
“She started consulting out of the house and it grew from there,” said Larry, remembering the clinic she set up near Rockway in 1984.
“She always had an interest in natural medicine,” he said. “Now she had a spot to practice from.”
Trudy’s grandmother had been an established healer in her Austrian community. Several family members pursued conventional medicine, but Trudy believed in the philosophy of natural medicine.
Shan, an only child, would follow his mother into the natural health field for a few years, even helping develop her own line of natural products. In 1990, she opened a much larger practice in Waterloo, Heritage Health Centre, operating with a partner, a chiropractor.
Trudy retired from the practice in 2000, but consulted intermittently. She never stopped learning.
“She was extremely well educated,” said Shan of his mom’s constant thirst for knowledge. She was a registered nutritional consultant, but had training in several modalities, including acupuncture, herbology and naturopathy.
Outside of her clinical work, Trudy sat on many health-related boards, published extensively and also found time for fun, primarily with music.
“She wasn’t a one-trick pony,” said Shan. “She sang like a bird and she could yodel; it was beautiful.”
Shan, Larry and Trudy performed in their popular family band, Tapestry. She was also deeply religious, her faith a large part of her desire to help people.
“She was very driven,” said Shan. “When I was a kid, there were high expectations and she didn’t put up with a lot.”
At the same time, he said, his mother imparted a strong work ethic, always encouraging the child to exceed the parents’ accomplishments. Nearing the end of her life, all her knowledge and skills disappeared as Alzheimer’s disease slowly ate away her memory over seven years. Trudy died on March 24 at age 79.