BARBAZUK, Anna Marie
April 4th, 1936 ~ June 9th, 2014
On April 4, 1936 at Carrot Creek, Hans and Martha Affolter had a sweet baby girl, a sister for Hans Jr. So began the 78 year life of Anna Marie.
The family moved from the homestead, to Edson, so that their little girl didn’t have to walk too far to school.
One day, Ed Barbazuk walked into the Treasury Branch in Edson and a beautiful young woman caught his eye – Ann! They became husband and wife in March, 1955 and were together for 59 years, until June 9, 2014, when Mom left this world.
Together Mom and Dad raised our family of four – Leslie, Laurie, Lyall and Linda. Lyall passed away tragically in 1991. In 2001, Carol, Dad’s biological daughter came into our lives and Mom wrote, “she is such a delight to have in our family, she fits in perfectly.” The family grew over the years to include eight grandchildren and four great grandchildren.
Mom wore many hats over the years. She worked at the bank, drove school bus and did books for their various businesses. Together Mom and Dad ran the U Auto Wash for 16½ years until they retired in 1997. After a full life of working constantly they were finally able turn off the alarm clock! Mom was loved and respected by everyone who met her. She was a devoted daughter, an affectionate and loyal wife, a loving mother, a proud grandma, a favorite aunt and a lifelong friend. She strove to keep peace and harmony in all that she did. Many of our friends have adopted her as their second mother over the years, and she felt honored to be that person. She helped others whenever she could and those gifts were generously returned to her when the need arose, by people who became very special to her. Mom had a great sense of humour and laughed a lot. She always had a genuine smile for everyone. We all thought her quality of life would improve when she got a knee replacement last year but unfortunately she never fully recovered from that before pancreatic cancer came charging through the door. She tried. We tried. We tried so very hard to fix you Mom, and I'm so sorry we couldn't. The world was definitely a better place because of Mom.
She was a gentle, beautiful lady who brightened the lives of everyone she met. She will be missed by so many, but none more than her loving and adoring husband. Our loss is great but we were so very lucky to have you all the years that we did. We love you and we will always miss you.
Anna is survived by her loving husband Ed of Edson, Alberta and daughters Leslie Bowness (Simon) of Enderby, B.C and children Steven (Lindy) Remi and Carsten of Red Deer and Kris of Calgary, Alberta; Laurie Barbazuk of Edmonton, Alberta; Linda (Ken) Babyak of Edmonton and Carol (Rob) Theaker and family of Strathroy, Ontario. Also surviving is her brother Hans (Mavis) Affolter and family of Whitehorse, Yukon.
Anna was predeceased by her son Lyall in 1991; parents Martha in 1986 and Hans in 1987 as well as her son-in-law Larry Bowness in 2011.
Following cremation, a memorial service was held on Saturday, June 14th, 2014 at 11:00 AM at the Foothills Memorial Chapel with Mr. Tim Affolter officiating. In lieu of other tributes, donations if desired may be made to the Independent Cancer ReasearchFoundation, PO Box 2074, Lees Summit, MO, 64063, USA, or to the charity of the donor’s choice in memory of Anna Marie Barbazuk.
To send condolences on line, please visit our website atwww.edsonfuneralhome.com
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