Obituary of Cis Nakonechny

Cecilia "Cis" Loretta Nakonechny passed away at the Lloydminster Hospital, Lloydminster, Saskatchewan on Wednesday, April 12, 2017 at the age of 72 years. Cis is survived by: her children, Vance (Wendi) Nakonechny, Verna (Darcy) McFarlane and Ivan (Tina) Nakonechny; her grandchildren, Ally, Nathaniel, Ian, Hanna and Owen; her brother, Benno (Marie) Korte; her sisters, Margaret Meckelborg, Helen Bieker, Rosemarie (Maurice) Strueby, Antoinette Prokosch, Anne (Glen) Favor; and numerous other relatives. Cis was predeceased by: her husband, Fred in September 2012. The prayer vigil will be held at the McCaw Funeral Chapel, Lloydminster, Alberta on Tuesday, April 18, 2017 at 7:00 PM. The Mass Of Christian Burial will be conducted from St. Anthony’s Roman Catholic Church, Lloydminster, Alberta on Wednesday, April 19, 2017 at 10:00 AM. Donations in memory of Cis may be made to the Lloydminster Hospital Palliative Care or Charity of Choice. EULOGY FOR CIS NAKONECHNY ~ Good morning, my name is Vance Nakonechny, I’m the oldest son of Cecilia Nakonechny. On behalf of my sister Verna and brother Ivan, I would like to thank you for the support and love you have shown our families over the past week. The cards, phone calls and emails you have shared have shown us how many lives our Mom has touched. It is my honour to tell you today about our Mom. She was born October 11, 1944 to John and Cecilia Korte of Muenster, Saskatchewan. She was a premature baby, they weren’t sure if she would survive – we are all glad she did. Cis spent weeks in an incubator before finally gaining enough weight to go home. She grew up in a busy household with her oldest brother and eventually 5 sisters. As a toddler and young child, she would often disappear which caused great distress to her mother and older sisters who were often tasked with trying to find her. She invariably was found; usually in a deep sleep: under a bed, in a drawer, in the garden patch and even on the porch of Leonard’s store in Muenster. This love of sleeping made it difficult to get her moving in the morning. As a teenager, Mom was relied upon to play the organ for daily Mass. A common morning occurrence in the Korte household consisted of Grandma Korte yelling up the stairs “Cis!!! Get going!” Mass started at 8:00 am, and Cis always arrived promptly……at 8:10. Often there would be no accompaniment for the opening hymn or Lord have mercy, but that organ would be humming for the offertory song. Her sisters described her as the “perfect child” growing up. There wasn’t a hint of jealousy or bitterness with this statement. It was unfortunate that Mom was not blessed with perfect children of her own (it must skip a generation). She was quiet by nature and could be found at the piano practicing – at least she couldn’t fall asleep there. At her high school graduation, she was described as a sterling student who spoke only when necessary and was an exquisite piano player. Music was a huge part of Mom’s life, from an early age. She grew up in a home where singing and playing instruments were a part of everyday life. She had an ear for music and a love of playing. Singing and performing with her sisters and cousins fostered a love of music which stayed with Cis her entire life. She also enjoyed other interests growing up such as playing ball (EVERYONE in Muenster played ball) and curling. Later on in life, she explored her artistic side with pottery, quilting, ceramics and painting – watercolours and acrylics, not the walls. But, when people think of Cis Nakonechny, it is her musical talent which comes to mind. It is with her sisters and cousins where Mom enjoyed performing. Her variety of singing groups won awards for their musical talents throughout the province, even performing on TV! The Korte Singers performed all over Saskatchewan in the mid-60s, travelling around in their powder blue bus. Billed as “6 roses and a bud”, this experience was one of Mom’s most cherished memories. After a few years, the Korte Singers disbanded, not because of some dramatic in fighting over their success, they all got married! This leads us to the happiest time in Mom’s life – her time with Dad. She was set up with her Freddy on a blind date by her cousin MaryAnn. Her youngest sister Anne recalls peeking her head around the corner of the entrance to check out this young suitor “He’s gorgeous!!” Mom must have agreed, soon Mom and the young teacher/ ball player (did I mention this occurred in Muenster?) were dating and ultimately married in 1967. They loved each other devotedly for 45 years. I can honestly say the only time I heard raised voices between them (they raised their voices to their imperfect children on occasion), but between them was when they tried the ultimate test of a marriage - hanging wallpaper together. She must have been devoted to Dad because she joined him on their adventure of moving up to Yellowknife along with two youngsters. A third youngster soon followed