Obituary of Simon Rollheiser

Rollheiser: Simon "Sam" Rollheiser passed away in the Royal University Hospital, Saskatchewan, Saskatchewan on Sunday, May 25, 2008 at the age of 71 years. Sam will be lovingly remembered and greatly missed by Liz, his wife of 38 years and their four children: Shannon and Steve Pilch of Calgary and their daughter Rebecca; Nathan and Pam Rollheiser of Lloydminster and their children Johnathan and Valarie; Lorne and Lara Rollheiser of Calgary, Allan and Corinne Rollheiser of Lloydminster and their children Carrie and Deanna; three brothers: John (Ann) Rollheiser of Saskatoon, Alphonse Rollheiser of Saskatoon and Florian (Lucy) Rollheiser of Medicine Hat. One sister-in-law Rose Rollheiser of Chauvin, Uncle Frank (Nikki) Watchel of Denzil, numerous nieces and nephews. Sam was predeceased by his parents, Alex and Sophie Rollheiser of Denzil, three brothers, Albert (Betty) Rollheiser of Red Deer, Mark (Kay) Rollheiser of Lloydminster, Leo Rollheiser of Chauvin, one sister Ann (Ted) Ollenberger of Saskatoon, one sister-in-law Mary Rollheiser of Saskatoon. A prayer service for Sam was conducted from St. Anthony's Roman Catholic Church, Lloydminster, Alberta on Wednesday, May 28, 2008 at 5:00 P.M. A Celebration of life for Sam was conducted from St. Anthony's Roman Catholic Church, Lloydminster on Thursday, May 29, 2008 at 2:00 P.M. with Father Jan Sobkowicz officiating. Interment followed in the Lloydminster City Cemetery. Eulogy for Sam Rollheiser Sam Rollheiser was born February 17, 1937 to Sophie and Alex Rollheiser in St. Joseph's Hospital in Macklin, Saskatchewan. He was the youngest of eight children. He had six older brothers and one sister. His early years were spent on the Alex Rollheiser homestead four miles south of Denzil, Saskatchewan where he attended Ollenberger School for eight years. When Sam was about eight months old, during the Christmas holidays, someone gave him a hard round candy to suck. However the candy became lodged in his throat. His mother became hysterical, and all around became very excited. I, as a ten year old, also saw what was happening. I was close by, and stuck my finger in Sam's mouth, and popped the candy out. You can be sure that the entire family was relieved to see Sam being able to breathe again. Also, when Sam was a young teenager, he had the privilege to ride a rather tame horse, named Jim, to school. Often some family member would get Jim ready for Sam, and let the horse wait for Sam in front of the house. One day Sam took too long to come out of the house, and Jim took off for school without Sam. I do not remember when Sam caught up with Jim. When school was over, Sam would mount old Jim, and as soon as they hit the road, both horse and rider would take off like a shot. Sam took an early interest in farming. One chore that no-one liked to do was to clean the hen house regularly. It was close to the end of World War II when my father bought a new rubber tired 102 Junior Massey Harris tractor. Some how Sam convinced our dad that if he could use the tractor to haul the manure from the hen house, he would keep the hen house clean. Our family no longer had a problem keeping the hen house clean, and Sam got an early start driving the tractor, and an important introduction to farming. The fall of 1949 to July of 1950 was a traumatic time for the young boy of twelve years, when his father was hospitalized in Kerrobert for a blood clot in his leg and Sam was not allowed to visit him. It was during this time that he found the watch his brother Leo had lost and traded it for a banjo. He spent his lonely hours strumming his banjo. He later acquired a bass guitar and saxophone and learned to play many instruments with his pals Mike Wist and Tony Schreiber. He then joined the Shacktel brothers' band. [NTD: "The Moonlight Ramblers"] At age seventeen, having two brothers in Saskatoon he went to work at a service station for the winter. In the spring he returned to the farm south of Denzil to rejoin his mother and work with his brother Leo. From the mid-fifties up to about a year ago, Sam farmed and played with many different bands, most notable of which was the "Starlight Polka Kings," also known as the Erker Orchestra. He also curled in the winter and won many trophies alongside his cousin, John Watchel. In December of 1967 his sister-in-law Anne introduced him to a nursing student, Elizabeth Albers. He proposed to Liz one year later and they married on June 28th, 1969 at Loon Lake, Saskatchewan. They started a family and he continued to farm south of Denzil until 1973. He was a distributor for Simplot fertilizer; however, depressed wheat prices and a few tough years led him to decide that it was