Obituary of Vera Martin

MARTIN ~ Vera Jessie Martin passed away at the Lloydminster Hospital Tuesday, May 21, 2013 at the age of seventy-eight years. Vera leaves to mourn her passing: her loving husband, Harold Martin; her daughter, Sandie Bernard; two granddaughters, Stephanie and Jessica Bernard and their father, René Bernard; sisters: Annie Day, Jean & Bill Buruchkowsky, Shirley & Bill Luchynski, Beverly Kuziak, Eva Smith and Betty & Art Tomlinson; sister-in-law, Delorese Younger; brother-in-law, Bill & Julia Rekrutiak and many nieces and nephews. The Funeral Service for Vera Martin was conducted from St. John's Anglican Church, Lloydminster, Saskatchewan Thursday, May 23 at 2:00 P.M. with Reverend Paul DuVal officiating. Chris Perry gave the eulogy. The hymns"Breathe on Me Breath of God," "Just As I Am" and "Just a Closer Walk With Thee," along with the solo "On Eagles' Wings," were accompanied by organist Irene Knowlson and the Grace United Church Choir. The honorary pallbearers were members of the Royal Purple. The active pallbearers were Bob Day, Daryl Luchynski, Mark Kuziak, Mike Smith, Wade Younger and Brad Younger. Interment was held in the Lloydminster City Cemetery. Donations in Vera Martin's Memory may be made to Alzheimer's Society or Royal Purple. McCaw Funeral Service Ltd., of Lloydminster will administer the funeral arrangements. Eulogy My name is Christina Perry, and I am one of Vera Martin's nieces. I feel very honored to be able to speak today about my Auntie Vera, and to celebrate her life with all of you. Auntie Vera was born on October 8th, 1934 at the Lloydminster Hospital and passed away Tuesday, May 21st , 2013 at the age of 78. She was predeceased by her parents Tom and Annie, daughter Debbie, husband John, brother John, and her sister Wendy. Auntie Vera was the third daughter of Tom & Annie Younger. She grew up on the farm just a few miles north east of Lloydminster, in the Greenwood District along with her seven sisters (Annie, Jean, Shirley, Bev, Eva, Betty, and Wendy) and 1 brother (John). Life on the farm, with such a large family, was hard work and everybody pitched in to help with the many jobs that needed to be done. Auntie Vera particularly enjoyed helping Grandpa with his outside chores. Even though the first four children of the Younger family were girls, there was much need for outside help as well as inside house help. So Grandpa quickly commandeered his spunky daughter, Vera, as his right hand chore girl. He affectionately nicknamed her "Bee". We're not exactly sure where he got the name from but we have a sneaking suspicion it comes from her having such a "Busy Bee" personality. She always liked to keep busy. Memories recall Grandpa scooping up "Bee" when she was only two years old and taking her along to do some fencing around the farmyard. To keep an eye on her he strategically placed her on top of a very high mound of dirt while he did his fencing. After a while Grandpa noticed "Bee" furiously scratching herself all over. When he went over to check on her he quickly realized the mountain of dirt he sat her on was none other than a huge ant hill. From that day on Auntie Vera hated the sight of any kind of ant. She went out of her way to stomp on and eliminate the world of those pesky insects! Auntie Vera attended and completed her schooling at Greenwood School. She enjoyed her school years and it was during this time she developed a growing interest in sports. She was a gifted athlete and particularly excelled in playing ball. Her pitching skills stood out as well as her high jumping abilities in track & field. Her family believes that her lightening speed in running began back in the days when the girls had to cross a huge field on their way to school each day. The field was the home for a small herd of the neighbor's horses. The horses weren't the friendly type and the girls, including Auntie Vera, became extremely good at dodging and running away from them. She enjoyed participating and competing in various bowling activities, Alberta wide, where she earned many a trophy for her accomplishments. She also took an avid interest in golf and curling later on. School concerts were a favorite of hers and she always looked forward to a chance to go out dancing. She also became a member of the local 4H club, where it was rumored she met her husband John Rekrutiak. This probably led to their first date at the Lloyd Fair. In the early years after her schooling at Greenwood, Auntie Vera took on a career as a telephone operator for Alberta Government Telephones. She worked alongside her sister, my Mom, Shirley Luchynski as well as long time friend, Dorothy Wolkowski. During this time her love interest grew with Uncle John Rekrutiak and she and her friend Dorothy with Henry Wolkowski. They soon became a fearsome foursome and they often did double duty dating together. This friendship continued to grow throughout the years and even led them on many trips together to the Wolkowski home in Canora, Ontario and as far away as Hawaii. Auntie Vera and Uncle Johnny got married on July 12, 1954 and they