Alannah Martian

On December 15th, 2022, Alannah Martian, age 79, passed away peacefully surrounded by her loving family after battling lung cancer for the past year and a half. She bravely fought the disease with courage and strength, never giving up hope. She was a kind and loving wife, mother, grandmother, sister and friend. She was a selfless person, who even in her last days was more concerned about others wellbeing than her own.

Missing the love of his life will be her husband of 57 years, Ron Martian.

Eileen Alannah Mary Hayes (Alannah) was born in Saskatoon on October 1st, 1943, to Michael and May Hayes. She was the youngest of six children and is survived by her older brother Michael Hayes (wife Jane). She will be reunited in heaven with her parents, older brothers Tom Hayes, Garrett Hayes, Terri Hayes and older sister Maureen Rush.

It was at a local Friday night dance in High School that Alannah met her future husband, Ron Martian. She continued on to the University of Saskatchewan where she achieved a degree in education. On June 25, 1965 Alannah married Ron in Saskatoon at St. Joseph’s church. Alannah and Ron were married for 57 years. It was a true love story. Their love for each other is unwavering, unbreakable and forever. Alannah and Ron had three loving children who will miss their mother dearly, Darren (wife Bethany), Stephanie (husband Mark) and Jodie (husband Dan). Missing their beloved grandma will be her special grandchildren, Christopher Martian, Maxwell Mooney, Ella Mooney, Callum Wade and Patrick Wade.

In 1967, after Darren was born, they moved to Bermuda for two years where Alannah worked as a teacher. They returned to Canada and moved to Calgary where they would settle and put down roots in a new neighborhood called Lake Bonavista. For the next 15 years, Alannah embraced the life of homemaker and mother. She joined a local bridge club in the community which brought her great joy to spend time with a group of lovely ladies. It was in Lake Bonavista that Alannah and Ron found new friendships which have lasted a lifetime.

Once the kids were old enough to go to school, Alannah went back to work at the Volunteer Centre of Calgary. She worked with an amazing team of people which brought her great joy and satisfaction in the work that she was doing.

Over the years, Alannah was a member of her high school and then her church choir. She had an amazing talent, playing the piano and singing. Many would remember Alannah’s singing voice as powerful and harmonious. It wasn’t uncommon for friends to gather around the piano while she belted out some tunes. When she was singing, she was truly in her happy place.

One of the great joys for Alannah and Ron were spending weekends, Christmas and Easter holidays with the family at their cabin in Dutch Creek, British Columbia. There they have had many gatherings of family and friends, hiking along the river, gathering around the fire pit, playing scrabble on the deck and enjoying the holidays singing Christmas carols while setting up the tree. This was truly her favorite place.

In the later years of life, Alannah took up the sport of golfing. This allowed her and Ron to foster new Windemere golf club friendships and spend their retirement years golfing with friends. In the winter months, they would head south to Palm Springs to enjoy the warm weather, connecting with old and new friends while enjoying many more rounds of golf.

Another joy in their retirement years was travelling. Alannah and Ron were able to travel the world with friends to places like Europe, China, Australia and New Zealand. They became expert cruisers experiencing many new places with their friends throughout the world. In between all these travels, they would enjoy travelling to see their son and family living in the Cayman Islands, Pittsburgh, and Florida. Alannah truly enjoyed seeing the world with Ron, the love of her life.

Alannah had a wonderful life. She was blessed with great family and wonderful friendships which she cherished. She will be missed and in all our hearts forever.

In her memory, in lieu of flowers, donations can be made to the Alberta Cancer Society.

Funeral services will be held at St. Albert the Great Catholic Church (10 Prestwick Dr., SE, Calgary). on Thursday December 22, 2022 at 1:00 pm followed by coffee and snacks in the Parish Hall.