The funeral service will be held in the Lipton Evangelical Missionary Church, Lipton, SK on Tuesday, December 27, 2016 at 2:00 p.m. with Pastor James Graham officiating.
Interment in Lipton memorial Gardens.
Irene was predeceased by her husband Fred in 2000, her parents Philip and Elizabeth Smith, one brother Jack Smith, three sisters: Florence Ikert, Ruth Hepting and Geraldine Illingworth.
She is survived by one daughter Vallery Lutz, Bruno, SK, one son Calvin (Donna) Lutz, Lipton, SK, her grandchildren: Jenna Lutz-Carr, Derek Lutz, Neil Lutz; one sister Vallery Bischler, one brother-in-law Don Illingworth and numerous nieces and nephews.
If friends so desire contributions may be made to Echo Lodge Nursing Home, Box 1790, Fort Qu’Appelle, SK S0G 1S0 in recognition of all the love and care given to Irene during her stay at the Lodge.
The Lord is my shepherd, I shall not want
Irene Violet Lutz was the 4th of 6 children born to Phillip G. and Elizabeth Smith, entering this world on Nov. 4 1929, at the family home in the Freeland school district northeast of Lipton.
Now, no one could have predicted that the events that took place just 5 days earlier (the Black Tuesday stock market crash of October 29 1929) would shape the world she lived in and inevitably make her the person she became.
Irene didn't talk much about her childhood, but one story she did share was about her dislike for beets her mother had made a delicious borscht soup, but Irene disliked beets so much that before her mom could serve her some soup, Irene turned her bowl upside down.
She also made it quite clear that even though times were tough, she felt it brought people together because as she says it "everyone was in the same boat”. She often shared memories of getting together with friends and neighbours, especially on Sunday's after church. She felt that people where a lot more social and made the time to spend with each other.
This being the time before school busses, there were only two ways to get to school, walk or ride. On one trip, Irene and her sister Vallery were taking turns riding, and skiing behind the horse, on one turn, Irene fell off her skis, and Vallery kept going all the way to school until she realized that Irene wasn’t there.
He maketh me lie down in green pastures:
Irene always was proud of how she helped pull her weight on the farm. On one occasion her dad and her brother Jack had to be away for a day and left the teenage girl at home to go out bindering. The machine was all set up for her and only a few minutes after her dad left, something went wrong with the machines tying mechanism. The last thing she wanted was for her dad to get home later that day to find out that she hadn't got anything done, she figured out what was wrong and worked the rest of the day without problems. She said that it was a great feeling to solve the problem without anyone else's help and get the job done. This moment of self-reliance again shaped the adult that she would become as Irene was always willing to tackle any job by herself, and asking for help was seldom in her nature.
As a young woman, Irene had the opportunity to travel to Kelowna as her sister Florence and her family were living there at the time. Irene was soon employed at a cannery peeling peaches as she put it. Irene shared this memory with her grandsons by telling them that she also had a part time job peddling drugs...... She went on to explain that she was employed by a local drug store and they provided her with a bicycle with a basket, and she would deliver prescriptions around town. The look on the boys faces during the pause was priceless.
Upon returning to Lipton, Irene and her sister Vallery ran the cafe in the hotel in Lipton, it was told that her pies were a hit even back then.
He leadeth me beside the still waters
In the spring of 1950 Irene married Fred Lutz and started their life together on the farm 15 miles north of Lipton. The house on the farm wasn't more than a shack and the first winter Irene tells the story of how they would sleep until 11:00 in the morning to save wood, and they would only eat 2 meals a day. The next winter to supplement their income, they took in a boarder, a teacher at headland school. Irene also mentioned the winter or 1952-53 was very cold and there was a lot of snow, and they didn't get to town from the end of November, until the beginning of April.
The young couple saved their penny's and in 1955, they built a new house, and in 1959 the power was installed, just in time for their new arrival in 1960. In an ultimate act of love, Irene and Fred adopted a daughter and Valley joined their family, that same act of love was repeated in 1964 as Irene and Fred adopted a son, Calvin.
Irene was the ultimate provider. Cooking, cleaning, sewing, and gardening, and canning provided all the family's needs, and the milk cows and chickens provided food and income to supplement the farm. The cream checks provided a few luxuries, and Irene would order between 4-500 chickens in the spring. Most of late August was spent butchering chickens, and delivering them to Irene's clients in Lipton, and cream was delivered twice a week to Leross.
Irene was also very active at the Crosthwaite curling rink. There was a ladies ball team in the summer, and both Irene and Fred were active curling in the winter. Irene would participate in ball tournaments in several others communities. It was during one of these outings that she had a small fender bender that would change things for her. Somewhere along the way, Irene had never got her drivers licences, so in the spring of 1974 she passed her drivers test and had her first drivers licence.
He restoreth my soul: he leadeth me in the paths of righteousness for his name's sake.
