Ada Gwen Richards July 29, 1925, to October 11, 2022

Ada Richards passed away peacefully with family at her side on Tuesday, October 11, 2022, at the Grande Prairie Regional Hospital, at age 97.

Gwen was Born to Percy and Myrtle Holgate on July 29, 1925, in Oregon, Illinois. They moved back to Canada in September 1929, and settled in Thorhild AB, where Gwen went to a one-room school for her education. Gwen helped with every farm chore there was. Gwen attended nursing school but then signed on with the air force to serve in the war. She also worked at Eaton’s department store in Edmonton. During that time, she met Marshall Richards who was at the same boarding house while going to school. They were married in 1949, and then moved to the farm in LaGlace area in 1951. Their farm consisted of chickens, grain, grasses, and hogs. They had three children: Clifford, Valerie, and Robert. Gwen lived on the farm till 2003, when she moved to Horizon Village Mountview Estates in Grande Prairie. Then in 2017, she decided to move to Emerald Gardens where she resided till the end.

Gwen gave up her driver’s license at age 93. She was a great card player and taught her children, grandchildren, and great-grandchildren how to play cribbage. Very seldom did she get beat but on occasion, a great-grandchild would beat her. When the family got together for family functions, she always enjoyed a good game of Canasta. We always teased her about the card up her sleeve. She always kept the pen and paper saying, “you can’t beat the paper.”

She loved picking saskatoons, blueberries, and wild strawberries. If you were special enough you got to find out where her secret patch was. When farming did not interfere with her hobbies, Gwen enjoyed gardening, flowers, house plants, baking, cooking, and knitting. Farming was always in her blood as she went for annual combine rides after she moved off the farm up till two years ago. She was a convener at the La Glace Fair for many years as well as a member of TOPS in Vahalla where she made several new friends. She enjoyed the local ladies group that would get together for coffee weekly and extra coffee when it was someone’s birthday. Gwen was very cheeky and stayed that way right to the end, even with the nurses in the hospital. Gwen traveled to Ireland, Scotland, England, New Zealand, Australia and went on a cruise to Alaska.

She will be sadly missed by her family children: Cliff (Karren) Richards, Val Rowney (Gary Jackson), Bob (Brenda) Richards and Herbert (Rose) Holgate; nieces and nephews and their families; grandchildren: Darrell (Tracy) Richards, Dan (Kim) Richards, David (Natalie) Rowney, Tanya (Justin) Plowman, Clinton Rowney, Nicole (Graham) Newton, Robert (Adria) Rowney, Robyn (Jay) House, and Benjamin Richards (Kiara Tarots); great-grandchildren: Cheyanne Richards, Shelby Richards, Shayla Richards, Cody Richards, Cameron (Carson) ¬¬Laugheed, Brittany Mercer, Madison House, Chloe House, Caylin Finch, Brianne Rowney, Taelor Johnson, Nichols Rowney, Grace Rowney, Tanner Rowney, Jennica Rowney, Caleb Rowney, Denver Newton, and Cody Newton; great great-grandchildren: Walter Rowney, Ryker Rowney, and Amara Mutz. A special thank you to the Staff at Emerald Gardens and the girls in green who helped Mom out so much over the last couple of years.

A Funeral Service will be held Monday, October 17, 2022, at 11:00 am at Oliver’s Funeral Home (10005 107 Ave. Grande Prairie). Burial to follow at Scenic Heights Cemetery in LaGlace.

In lieu of flowers, memorial donations may be made to a charity of ones choosing.