| FLEWELLING - Mrs. Winnie Flewelling passed away peacefully in the Three Hills Hospital, Three Hills, Alberta on January 5, 2007 at the age of 87 years. Winnie is survived by her children Glenn (Marsha) Flewelling of Three Hills, Ian (Willena) Flewelling of Pickardville, Eva (Karl) Grantmyre of Sherwood Park and Brenda (Martin) Friesen of Warman, Saskatchewan as well as 19 grandchildren; eight great grandchildren; two sisters-in-law Maise Hennan and June Flewelling; numerous nieces, nephews, great nieces and nephews and their families. “Winsome Winnie” is what they wrote above her picture in the school yearbook. I think that’s how I’ll remember my mother too. Mom left us January 5 about 9:30 from the hospital in Three Hills. She had been suffering from congestive heart disease for a long time. The hospital staff reports that she was cheerful in the morning and had eaten a good breakfast. Then the valves of her heart that were so worn just gave out. Doctors were in attendance. It was not really expected. Mom was born in the Coronation hospital on November 10, 1920 to Sarah Margaret Hennan and Anthony Armstong Hennan. She was the great grand daughter of Irish immigrants. She was given the name Ada Winnifred Irene, and they called her Winnie. There were two brothers in her home before she arrived, however, the oldest, Albert, died of diabetes. Winnie and Milton grew up together out on the flat prairie of the Broadview district south east of Loyalist. Mom was always eager to learn new things. She was glad when she started to school in the little one room Broadview schoolhouse. She happily trudged the two miles with her little tin lunch pail every day including one of those – 30 degree winter days. Her father could not persuade her that school would be cancelled. Of course, there was no one there so she had to return home disappointed. It was a wonder she did not freeze, but there was a lot of grit in that little girl. That was confirmed when a harvest time rolled around and she was out there driving a team. They told her she was handling her team as well as the men did. One of her favourite activities at school was the Spelling Bee. She was fascinated with words and her Chalmers Dictionary was never far away. You have not spent much time with her if you haven’t been challenged to a Scrabble game with her. She finished grade school and attempted to continue but the upper grades were not taught there, only supervised. She went to work doing housework for Mrs. Johnson. Mr. Johnson was the MLA and a friend of her father who was the reeve for Wisk County (later known as the Special Areas). Her father was responsible for the roads. The lively political discussions that she was part of during that time sparked an interest in world affairs that stayed with her. Perhaps that was where the seed was planted that later blossomed into such an interest in missions. Wouldn’t that have shocked her agnostic father. Her goal was to become a nurse so she enrolled in the high school in Consort to up grade and boarded at the dorm. She fondly remembered the good times at the dorm. That summer on June 2, 1942 Lilly Millar, Maise Robinson, Mom and a truck load of other young people from the dorm dressed up in their best, loaded into Laurence Robinson’s pick-up truck and made their way to Edmonton to welcome King George and his consort Elizabeth to Alberta. That was a thrill for Mom who was very loyal to the royal family. Then she met Dad and the nursing career was put on hold only to be resumed whenever one of us got sick or a little animal needed help. On August 26, 1942 in a quiet little wedding down on the Broadview farm Winnie Hennan became the bride of Gordon Flewelling. Arnold Knudson and Hazel Flewelling stood up for them. She became a farm wife and industriously took on all those challenges with the zest that characterized her. Her diary records that she canned 128 quarts of saskatoons their first summer. The majority of our groceries was produced and preserved at home. Don’t you remember the day, she placed a large platter of raspberries in front of cousin Will who was three at the time? His eyes got big as saucers and he let out the longest Ohhhhhhhh! There were lots of ‘Ohh’ moments at our table. Mom took the slogan “Think Family” seriously. Feeding them well was a big part of it. Though I do remember being jealous of the kids in town who had neat boloney sandwiches of white store bread spread with margarine. I was stuck with sliced roast beef garnished with her homemade mustard on homebaked bread spread with homemade butter. Kids! She put on wonderful spreads for guests and boldly tried out new recipes on them. It never deterred her that it could be risky and I cannot remember any of them not turning out Mom definitely had a green thumb. She had good mentors beginning with