JOHN HENRY UNGER

Condolences & Memories (3 entries)

• One of my favourite early memories of Opa is of waking up very early in the morning to him cooking bacon & eggs using only the light above the stove, and to this day, having just that light on seems to provide me with some sort of comfort and nostalgia. Some of my favourite times as a child was spent with Opa and his model train set. We would often dream up scenarios of where the train was going and what it was carrying, even though we didn’t have any scenery pieces, just the track and the cars on a piece of plywood. One of our favourite games to play was trying to form math equations with the numbers we saw on the different licence plates as we were driving. If we saw a 541, we would say 5 minus 4 equals 1 or if we saw a 326, we would say 3 times 2 equals 6. We would always compete trying to be the first to notice one. I look forward to keeping this tradition alive with my own son. One of the things I am so grateful for is being able to spend time with him every week for coffee. We started doing this several years ago and we would sit there, usually at McDonalds, though during the pandemic we would just park our cars next to each other and roll our windows down, even in the winter. He would tell me stories of his childhood, or his experiences in the war and POW camp. Despite what I’m sure was a traumatic experience, he would always focus on the humorous moments he remembered. He would also talk about his early experiences here in Canada or we would discus at great length his job as a window installer. As someone who also works with windows and doors, I think it gave him joy to be able to talk about his work with me without worrying about whether or not he was getting too technical. Even though he would often repeat the same stories after a time, I would never interrupt him as I wanted to remember as much of it as I could. After I learned that I was going to be a father, I found myself thinking about what that meant to me. Opa was not only my grandfather, but he was also the most constant male influence in my life. He was always there for me, whether I needed a ride somewhere, or needed help with something on the house. My friends would call him Super Opa, because he always seemed to be able to help solve whatever problems I came across in the house he and Oma gave to my brother and I. As I look toward the future, I can think of no better example of a husband, a father and a man who I can strive to be. Thank you Opa for being who you are and for giving us all so much. I am going to miss you, but I will make sure you are never forgotten. - Posted by: Jeremy Ranson (Grandson) on: Sep 08, 2022

• Deepest sympathy and love to Elfie and family, we will miss you uncle Henry Chris, Bonnie, John, Emily Unger - Posted by: Chris Unger & Bonnie John & Emily Unger, (relative) on: Aug 21, 2022

• We have many happy memories of Opa, past and present. His spirit and his pride in his loving family will live on. Blessings to Opa and heartfelt condolences to dear Elfie & family. - Posted by: Maggie & Lloyd (Friends) on: Aug 20, 2022