Obituary of Lydia Furman

BIOGRAPHY FURMAN ~ Lydia Furman passed away in Lloydminster, Saskatchewan on Friday, June 1, 2012 at the age of 87 years. Lydia will be sadly missed by her children: Grace and David Brown, Maureen and Dennis Gutting, Allan and Winifred Furman, Carl and Barbara Furman; twelve grandchildren; ten great-grandchildren; brothers: Fred and Mary Schreiber, Floyd and Juliet Schreiber, Andrew and Rachel Schreiber, Kenneth Leisl; sisters: Chris and Cecile Wolf, Mary Andrews, Anne Rusnell, Dorothy Sather as well as numerous other relatives. Lydia was predeceased by: her husband George Furman in 1994, mother Katerina Schreiber in 1939, brother Peter Schreiber Jr. In 1971, father Peter Schreiber in 1977, step-mother Katherine Schreiber in 1995, brother George in 1999 and sister Irene in 2002. The funeral service was conducted from the Grace United Church, Lloydminster, Alberta on Tuesday, June 5, 2012 at 3:00 P.M. with Joyce Carson officiating. The organist was Irene Knowlson. The eulogy was read by Karla Ehalt and Carl Furman. The poems "As I Walk In My Garden" was read by Ashley Furman and "I Am Free" was read by Susan Jones. The processional was "I See A New Heaven". The hymns were "All The Way My Saviour Leads Me" and "Precious Lord Take My Hand". The recessional was "God Be With You". The honorary pallbearers were Everyone Who Shared In Mom's Life. The active pallbearers were Rick Moore, Greg Gutting, Warren Furman, Travis Ehalt, Darryl Moore, Micheal Gutting, Curtis Jones, and Justin Staff. McCaw Funeral Service Ltd., of Lloydminster, Alberta administered the funeral arrangements. Grandma's Eulogy By: Karla Ehalt Good afternoon everyone. Today we have come together to celebrate the life of a person we all love very much, my grandma Lydia Furman. When my dad asked me to give the eulogy, with out hesitation I said yes. Grandma was and will always be not only my grandma, but my best friend. She was always there for advice when needed, to listen and to give you the best hugs; even though her fingers seemed to find that perfect spot between your ribs every time. Grandma was born on September 6, 1924 to Peter and Katharina Schreiber of Morris, Saskatchewan. Being the eldest of 13, Grandma had many responsibilities around the farm; helping with the gardening, wood sawing, chores and home making. I remember Grandma sharing some of these stories with me over tea and cookies. One story in particular was about how life changed after her mother passed away in 1939. Grandma was just a teenager, but now was in charge of the household and looking after her siblings. She left school and through correspondence was able to completer her grade 8. I couldn't help but think how amazing and strong my grandma was to take on such responsibilities at a young age. On September 6, 1943 Grandma married the love of her life, George Furman. They settled down on a farm in the North Bend area. Here they started their beautiful family. First came Grace, followed by Maureen and Allan. A few years down the road along came Carl, my dad. Grandma had shared many stories about the kids while they were growing up; Memories of Sunday afternoon visits, holidays and harvest, and how Aunt Grace, and Aunt Maureen would ride horses to school and then later on the school bus. I was always fascinated by how life had changed so much over such a short period of time. Grandma was always so very proud of her children and loved sharing stories about different events in the past. I especially loved the stories which were about my dad being a typical little brother and doing something to get his older sisters and brother riled up; and believe me, there were a few! Grandma and Grandpa farmed for about 33 years before they retired in 1976. A few years later in 1984, they decided to move into Lloydminster "to enjoy their golden years" as grandma had said. In town they enjoyed wonderful neighbors' and friends coming for tea and having plenty of time to spend with their family and grandchildren. Grandma also found herself taking part in many activities over the years, through out the community; farmers' market, the grace united church choir, the Lloydminstrials and the town fair. Grandma was known for her beautiful baby clothes and blankets, flowers and delicious pies! She won many awards at the fairs for her entries. Grandma also made beautiful quilts for auctions, family and friends. I know all the grandchildren received at least one beautiful blanket from grandma. I have a couple and cherish them; as these last few days, wrapping myself up in them has brought me comfort when I needed it most. I have very fond memories growing up and spending many weekends at grandmas with my sister, Ashley. It was always the best part of the week when mom would tell us we were going to see grandma or even better...sleeping over! Sleepovers at grandmas were the best. Why!? Because not only did you get to eat multiple meals, as grandma was the best cook I have ever known, but you got to have popcorn in the evening and snuggle while watching a movie or one of the many re-runs grandma enjoyed on TV. In the morning there was always homemade porridge with fresh fruit. The day would consist of some sewing or knitting