VIOLA ELAINE

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VIOLA ELAINE MacKEY (nee McBAIN) On July 5, at 5:30 in the morning, at the Victoria General Hospital, Viola MacKey peacefully went to be with her Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ. Viola was born September 8, 1912 in Montreal and moved to Ottawa where she met and, in 1932, married her beloved husband Evered. She and Evered were both accomplished musicians, Viola as a concert violinist. They moved to Portage la Prairie in 1944 where they raised their four children, Elaine, Rea, Merle and Shirley while Ev managed the Special Crops Sub-station for Agriculture Canada. In Portage, Viola was active in the United Church and the St. Johns Ambulance First Aid, from whom she received a lifetime achievement award for her faithful service. In 1966 they moved to Morden. There, Viola served as the secretary at the Morden Collegiate Institute, and maintained her involvement in the United Church, and later, the Christian Life Centre. Following Evereds passing in 1978, Viola maintained her Morden home until 2002, at which time she moved to Rosewood Village in Winnipeg. While here, she enjoyed the fellowship of the Seniors Ministry at Grant Memorial Baptist Church. Viola was loved and admired by all who knew her for her warmth, Godly wisdom, compassion, understanding and the sweet disposition that she maintained right to the end. She was a treasured mother, grandmother and great-grandmother. Viola was well known for the more than two thousand "Jesus" bookmarks she made and freely distributed to people to remind them to keep their eyes on Jesus. She will be missed by many, and especially by her loving family, many of whom had the privilege of spending most of the last six weeks with her: daughter Elaine (Nelson Barrett) and their children, Kim Becker, Tim, Cheryl Parnell and Brent (Kerry) son Rea MacKey and his sons, Kevin and Bryan; daughter Merle (Franklyn MacMillan) and their children, Tracey (Bruce MacKenzie) and Debra Ragger; and daughter Shirley (Dick Stephens) and their children, Shayne, Kerri (Brent Woelke) and Cam (Bethany) and her great-grandchildren, Travis, Alicia, Kiersten and Joshua Becker, Kendra and Michael Barrett and Kai Woelke who gave her such joy in her last 10 weeks. "Gram" will also be missed by her "adopted" family, the McElroy clan. Many thanks to the staff of the Rosewood Village for the wonderful care during her stay there. Special thanks also to the kind and caring 4th floor staff at the Victoria General Hospital who took such good care of Mom in her last weeks and to Debbie, Irene and Esther, who lovingly watched over her through the long nights. We love you Mom. We thank God for the legacy that comes from your love and living example of the love of Christ. "In my house are many rooms; if it were not so, I would have told you. I am going there to prepare a place for you. And if I go and prepare a place for you, I will come back and take you to be with me that you may also be where I am". John 14:2 We will celebrate Violas life at the Christian Life Centre, 605 1st St., Morden on Wednesday, July 9, 2003 at 11:00 a.m. The service will be followed by a time of refreshment and fellowship. Advance viewing will be available on Tuesday afternoon from 1:00 to 6:00 p.m. at the Wiebe Funeral Home in Morden and at the Christian Life Centre, between 10:00 and 11:00 a.m., before the service. For those who wish to honour Viola, a contribution may be made to World Vision or a charity of your choice.

As published in Winnipeg Free Press on Jul 08, 2003