Grandpa Flewelling and then Art Redel. Along with good advice, they would send over a clipping of this, a root of that, and a bouquet of beautiful flowers to inspire her. Mom carried on Grangran Flewelling’s line of peas. It originated from a Homesteader variety, was easy to shell and produced large sweet peas. Neighbours would come to buy them from her. Mom won ribbons from a variety of entries in the fair every year ranging from garden vegetables and fruits to bouquets of flowers, preserves and houseplants. While they were both octogenarians, Mom and Dad set their sights on the Yard Beautification Competition. They won it two years running. Then they were barred from entering to give someone else a chance. They renovated the veranda into her “Wonder Room”. The neighbours were all wondering what they were doing. It became a place for her indoor garden. Mom was a roses and chocolates lady. She also liked music. You could hear her cheery whistle coming from the kitchen anytime of day. She was good at it. She and Dad got themselves some self teaching piano and guitar lessons. They bought a lovely little piano and then she never had time to study it seriously but she did enjoy picking out simple tunes. They gave each of us piano lessons enduring all those shaky scales and arpeggios and then provided lessons for a couple of their grandchildren as well. In 1951, Mom began another journey which her grandmother and Aunt Annie had prayed for and anticipated for a long time. She was listening to Mr. Sotel on the William Aberhart Christian radio broadcast when she realized that she wanted to belong to God’s family and that there is an open invitation to do that. Jesus made it possible by personally carrying away her sins in his own body on the cross. She took up that invitation on the basis of His Sacrifice for her. Just a few days ago she said to me that she should see that movie, The Passion. Now she is with Him and she can see those scars in his hands for herself. From that time on, the Bible became very precious to her. She read it through and through, got a concordance and started building a library of Christian literature. She wanted to discuss what she was finding there and memorized parts of it like the beautiful part she quoted to us at her husband’s funeral. I wish you had been at Harry and Irene’s home a summer ago together with Mom and Mrs. Zinger to hear how much they enjoyed just reading God’s word to each other. Mom got involved in missions. For many years she supported and encouraged Dr. Lionel Gurney who was a medical missionary with the Red Sea Mission Team. There was a lad in Ethiopia whom she supported through the World Vision program. She missed her child when he grew up and left the program. She had a whole cupboard full of newsletters from many missions she was interested in following and praying for. We enjoyed having missionaries stay in our home. Daniel Ehman and his bride working in Europe were also very special to her. She would be pleased to know that Glenn has just been designated the director for international missionary training. Jesus did tell his disciples to go into all the world and preach the gospel to every creature. You always knew that your confidences were safe with her. Once she decided something was confidential, you couldn’t pry it out of her. She would take the time to listen. She was wise. She was generous with her time and energy helping when babies were born, on moving day, with babysitting, or just to be a support in a crises. There was a letter from Dad among Mom’s things. He was writing to her in Nanton where she and Glenn, who was about two, were visiting her grandmother and Aunt Annie. Glenn lost his shoe just before they had started their journey and had to go with only one on. Dad found it. He wrote, “I guess this is the first letter I have written to my sweetheart. I can’t give you a hug and kiss as I would like to. All I have is Glenn’s little shoe.” All we’ve got to hold in our hands are a few treasures that remind us of her. She left us a store of precious memories, a good example, truths, and challenges and a spiritual heritage. Without her a number of us may never have heard the invitation to accept God’s gift of eternal life Funeral services were held on Saturday, January 13, 2007 at 2:00 P.M. in the Evangelical Free Church, Coronation, Alberta with Pastor Wade Hammond officiating. The interment will follow in the spring in the Lakeroad Cemetery, Consort, Alberta. Memorial contributions may be made in Winnie’s memory to the Three Hills Palliative Care Room at Three Hills Hospital or a charity of the donor’s choice. Parkview Funeral Chapels & Crematorium “Families Serving Families” were entrusted with the care and funeral arrangements. For further information please call Dean Ross or Verna Rock at 578-3777. |