JOHANN DAVID FRANZ

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JOHANN DAVID FRANZ On August 10, 2004 after a short battle with cancer, our beloved father and Opa Johann David (Hans) Franz, aged 79, was reunited with his wife Ella, in heaven. Johann is survived by his four children, their spouses and eight grandchildren, daughter Margaret Wonko, son-in-law Ken and grandchildren, Matt, Amber and Candice; son Bill Franz, daughter-in-law Pearl (nee Debooy) and granddaughters, Jane and Anna; daughter Ingrid Pawlosky, son-in-law Richard and granddaughter Nadia; daughter Monika Franz-Lien, son-in-law Jeff and granddaughters, Andrea and Emily. He will always be remembered by his sister Margarete (Gretel) Muendt, brother-in-law Adam, and their family in Germany and Russia; mother-in-law, Amalie Rupp, in Winnipeg; sister-in-law Lydia Dyck and her husband Peter, and brother-in-law Hardy Rupp and his wife Gwen, and their families, from Mississauga, ON. He was predeceased by his wife Ella in May 2003, his father David Franz in 1944 and his mother Elisabeth Franz in 1975, as well as by four of his five siblings. Johann was born on February 24, 1925, in Andreburg, Ukraine. At the brave young age of 16, Johann left his mother and sister behind in German-occupied Ukraine, to join the German army as a translator and field messenger. He saw his mother and sister briefly in 1943, but as his family was sent to Siberia shortly thereafter, he never saw his mother again. He was reunited with his sister, Gretel, in Germany in 1993, after 50 years apart. Johann met his future wife Ella, and her family in a refugee camp in Backnang, Germany in 1947. They were married on June 10, 1950 in Winnipeg. Johann worked for 40 years as a cutter and pattern-maker with Canadian Sportswear in Winnipeg and enjoyed the multi-cultural and multi-lingual atmosphere. He was also a devoted member of First Mennonite Church in Winnipeg. He served as a deacon for 25 years, visiting the elderly and those that were ill. His pride and joy, after his children and grandchildren, was the cottage at Pinawa Bay. He also enjoyed travelling with Ella, and especially camping, boating, and fishing (in later years, with the grandchildren). A memorial service will be held on Tuesday, August 24 at 10:30 a.m. at First Mennonite Church, 922 Notre Dame Ave. at Alverstone Street. The family is grateful for the love and concern shown by friends and neighbours, and wishes to thank the nurses, doctors and staff of the Grace General Hospital 3 West, and the Grace Hospice for their wonderful care. Donations in Johanns memory may be made to the Memorial Fund of First Mennonite Church or to the Hospice fund of the Grace General Hospital Foundation. NEIL BARDAL INC. 949-2200

As published in Winnipeg Free Press on Aug 21, 2004