Obituaries

Helen Aniela Gerwatoski

May 02, 1938 - May 09, 2022

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Obituary For Helen Aniela Gerwatoski

Helen Gerwatoski, resident of Grande Prairie, AB, formerly of DeBolt, AB, passed away on Monday, May 9, 2022, at the Grande Prairie Regional Hospital, at the age of 84 years.

Helen was born on May 2, 1938, in Retka Nowa, Poland. Helen was about a year old when the Second World War broke out. She lived through and had many memories of the War in which she talked about with her family, and sometimes the memories brought tears to her eyes. During her early years, Helen moved to a small town, Makow, Poland, and held several jobs such as working in a dairy laboratory, as a daycare worker, seamstress, and in an accounting position. In 1964, she started corresponding with a widower, Ted Gerwatoski, who lived in Canada. Which she was introduced to through family friends. Ted had three children: Walter, Irene, and Jim. In July of 1966, Helen came to Grande Prairie, for a visit. Helen liked what she saw in DeBolt, and the country life appealed to her, and she decided to stay. Helen and Ted were married on July 26, 1966, and farmed in DeBolt. A year later, Karen was born. Helen adjusted to and enjoyed the farm life. She was very hardworking, multi-talented and was always busy. Her day often went from 6:30 am to about midnight. Ted used to tease her that she was like a night owl. She would stay up into the late hours sometimes until 2:00 am to get extra work done, or to spend a bit of time on her self-taught hobbies such as sewing, crocheting, or knitting, in which she became very skilled. Many times, she would stay up late to do some baking of bread, buns, and pies, as there was sometimes not enough time during the day to do this. Helen did a variety of jobs on the farm such as milking cows, gathering and washing eggs, gardening, canning, and pickling, as well as household chores of cooking, cleaning, and laundry. She also had a green thumb, had many plants in the house as well as outside around the house, and could grow just about any plant. Helen also looked forward to going out and picking wild blueberries and mushrooms which grew in the surrounding forest. She was always ready to socialize, have a few laughs, or go dancing, as she loved music. Helen was a very happy, strong, independent, and caring person who had a heart of gold. She was always willing to help you if you asked. Helen and Ted did a lot of work together also, such as shoveling grain, making chop for the livestock, baling, and hauling hay, or calving. They worked hard and sometimes slept little. They didn’t have much time for taking vacations, travelling, or watching TV. For a social life they attended various community dances, weddings, church functions, and had family get togethers. Their home was always open for neighbours and friends to come and visit as there was always coffee and home baked goodies, or you could join the family for a meal.

In 1982, Helen and Ted retired and moved into Grande Prairie. Helen decided to work at the Golden Inn in the kitchen for a few years. She continued to grow a large garden in their backyard along with many flowers and raspberries. Their beautiful yard was always admired by neighbours and passersby.

Helen will be forever remembered and missed by her family: Karen (Len) Maddigan, Walter (Georgina) Gerwatoski, Irene (Miles) Pellerin, and Jim (Judy) Gerwatoski, as well as numerous grandchildren and great-grandchildren.

Helen was predeceased by her husband Ted in 2008; and was predeceased many years ago by her parents in Poland, Aleksandra and Jan Fronczek; as well as siblings: Sabina, Adam and Teresa.

A Funeral Mass will be held on Tuesday, May 17, 2022, at 1:00 pm, at St. Joseph Catholic Church in Grande Prairie (10404 102 St.).

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  • May 17, 2022

    I was very sorry to hear of Helen's passing. I remember when she came to Canada, the baking, sewing, crocheting and any other job she tried, it was a success. The family dinners at Easter. Condolences to all of the family, so sorry for your loss.

  • May 12, 2022

    My deepest condolences to Helen's family. She was a very gentle and kind lady. I met Helen just before her husband passed away, we were neighbors. RIP Helen💕🙏💕

  • May 12, 2022

    I worked with Karen for many years at GPRC and loved to hear Karen talk about her Mom. I had the pleasure of seeing Helen on a few different occasions, and she was a very kind and social person. And she had the "look" that told you if she approved or if she was still deciding what she thought! I loved that she referred to me as "Leanne" on occasion when she and Karen were talking about me. Karen forgot to mention the famous perogies and the Polish Noodles and Cabbage dishes that Helen passed on to Karen; I still cook the Polish Noodles and Cabbage dish a few times a year. It is so hard to say goodbye to our parents, however we are blessed in that they have passed on their strength to help us carry on, and forever cherish the memories. Condolences to you all. Elaine O'Hara.

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