Irene had a very artistic and restless spirit; restless in the sense that she always had to be doing something, sewing, crocheting, knitting, embroidery, liquid embroidery, glass art, resin art, quilting, and the list goes on, each project a masterpiece, and her attention to detail required nothing but her best. Many projects ended up taken apart or trashed as they didn't measure up. Irene's gardens were huge and always abundant. There was always enough potatoes, corn and cucumbers to share with family and neighbours, Her strawberry, and raspberry patches were huge and also provided the family with extra income as these were also delivered and sold to waiting customers in Lipton and Fort Qu Appelle.
Irene and Fred enjoyed travelling, for their 25th wedding anniversary they travelled to Hawaii, and again two years later. In 1979 the whole family travelled to Disney land in California.
Life on the farm was busy, but Irene decided to up the ante and took on the kitchen and lunch counter at the auction market in Leross. Again her pies were a hit and her cooking was appreciated by many.
In early 1980 Irene and Fred liquidated the cattle heard and Irene found herself without enough to do, so she took a job at Fort San as kitchen staff. As she put it, " it was the easiest money I have ever made, getting paid for the things I did most of my life for free"
In 1986 Irene and Fred made plans to build a new house in Lipton. A lot was purchased and a house plan was selected. Irene was in tears on one occasion as Fred informed her that the house wouldn't fit on the lot with an attached garage, so the plans where changed with the garage in the back separate from the house, Irene cried because the only feature she wanted was a attached garage.
Although the lot was only 75ft in the front, it was 215 feet deep, and 115 feet wide at the back. This large lot was ideal for another huge garden. Truckload after truckload of topsoil was hauled in from the farm, 200 plus Saskatoon trees were planted, and a large garden area was broke. This garden rivaled the production of the garden at the farm, which mom still planted in its usual size.
Family was always very important to Irene. Christmas, Easter, New Year's Day, weddings, baptisms, confirmations, and yes funerals were all chances for the family to get together, meals were prepared, joy and sorrow were shared.
As the years went by, the family grew, in 1984, Calvin married Donna Wahl, and their fist son, Derek was born in 1985, and a second son, Neil was born in 1989. Vallery was blessed with a daughter Jenna in 1992.
Fort San was closed in 1986 and Irene took on a new venture, with two large gardens, there as truly an overabundance of fruit and vegetables she applied for a spot at the farmers market in Fort Qu'Appelle. Along with the fruits and veggies, she also had fresh buns, baking pies, embroidered doilies and table cloths for sale, maybe even a quilt when she could part with one. Through all this she still found time for her family, children, grandchildren, her church, and community.
Yea, though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, I will fear no evil: for thou art with me; thy rod and thy staff they comfort me.
Irene and Fred enjoyed their time in town and sadly Fred passed away in the spring of 2000. Irene maintained her gardens and her spot at the farmers market until she sold her house in late 2008 and moved into the Lipton lodge. Irene enjoyed her time there taking part in shuffle board, and being active in the Lipton senior centre, and the church.
Thou preparest a table before me in the presence of mine enemies: thou anointest my head with oil; my cup runneth over.
In summer 2013 Irene suffered a stroke and was hospitalized from mid-July until the end of August, while the physical disabilities were not that evident, the stroke took a heavy toll on her mental abilities, making speech difficult, and augmenting the dementia that was becoming a problem before the stroke occurred. It was evident that long term care was her only option and she was admitted the care home facility in Grenfell. It was far from home and not easy for here family to visit, but she was well cared for. Prayers were answered when Irene was transferred to Echo Lodge in late October
This was a very difficult time for Irene as a once very independent self-assured individual now had to rely on others for help. She really couldn't ever come to terms with the fact that she couldn't go home. One of the pleasures of life Irene held on to was her ability to play guitar and sing, even though she would have problems finding the right words, and maintaining her thoughts in conversation, she could always remember the words to an old time song.
Life at Echo Lodge was very confusing to Irene, but with the loving care and compassion shown to her by the staff and management, past and present, made her stay far more enjoyable. To all the people directly and indirectly involved with Irene's care, you are all, and will always be considered her family.
Irene left this world in the early morning hours of Dec. 20 with love, care and prayers surrounding her.
Irene was predeceased by her husband Fred in 2000, her parents Philip and Elizabeth Smith, one brother Jack Smith, three sisters: Florence Ikert, Ruth Hepting and Geraldine Illingworth.
She is survived by one daughter Vallery Lutz, Bruno, SK, one son Calvin (Donna) Lutz, Lipton, SK, her grandchildren: Jenna Lutz-Carr, Derek Lutz, Neil Lutz; one sister Vallery Bischler, one brother-in-law Don Illingworth and numerous nieces and nephews.
Surely goodness and mercy will follow me all of my days, and I will dwell in the house of the lord forever.
Arrangements in care of Tubman Cremation and Funeral Services
1-800-667-8962
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