and they truly embraced the North, making lifelong friends, some of whom are here today. Mom flourished in the Yellowknife music community, playing the piano for the entire score of the Broadway musical “Fiddler on the Roof”. She practiced so diligently and repetitively as children we started to believe we were members of a Jewish community in pre-revolutionary Russia. When she set her mind on achieving something she put her heart and soul into it – a lesson for us all. She would practice for hours on end; all while raising her 3 children and leading a choir at church. Verna, Ivan and I were so fortunate to grow up in a loving, supportive home. Mom always guided us in a nurturing manner. I do not recall her ever telling us we were not capable of achieving something. She always believed in us, and more importantly helped us to believe in ourselves. Mom encouraged us to give our best whether it was playing sports, doing our school work or housework – she always pushed us a little more when it came to music. She helped me learn the guitar, aided Verna in developing her amazing voice, and encouraged Ivan to evolve into a wonderful piano player. Her musical knowledge was far beyond ours and she never stopped instructing us (and her grandchildren). A few years ago, Verna was over at Mom’s and was tinkling around on the piano. Mom was in the living room listening. Verna was struggling to find the next note in a melody, when Mom shouts out “B flat!” which of course was the correct note. Verna quizzed her in a spontaneous game of “Name that note” up and down the keyboard eventually giving up as Mom guessed them all. This is not to say that our upbringing was right out of a Norman Rockwell painting. Her imperfect children occasionally would have disagreements, most often Mom was the one to end them. I know I have described her as quiet, but trust me when I say you did not want to see her flash that redheaded temper. She had a “danger tooth” on the bottom row. If you saw that make an appearance, it was time to settle down. Now. Mom was always efficient in her parenting. She coined the name “Ivance” to call her 2 boys at the same time. I claimed she starting it was a sign to lose it, she claimed it was advance planning going all the way back to when Ivan was named – how can you argue with logic like that? Mom and Dad decided to move back south and they settled here in Lloydminster in 1979. She was immediately welcomed to share her musical talents with the St. Anthony’s parish. Mom used her gifts to serve the church, leading choirs from her arrival until just a few weeks ago (her most recent choir includes Verna and Ivan). A source of pride happened this past Christmas when all her children and grandchildren joined her choir to sing at Mass – I remember her being so excited in anticipation, it’s all she could talk about for weeks before. Her level of service to the Church was not only musical, she actually typed out the lyrics for the entire St. Anthony hymnal which are found in the pews today. Mom had an extremely strong faith in our Lord, which she learned by example from her parents. She demonstrated this faith not only by sharing her musical talents, but by leading the formation of new Catholics in the RCIA program. She was very proud of this work, it was a labour of love. She wanted to ensure the new members of church community were given a strong foundation, the initial step of a long term faith journey. Along with Dad, they showed us the how to live our faith, not always by their words, but by their actions. Cis believed in the power of prayer. She was extremely positive; she sought out the good in all things. Mom’s greatest source of joy were her grandchildren. I’ve discovered a common experience with Verna and Ivan. Once our children were born we became the couriers of the precious grandchildren, especially when they were babies. Maybe this is common to every generation, but our experience went something like this: We would come to the house, Mom would say “Hi! Where is Allyx/Hanna/Nathaniel/Ian/Owen? You can go run some errands, cut the lawn, or whatever. Grandma has this covered.” She would grab the child, leaving us empty handed. She loved and supported her grandchildren unconditionally. She attended every Christmas concert, baseball, basketball, bowling, hockey or soccer game, curling, swim meet, dance recital, theatre play, art exhibit and any other event her Fantastic Five were involved in. Her hugs and enthusiasm always made them feel wanted and important. She exhibited patience and support – passing on her life lessons whether it was teaching on the piano, singing songs, playing cards, colouring Easter eggs or sharing her precious Cheezies. Mom was always proud of their efforts and accomplishments. When we renovated their house a few years ago and removed the living room carpet we found a circular pattern worn into it. This was from all the “Going on a Bear hunt” sing-a-long activities with either Grandma or