WANDA OSBORNE

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WANDA OSBORNE Wanda Marguerite Osborne (née Baldock) died on Saturday, November 12, 2011 at her home with her family at her side. She was 87. She is survived by her sister Maxine, six children, 14 grandchildren and five great-grandchildren. She was born the third of four children in 1924 in Brandon, MB. Her family soon moved to Winnipeg where, at an early age, Wanda was enrolled in ballet classes by her mother, who hoped that ballet would help Wanda grow taller. In high school she continued with dancing, she played violin in the school orchestra, and she was a member of the speed skating team. After high school Wanda enrolled in Sciences at the University of Manitoba because she was good at figures and because that was the only course her father would pay for (he was an engineer), but after her second year she landed a job at the Wheat Pool where she made real money so she chose to continue working instead of returning to school. During the Second World War Wanda was a member of the Victory Dance Troupe, a group of dancers who entertained the troops in Winnipeg, as well as being featured at other events such as the Undertakers Convention. She often volunteered to attend dances put on by the USO and it was here that she met Jim Osborne, a young doctor-in-training. Wanda and Jim married in 1945 and when Jim graduated in 1946 the couple went to Pangnirtung on Baffin Island, where Jim was the medical officer, coroner and justice of the peace while Wanda figured out what to do with the 700 lb. of flour that were part of their year's worth of groceries. In Pangnirtung, Wanda gave birth to the first two of their children and it was reported that the births went well, despite the fact that her husband was the attending obstetrician. After three years in the north, Wanda and her husband moved to Edmonton where Wanda gave birth to two more children and in her spare time, took modelling jobs, one of which was for ESSO. In 1956 Wanda and her family moved to Kamloops, where she gave birth to two more children and continued her modeling career. She also became an enthusiastic skier who apparently skied right up to that day in February when she gave birth to twins. In 1958 the family moved to North Vancouver and later to West Vancouver, where Wanda, as well as raising her children, worked at Bonnie's in North Vancouver. When she became an empty-nester Wanda, who was now single, stayed connected to the younger generations by looking after children of travelling parents, as well as being, in the words of one of her granddaughters, a kick-ass grandma. She also spent years realizing her dream of travelling throughout the world. For many years Wanda was a member of the pit crew that organized the annual fund-raising book sale at the West Vancouver Library and she volunteered as a cashier at the cafeteria of the West Vancouver Seniors' Centre. For 49 years Wanda was one of the regular walkers on the West Van seawall and she also enjoyed playing bridge, going to live theatre, doing the Saturday crossword puzzle and just staying home in her much-loved condo. Throughout her adult life, Wanda depended on a diverse group of girlfriends who supported her as she raised her children and then ventured out on her own. Wanda is remembered by her children Stephen, Tom, Judith, Patty, Jane, Jill, and their spouses, her grandchildren: Caitlin and Delaney Osborne Blewett; Robin, Cassia and Travis Osborne Streb; Manuel Osborne-Paradis; Adam, Miranda and Garette Osborne; Alana Diebel; Skylar Osborne; Kory, Mark, and Brian Hansen and her great-grandchildren Julia Perroni, Nya and Paige Streb, Casey Schendlinger and Aubri Coehlo. In lieu of flowers, please make memorial donations to the Lions Gate Hospital Foundation and direct them to the Home Care section of the Palliative Care Fund. To live in the hearts of those we leave behind is not to die. - Thomas Campbell

As published in Winnipeg Free Press on Nov 23, 2011