AGNES UNRUH

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AGNES UNRUH Agnes Unruh died peacefully on December 3, 2002 at the age of 94 in the Bethania Mennonite Personal Care Home with family at her side. She will be missed by her sisters-in-law, Helen Unruh and Helen Penner; and her ten nieces and nephews and their families (19 children and five grandchildren), Phyllis Ilavsky, Marlene and Paul Neustaedter, Margaret and Donald Unruh, Geri and Montie Lowe, Ron and Leslie Unruh of Manitoba, David and Joanne Unruh, William and Pat Unruh, Lorraine and Tony Ferguson of British Columbia, Jo-Anne Unruh and Ken Kramberg of Vermont, Richard and Sandra Unruh of Ontario. She was predeceased by her parents and 12 brothers and sisters. Three of the children died in infancy and three as young adults during the typhus plague, in Russia. Her parents, Gerhard and Helena Unruh died in Canada when she was in her 20s. For the rest of her life until their deaths, her family was Margaret Unruh and Frieda Unruh, with whom she lived; Liese and Isbrand Riesen; Cornelius and Elizabeth Unruh; George and Helen Unruh; Benjamin and Anne Unruh. She was desolate when the last of her siblings died. Agnes was born August 19, 1908 in Waldheim, South Russia, the youngest daughter of a large and close-knit family. She immigrated to Canada with her parents and six brothers and sisters in 1925 when she was 17. During her early years in Canada, she worked as a kitchen helper on a farm near Steinbach and then joined her sisters in Winnipeg, working as a domestic for the secretary of the American consulate. She then returned to Steinbach to care for her dying mother where she enrolled in a sewing course for which she showed great aptitude and creativity. Her lifes career was as a dressmaker and designer, first in Steinbach and then in Winnipeg, where she established her business in the house that the four sisters purchased together. This home became the focal point for the whole family, and Agnes the pivotal figure for the brothers, their wives, and the nieces and nephews, who remember her talent in the kitchen. Her nieces will always remember the exquisite graduation, bridesmaid and wedding gowns she sewed for those important occasions in their lives. Agnes loved music, learned to play the piano, and her clear soprano voice was much appreciated in the church choir. She was a strong, independent, outspoken and fiercely loving woman and we are grateful she was such an integral part of our lives. The family thanks the staff of Bethania for their loving and devoted care of our Aunt Agnes. In her memory, donations may be made to the Bethania Personal Care Home, or a charity of your choice. A celebration of Agnes life will be held at the Elmwood Mennonite Brethren Church, 145 Henderson Hwy. on Saturday, December 7, at 10:00 a.m. Viewing will be held on Friday, December 6 from 7:00 to 8:00 p.m. at Klassen Funeral Chapel, 1897 Henderson Hwy. Arrangements entrusted to Klassen Funeral Chapel, 338-0331.

As published in Winnipeg Free Press on Dec 06, 2002