Sarah Waldner

SARAH WALDNER

Our beautiful Mom, Mom-in-law, Grandma, and Great Grandma reached out for the loving arms of the Lord and left us to join Dad after 30 years apart.

Never one for fanfare or attention she peacefully slipped away on December 27, 2022, with her family by her side.

Mom was known as Sally by all who knew her, a nickname given by her love, our Dad, Jake.

Born on August 31, 1939, the third youngest child of nine to Jacob and Susanna Waldner, Mom was raised in the Hutterite Christian faith and culture where she learned the values of faith in God, family, and honest work. Her upbringing taught her good cooking and baking, sewing, farm-life and most importantly, loving God and caring for others.

In 1962, at the age of 22, she made a courageous change to her life and was the focus of a covert operation to leave her Hutterite life to marry Dad, who had already left the colony life. Together they made a home for themselves, raising their two children.

As we came into our teenage years, Mom took on a housekeeping job for a widower and his sons and the weekend office cleaning for Dad’s employer. In 1980, Mom got a job at the best store in the world, Eaton’s. Mom worked in the 5th floor Valley Room until her retirement in 1998.

Mom was not chatty, her nature preferring to listen to an interesting conversation, watch a good TV show or movie, read a good book or listen to a funny joke (at times, with a delayed hearty giggle).

Mom enjoyed baking, gardening, canning, and cooking. We have always had a supply of her dill pickles, canned tomatoes, and jams. Every Christmas we have been guaranteed to get an array of homemade cookies and squares. She made the best cabbage rolls, perogies, and tried, with limited success, to teach us how to make Dunking-Dunkie-Donkey Buns – our names for Zweiback, a Hutterite treat.

She prepared delicious stuffed turkeys for our Easter, Thanksgivings and Christmas family suppers.

She enjoyed making wine as well; usually from grapes, with ones she had grown, but other varieties as well. In earlier years, she and Dad enjoyed dandelion picking to make wine.

She loved the task of tending and fussing over her flower and vegetable garden every year and grew bountiful plants. Her tomato and pepper plants were especially abundant, to the benefit, wonder and envy of all of us, especially Angelo.

She listened to and watched the Bombers and Jets on CJOB and TV, cheering them on. CJOB was constantly on in the background.

She knew the importance of keeping her mind sharp and enjoyed the challenge of all the newspaper puzzles – Crossword, Jumble, Sudoku and Cryptoquip.

Family was most important to Mom. She regularly showed her devotion and love to her children, Jim, and Roslyn and Angelo. Jim had been her companion, housemate, and chauffeur (she never learned to drive) since Dad died. Thanks in part to Mom, her grandchildren had their grandparents as their daycare growing up. Her grandchildren were the lights of her life, and she was incredibly proud of all of them. Michael, Adam, and Jillian and Matthew were all close to Grandma. Little Nora brought added joy to Mom’s life as her precious great granddaughter.

Along with her children and grandchildren Mom will also live on in the hearts of her sister Dorothy, sisters-in-law Susie, Katie, Rachel, Shirley, Lydia and Levi, Margaret and Sam, and Rebecca, brother-in-law Ed and Clara, and many nieces and nephews.

Christian burial for Mom will take place on Friday, January 6, 2023, at St. Paul’s Anglican Church, 830 North Drive, Winnipeg, with viewing at 9:30am, and service at 10:30am.

Our family would like to express deep gratitude to the doctors and nurses at HSC MICU, especially Catherine, Jana, Dea, and Joseph, and April at St. Boniface Palliative Care for the short but precious time they cared for Mom.

We would also like to thank our family and friends who have reached out and given us love, words of kindness, prayers, and hugs.

Mom was truly beautiful – she will remain with us always.

Fond memories and expressions of sympathy may be shared at www.thomsoninthepark.com for the Waldner family.