better to move north. Packing up his wife and three young children, seventeen brood sows and a few head of cattle, he moved up to a then unoperated hog farm four miles north of Marshall. Not long after the move a fourth child (Allan) was born, joining Shannon, Nathan and Lorne. As he farmed he supplemented his operations with off-farm jobs such as selling furniture, working for the City of Lloydminster, pumping oil wells for Husky Oil, battery operator and field foreman for Murphy Oil, and field foreman for Sask-Oil. In June 1986, turmoil in the oil industry led him to refocus on farming and he raised hogs for a few years and increased his cattle herd. During this time he obtained his pesticide license. He sprayed weeds and controlled pests for the Municipality and local farmers, which he continued to do until this past fall. Despite an occasional twist in the path or bump in the road, Sam always had a positive attitude. He always knew everything would work itself out in the end. His family was growing up and the children began school in Marshall. Sam encouraged and supported his kids in school, music and sports. He purchased an organ for Shannon and hockey equipment for the boys. He took them to countless music lessons, hockey practices and games, and helped manage the odd team. He motivated them to always have fun and do their best. Sam took pleasure in his children's success - from winning a hockey tournament to graduating from school or getting married. Not long ago the grandchildren began to arrive. Sam was thrilled and he seemed years younger spending time with them. Sam loved nature and taking trips out in the country. He often decided to strike out with no specific plans, eager to see what was around the next bend or over the next hill. He travelled to Alaska, the Yukon, the Northwest Territories and across Canada to PEI. He enjoyed hunting and fishing with friends and generally being outdoors. His friends and family have many memories of fun with Sam, including camping in northern Saskatchewan, travelling to family reunions, attending weddings, his own 25th wedding anniversary with Liz and listening to him play and sing at any opportunity, including his children's weddings. Sam enjoyed cattle farming, playing music and spending time with his friends and family. Sam often received support and assistance from neighbours, who have long been great friends. He has tried to help out in return and be as generous to others as much as he has received generosity. He always had time to spend with friends, whether visiting, stopping in for a coffee, or having a quick chat on the side of the road. Church, community and family were all important to Sam. He regularly attended church and served as an acolyte. He considered Sunday a day of rest to spend with family and friends. As such, it is appropriate that he passed on a Sunday, a day of rest. This outlines Sam's life and describes some of our memories. Those of us here have our own relationship with Sam and these memories will be carried on by each of us. Sam shared his good nature, humor and positive attitude with us all. He lived his principles and passed on his values. This is the example he has set and this is the legacy he leaves for us to share. Card of Thanks The family of Sam would like to express their sincere thanks and appreciation to Mary and Harold Holtby for being there whenever we needed them before, during and after our time of crisis. The Ambulance staff, doctors and nurses in attendance at the Lloydminster Hospital, Air Ambulance and at the CCU at the Royal University Hospital in Saskatoon for their genuine concern and understanding. Also a heartfelt thanks to all who brought food, flowers and cards. It is uncanny how a chocolate cake appeared just when it was needed. We would like to thank Father Jan Sobkowicz for saying the Mass and performing the service, Pat Hankey for providing the music, Ted Cavanagh and Dennis Linge for being Acolytes, Florian Rollheiser for giving the eulogy, Angeline Albers, Linda Schrieber, Marlene Dewald for doing the reading and everyone who attended and participated in the service. A special thanks to Dale McCaw and Staff for their patience with us. The CWL women for the lunch and Sam's jamming buddies for their tribute to him. Thank you for all the Masses being said for Sam, donations to the Heart & Stroke Foundation, Development and Peace and the Cancer Society and the Kidney Foundation made in Sam's memory. We greatly appreciate all that was done for us during our time of grief. Gratefully Yours, Liz Shannon & Steve Pilch Nathan & Pam Lorne & Lara Allan & Corinne and families Donations may be made to the Heart & Stroke Foundation or to Development and Peace.