HEDWIG WOLFROM

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HEDWIG WOLFROM On Saturday, August 12, 2017, Hedwig Wolfrom passed away at Meadowood Manor, at the age of 93 years. Hedwig, or more commonly, Hedy, was born in Poland on August 15, 1923 as the first child of eight to John and Hulda Albrecht. She said she was named after Hedy Lamarr, a famous Austrian and American film actress of the time. She came to Canada in September 1926 in the company of her parents and her sister Frieda and her brother Otto. They homesteaded in the Minitonas area, spending the first winter sharing a one room house with another family that had arrived the year earlier. At the age of 16, Hedy left home for the city to find work to help support the family back home. She worked as a cleaning person, and lived in a shared apartment with some friends. In 1943, Hedy met the love of her life, Herbert, who came from the River Hills Seven Sisters area, and had also come to the city to find work to support his family back home. After a short courting period, they were married in the Minitonas Baptist Church in July, 1944. They began farming shortly thereafter on rented land in the River Hills area, eventually buying a farm of their own in 1951 at Warren. They continued to farm there for 40 years until retiring to Abbotsford, BC. In the year 2000 her husband, our father, passed away suddenly from a massive stroke. It became difficult for Hedy to live on her own in Abbotsford without any nearby family, so she moved back to Manitoba. Later that year, Hedy also suffered a major stroke which was a life changer for her, but she did manage to continue to live on her own in Lindenholm Place until 2012. She then moved into Poseidon Personal Care Home and eventually transferred to Meadowood Manor in 2014. Hedy had three children, the oldest, Ronnie, who sadly died in a tragic accident as a toddler on the farm, which as for any mother, she never completely recovered from at some level. Her next son David was born shortly after the loss of their oldest, followed two years later by her youngest son Dan. Hedy was predeceased by her two brothers, Otto and Edwin and two sisters, Frieda and Lydia. Her three younger sisters, Alma, Ruth and Olga are still actively living in the Abbotsford/Mission, BC area. There are six grandchildren, Krista, Brent and Andrea, Dave's children, as well as Leigh, Joshua and Regan from Dan. Hedy was a feisty hardworking farm woman who enjoyed doing all of the things that came with the territory, and never backed down form a job. Beneath the tough façade, she had a heart of gold and her generosity to her children and grandchildren was unparalleled. We are all going to miss Hedy. We all have special memories of her that will remain long after her passing. Hedy's Funeral Service was held in Meadowood Manor Personal Care Home in August 2017. Thank you to all the staff at Meadowood Manor and prior to that, Poseidon Personal Care Home, who cared for her for the past several years. In lieu of flowers, donations may be made to the Heart and Stroke Foundation of Manitoba. Wojcik's Funeral Chapels & Crematoriums, Winnipeg, 2157 Portage Avenue, 204.897.4665 www.wojciksfuneralchapel.com Rest peacefully now, Mom. The fight is over.

As published in Winnipeg Free Press on Sep 23, 2017