for a few hours and during the summer yard work. Now yard work at home was never fun, but for some reason doing yard work with grandma was wonderful and I enjoyed every minute of it. Picking berries, weeding or dead heading flowers, I was up for anything, as long as it was with grandma. One of the best yard chores was picking the potato beetles and squishing them, as Grandma disliked these little creatures and was determined to keep them out of her beautiful garden. The green house was also a favorite of all the grandchildren; and during the summer months it became the playhouse for all of us. There were many times we would turn the greenhouse into a store and Grandma would always play along and buy our many imaginary items that we had to offer. Grandma was so very proud of all her children and grandchildren. During many cups of tea and cookies, grandma shared with me the going-ons of all my cousins and other family members. It was the best way to stay updated on what everyone was doing. She loved to share about recent visits with other family members and their adventures. Looking around grandma's home there was always reminders of how much she loved everyone in her life; from photos to newspaper clippings and drawings from great grandchildren. She would display these items for her friends and family to see. I loved looking at the most recent photos she had to share and watching her face light up as she told me the latest news. Over the last few days, many stories have been exchanged with both laughs and tears. We have all talked about how much she loved us and how much we love her. I noticed while we were sitting down that many of the same words were being used to describe grandma over and over again. She was beautiful, strong, compassionate, amazing, never selfish, and most of all determined; and don't get it confused with being stubborn, because grandma would correct you and remind you that she was determined not stubborn. Grandma was a large part of our family's life and will be greatly missed. I know grandma is in heaven now with grandpa, just like she wanted. I am happy to know she will be looking down on all of us with her warm smile and kind heart. I will hold all my memories close to my heart, as I am sure all of you will to. Thank you grandma for being the beautiful person you were. For sharing the stories of the past and your wisdom; for teaching me to bake, cook and sew; for teaching me the patients of gardening and yard work; and most of all, for being my grandma. I am going to miss you dearly, but I know in my heart, that one day we will be together again; having tea and cookies in a beautiful garden under the sunshine of the Lord. I love you always and forever. CARD OF THANKS On behalf of the family of the late Lydia Furman, we would like to send a special Thank You to the following people: -to the Ambulance Attendants for getting mom to the hospital and the care that you gave her -to Dr. Van Vuuren, the emergency nurses and all the nurses on the 3rd floor - for taking care of mom during her last hours, as well as the kindness, understanding and compassion that you showed all of us -to the home care nurses, for the kindness and care that you gave mom over the last few years. She looked forward to your visits. -to Joyce Carson, for not only officiating mom's service, but for the kind words that were shared at our meeting with you. You gave us comfort when we needed it most. -to Irene Knowlson and the Grace United Church Choir for making mom's service full of beautiful music. It would have made mom rejoice. The church and choir was a very big part of mom's life. -to our daughter Karla Ehalt and my husband Carl Furman, for doing mom's (Grandma's) eulogy. Not only would she have been proud of both of you, but you would have made her smile and maybe even giggle up in Heaven. -to Grandma's Pallbearers - Rick Moore, Darryl Moore, Micheal Gutting, Greg Gutting, Warren Furman, Curtis Jones, Travis Ehalt and Justin Staff - Thank you for doing such a difficult task in Grandma's fairwell. -to our daughter, Ashley Furman and niece, Susan Jones - Thank you for reading the poems that were so very dear to Grandma's heart. You helped make Grandma's service complete, and she will always smile down on you and all her family from Heaven above. For she was and always will be so very proud of you. -to the Grace United Ladies for the lovely lunch that you served after mom's service. -to Glenn McCaw and McCaw Funeral Service, thank you for your kindness and assistance during this difficult time. We would also like to send a special thank you to friends and family for your kind words, prayers, support, the beautiful flowers, food, phone calls, visits, cards of sympathy and the contributions made in mom's memory. And finally a special thank you to everyone at the Pioneer Lodge for making mom feel at home with you and for taking such good care of her during her short time there. Mom enjoyed being apart of the Pioneer Lodge Family. Grace & David Brown Maureen & Dennis Gutting Allan & Wyn Furman Carl & Barb Furman and family Donations in memory of Lydia may be made to the Canadian Cancer Society, Heart & Stroke Foundation or to the charity of the donor's choice.