SHIRLEY ANN (MATTHES) CHERWINSKI

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SHIRLEY ANN (MATTHES) CHERWINSKI 14 June 1943 5 July 2007 It is with profound sadness that the family announces the passing of Shirley Cherwinski at Riverview Health Centre, with her family at her side. Mourning her are husband Ed; daughter Leanne and son-in-law Jason; daughter Jodi; son-in-law Mark and granddaughter Emily; son Edward and partner Anne; mother Ella and siblings, Susan (Delmar), Bob (Cheryll), Sharon, and Deborah (David), and special niece Jennifer as well as numerous nieces and nephews. Mom will also be missed by family pets Tyler, Amos, Jake and Sophie. Shirley was predeceased by her father on 26 December 1994. Born in Elmwood, Shirley moved to St. James with her family when she was five, and never left. After high school she worked for the City of Winnipeg until she married and started a family. Once her children were all in school she returned to the workforce in various positions, culminating in a 15-year career with Canada Post. But Shirley's first and foremost job was being a mom. She loved her children, and they meant everything to her. Our mom is the strongest person we have ever known. She raised, guided and supported us, helping us to achieve our dreams and goals, happiest when we were happy. Mom was always so much fun, and had a great sense of humour! The number of board games she played with us over the years are too high to count, and she was always impressive as the goalie for our late-night street hockey games. And as we got older, Mom's wisdom and guidance helped us become independent adults, ready to take on our own challenges. More than anything else, we remember our mom as our greatest friend. Besides her own children, there are two other special people that Mom was so proud of. Niece Jennifer was loved like her own daughter and they shared so much together. Granddaughter Emily lit up Mom's world, and the two became inseparable. Some of Nana's happiest moments were time spent with Emily. Mom was awesome at crossword puzzles, a love of which she passed on to Leanne. And on Saturday mornings, Mom and Jodi enjoyed hunting for bargains at garage sales, always happy with the treasures they found. Ice-cream was Mom's favorite treat, so she never passed up an opportunity to go to DQ or the BDI. She and her sister Debbie liked to celebrate their June birthdays together with banana splits. In recent years Mom became a world traveller! Always accompanied by one of her kids, she visited Victoria, Toronto, and Niagara Falls in Canada, and England, France, and Germany in Europe. Tennis was one of Mom's favorite sports and she was thrilled to attend the Wimbledon Championships in London and the US Open in New York. Mom's favorite place to visit was Bermuda to see her son Edward. Shirley displayed amazing courage during her battle with cancer, and is an inspiration to all who knew her. Our family would like to pass along a heartfelt thank-you to the staff of 3E at Riverview for taking such great care of our mom. In particular, our utmost gratitude goes out to Dorothy, Caroline, and Barb. Following Shirley's wishes, cremation has taken place. A memorial service to celebrate her life will take place on Wednesday, 11 July 2007 at 10:00 a.m. at St. James Lutheran Church. If desired, donations may be made in Shirley's name to CancerCare Manitoba or Riverview Health Centre. Arrangements entrusted to Chapel Lawn Funeral Home, 4000 Portage Avenue, Winnipeg; 885-9715.

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As published in Winnipeg Free Press on Jul 09, 2007