EUNICE ELAINE KOZOKOWSKY

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EUNICE ELAINE KOZOKOWSKY

(nee SCHELLENBERG)

May 24, 1935 - May 30, 2026

Our beloved mother, grandmother, and great-grandmother passed away with family by her side on Saturday, May 30, 2026, four days after her 91 birthday.

She was predeceased by her loving husband Philip. Left to mourn her passing are her four children, Karen (Gerald) Gerrits, Pamela (Gord) Brown, Greg (Lisa) Kozokowsky, and Todd (Pamela) Kozokowsky; eight grandchildren, and eight great-grandchildren.

Eunice was the youngest child of Peter and Helen Schellenberg, Mennonites who fled Russia to settle in southern Manitoba and Saskatchewan. Eunice had many fond memories of visiting her grandparents at their Reinland, MB, farm. One Christmas, their car got stuck in the long driveway approaching the farmhouse. Her Grandpa Cornelius came with his horses to pull out the car; an aunt and uncle joined with their horse and buggy and a newborn baby wrapped in quilts.

Throughout her life, Mom carried on many Mennonite culinary traditions: making jam jam cookies, varenyky, borscht, bread and cinnamon buns, jam, and canning fruit and vegetables. Barbie doll clothes, costumes, T-shirts for her boys, and elegant New Year’s Eve gowns were skillfully sewn. She loved to win at the game of Scrabble, and images of Mom leaning over a puzzle late into the night stay with us.

Mom married a country boy and followed him throughout his career in education. Immediately after their marriage, this shy city girl moved into a one-room teacherage without running water in Hodgson, MB; their baby daughter was kept warm at night in their bed. She adapted to the challenges of raising a family in the remote mining town of Snow Lake, MB. She became an avid angler and won a Manitoba Angler’s Award for catching a very large northern pike. Mounted on a board, it travelled with us throughout the years.

In 1967, they moved to Winnipeg, MB, and then, upon retirement, to a home which they built together in Belair, MB. Her grandchildren cherish their memories of times spent with them at the lake. Eunice and Phil wintered in Weslaco, TX, until they moved to Calgary, AB, at which time they enjoyed the winter months in Osoyoos, BC. After our dad’s passing in 2019, Mom resided at United Active Living Fish Creek. There, she reconnected with her love of singing, joining the choir. The last years of her life were enriched by the support and companionship of her friend, Dennis.

Eunice was a “cat with nine lives.” Despite enduring significant health setbacks, she stoically rehabilitated herself to get back home. Her beauty never faded nor did her impeccable attention to dress, hair, and makeup.

Memorial Services will be held at McInnis & Holloway (Fish Creek, 14441 Bannister Road SE, Calgary, AB) on Monday, June 29, 2026, at 2:30 p.m. Reception to follow in the Hospitality Centre at the Funeral Home.

If friends so desire, memorial tributes may be made directly to the charity of your choice.

As published in Winnipeg Free Press on Jun 06, 2026