lived and worked on the family farm in the Greenwood District for a few years. It was during this time that they welcomed their first daughter, Debra Lynn on November 10, 1956. After a move to Lloydminster when Uncle Johnny started working for the Coop, Sandra Lee was born on March 29, 1961. To us the girls were Debbie and Sandie. Auntie Vera and Uncle Johnny decided it was time to become their own bosses and they built, owned and operated, Weaver Park Grocery. This thriving confectionary store was one of the busiest small stores in town and had it's loyal customers who sometimes just came in to say hi to the hard working owners. Our family has many fond memories of working alongside Auntie Vera and Uncle Johnny at their store over the 10 years they owned it. Sadly it was during this time that we had to say goodbye to Debbie. After the loss of her husband John, a number of years later, Auntie Vera married Harold Martin on July 25,1987. Harold was the minister of Grace United Church. It was truly a union of the East meeting the West. Together they enjoyed traveling and saw many interesting places across Canada, the United States, and even as far away as Rome, Italy. Auntie Vera's family grew soon after with the coming of her two rays of sunshine, her granddaughters, Sandie's daughters - Stephanie and Jessica. She truly showed her proud, loving and caring grandmother qualities when she was either with them or just talking about them. Auntie Vera belonged to the United Church Women's organization. Her unit was the Wittier Eggen Unit of Grace United Church. She also belonged to the Royal Purple organization for many years, whose presence we would like to recognize here today as her honor guard. Social gatherings for friends and family were always valued and important to Auntie Vera. In the early years large family gatherings were common and she was always there and always interested in hearing what we were all doing in our own lives. I remember Auntie Vera being one of the most hard working women I knew. Whether it was keeping an immaculate house, cooking the most delicious meals, or gardening and doing yard work - she was a perfectionist and did it well! She took such pride in her work and it was noticeable. Her yard was the envy of many of her neighbors, friends and family. I recall Auntie Vera's generous, caring nature when she insisted I park my bicycle in their back yard when they lived over by the old Junior High School, now called E.S. Laird. It was only an extra block away to park my bike at their place and walk over to the school but my bike would be so much safer not crammed into those overcrowded bike stands according to my concerned Aunt. Her generosity showed again when she included me in one of their family holidays to the mountains. I'm not sure who was more glad to be done riding the horse on the trail ride that trip, me, the horse, or a relieved Auntie Vera. Auntie Vera was always a "lady" who demonstrated graciousness, thankfulness, and caring to all who knew her. Those comments rang true even by the staff at the Dr. Cooke Extended Care facility where she spent this last year until becoming hospitalized. No matter how disabling her health problems became later on, she had those noble qualities about her. In closing, I would just like to say that it was my privilege to be a part of my Auntie Vera's life and I know that she had a profound effect on many peoples' lives as well as my own. She will always be remembered and cherished and is now finally able to close this part of her journey to be with her other loved ones. Card of Thanks The family of the late Vera Martin who passed away on May 21, 2013 would like to express their heartfelt thanks and appreciation to all those who supported us in our time of grief. Thanks for the visits to the Dr. Cooke Extended Care Centre, Lloydminster Hospital, prayers, cards, memorial donations and for attendance at the service. Thank you to Mom's sisters and families and Uncle Johnny's family for their support. Special thanks to Rev. Paul DuVal for his support and for officiating at the service. To Irene Knowlson Pianist, Grace United Church Choir and to the Ladies Group of the St. John's Anglican Church for the delicious lunch provided at the reception. Special thanks to the Pallbearers nephews Bob Day, Daryl Luchynski, Wade Younger, Brad Younger, Mark Kuziak and Mike Smith and to Chris Perry for her wonderful tribute to her Aunt. A special thank you to Brenda Servold, Palliative Care Coordinator and the Doctors and Nurses that cared for Mom at the Lloydminster Hospital and to the Staff at the Dr. Cooke Extended Care Centre. Thanks also to Joel McCaw and Staff of McCaw Funeral Service Ltd. for their compassion and understanding at this difficult time. On a personal note, Sandie would like to thank Aunt Shirley and Uncle Bill Luchynski for their love and assistance especially over these last two years and also to Rema McKenzie, Lynda Campbell, Chris Perry and Lori and Arnie Domes whose caring and support will never be forgotten. Sandie, Stephanie and Jessica Bernard Harold Martin