Grandpa crawling around leading their grandkids with huge smiles on their faces. Her Grandma persona carried on into her work life. For many years, Mom worked as the school secretary at Ecole St. Thomas School. Over the past few days, her colleagues from the school have described Mom’s traits of kindness, a generous spirit and a welcoming nature as having a tremendous positive impact on their school’s culture. When Ivan’s children attended the school they developed a habit of looking around the counter at the school office to ask, “Grandma, do you have any candy?” She was a Grandma, of course she had candy! After scurrying off with their reward, moments later, another non Nakonechny student would arrive…. Asking “Grandma, do you have any candy?” She was “Grandma” to many, many students at the school over the years. Her kind heart and compassion for the students made her a beloved part of the school. Cis had a great sense of humour and loved to laugh and smile. She was always a good sport. Just before she celebrated her 60th birthday, she went on a fishing trip with Dad, his brother Harvey and wife Cheryl and Dad’s sister Pat. They were out for a drive when Dad, in typical fashion, found a large patch of wild strawberries. Mom and Auntie Pat went for a walk while the others picked their new found treasures. Harvey found a huge toad while picking strawberries … and stored it in a small cooler they had brought along for their pops. As they returned to their drive, Harvey casually asked Mom, who was in the back of the Super Cab, to pass him a pop. When she opened the cooler, she let out a blood curdling scream, and then “You buggers!!” They were laughing so hard, they almost drove off the road. Mom has been “collecting” frogs courtesy of her in laws ever since. Later on in life, Mom reunited with her sisters to form the singing group the Korte Sisters. They travelled throughout Alberta and Saskatchewan performing their gospel music. The group produced 5 CDs. Their last performances this past summer and in December featured the group singing along with some of their granddaughters and nieces which invigorated Mom. One of the roles Cis had with the group was quality control. When they practiced or performed, she was the one who would determine if a wrong note was sung. You did not argue – if Cis said the note was wrong; it was wrong! If one of the sisters happened to be standing close by, while singing a wrong note, there was a good chance they would get a smack on the arm for singing incorrectly…. another example of that fiery temper. She really enjoyed spending winters with her Caliente community in Arizona. Cis immersed herself in all the experiences the community had to offer. She returned home revitalized and relaxed. I’m told her vibrant presence has been missed by her southern “family”. We have not lost Cis. When we lose something, we don’t know where it is. I know exactly where Mom is. She is with Jesus and Dad, probably dancing a polka or playing the largest pipe organ you have ever seen. We haven’t lost her, but we will miss her greatly: We will miss her when we hear the introductory notes from the organ during a hymn at Mass. We will remember her dedication to the church and her love of music. We will miss her enthusiasm and love of family and service to them. Whenever she made a fresh batch of perogy dough at Christmas, she always joyfully commented on what great dough it was. It took me a number of years before I realized that a rye and coke press for the cook was not actually a part of the recipe – but it certainly helps! We will remember her service to others. She did not serve for the sake of recognition or to gain notoriety, she served to make life just a little bit better for those around her. In the choir, for her family, her school and her church – she constantly put others first. We will miss her quiet nature. Mom was able to sit back and analyze a situation from afar without blurting out the first thing that popped into her head. Her reflective advice was always constructive and positive. We will remember her inner strength. I gained a true appreciation for how strong she really was when our Dad passed away. Mom was an absolute rock, handling everything that came her way - all the decisions and future plans, all while grieving the loss of her beloved Fred. She showed this strength again in her cancer battle. It was not easy for Cis at the end of her life – I believe she was in more pain then she led us all to believe. She had great courage. Last Sunday, we talked to Mom, informing her of her impending fate. She accepted it with grace and dignity. We told her she would soon be reunited with Dad, “but not tonight.” She peered up at me out of the corners of those blue eyes saying “What’s wrong with tonight?” Then she flashed her radiant smile. She handled this final battle in her own way, without complaint and still thinking of others. We know now her struggle is over, we miss you Mom and we love you.