EDWARD CHARLES BIELASZKA

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EDWARD CHARLES BIELASZKA July 23, 1930 - August 25, 2012 It is with profound sadness and a heavy heart that I find myself writing this obituary for my father. My dad passed away suddenly but peacefully with his family by his side. He was an incredible man. My dad was generous, kind, and a true gentle man who never ever had an unkind word to say about or to anyone. Everyone who knew him immediately came to admire him. At age 55, my dad took early retirement from his position as Sales Manager of Canada Packers. My dad could not sit still and did not enjoy being retired. An opportunity to purchase a business of which he knew nothing about was presented to him and he jumped at the chance. My dad loved being at Quality Vending and Coffee Services. He completely immersed himself in the day to day operations of this new business and absolutely had a fabulous time. After several years in the vending business, my dad decided it was time to lend a hand to another family business - Meyers Drugs. My dad loved working at our drug store. He was in his element and had the best time. As a man in his 80's he was something to watch - running up and down the narrow basement stairs, dealing with various suppliers, and of course the day to day interaction with our customers. My dad enjoyed the staff at Meyers and loved them as family. He truly enjoyed working and every evening he would come home and regale my mom Rose with the stories of the day. My mom and dad were married for almost 60 years and had the best marriage. I will always remember them laughing as my dad tried to catch my mom for a tickle. My dad was an adventurer. Every summer when my brother and I were younger, we would spend a month at our cottage and a month on the road. My dad would take out his old giant map of the United States and he would say to us Alan where should we end up tomorrow? , Darcie you get the next day . Quite often we were not very good at distances and my brother had us in New Mexico on one day and I had us in San Francisco the next. But boy did we have fun! My parents truly enjoyed their life and spent the last seven years enjoying a full six months at their beautiful home in the Squaw Peak area of Phoenix and the summers at their cottage in Ontario. My dad was so smart and so sharp that on the last day of his life, he helped me figure out the breaker switches at our cottage and when I need to have the septic tank pumped out next. He loved his life and he loved his family immensely. He thought of his son-in-law Lyall as a son and always said how lucky he was that my brother married Michele. He now had two daughters! His granddaughter by love Megan was a real joy to him as it was so nice to have a youngster around again. He was especially proud of his granddaughter Jessica, and one of his happiest moments was attending the Athlete of the Year banquet at the Convention Centre this past June where Jessica was a finalist as an equestrian show jumper. He was a highly educated man with degrees in Physics and Business Administration and often was a guest lecturer during the evenings. My dad loved his cigars and golf. He loved to smoke his cigar and tinker in the yard or at the cottage. I will miss the smell of that cigar. My dad was senior club champion and represented his beloved St. Charles Country Club at a tournament in British Columbia a few years ago. My dad was also very active in the community and was a founding member of the North End YMCA Board of Directors, as he felt that all children should have a place of recreation. He also sat on the Board of the Seven Oaks Hospital. My dad also loved his little white fluffy Maltese Farfel. My mom joked that he never shopped for clothes for his children, but let him loose in a pet store and Farfel always had a new outfit. It was never unusual to see Farfel with a new Juicy Couture outfit. There was great sadness in our life as well when my brother Alan passed away from the horrible ravages of cancer less than two years ago. No parent should ever lose a child, but even though my dad was stoic in his loss, you could see the heartbreak in his eyes. I'm sure this is something that my parents have never recovered from. My dad did not want a service of any sort but if so desired, donations can be made in his memory to CancerCare Manitoba. I learned a lot from my dad, but mostly to enjoy every day and to always have fun because every day is special, and to always see the good in everyone and everything. I love you Tata and will miss you forever.

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As published in Winnipeg Free Press on Sep 08, 2012