The entry below was written by Constance Balzer (Rostek) and submitted with her permission.  Constance and Carol have been friends since elementary school.

"I think that I was 12 when I was invited to your home in Hepburn for the first time.  Your dad was a bit brusque, but your mom had such a warm, welcoming smile and such a gracious manner that I felt comfortable right away.

I have many happy memories of your mom, but the one that comes to mind first is from the summer when she had so much trouble with her legs.  Your dad took her to the doctor and you and I were left to run the switchboard, make meals, and look after things in general.  I think that 'things in general' probably meant your brothers and sister, but I have a feeling that they kind of looked after themselves and showed up when the food was ready!  When your mom came home, she was compelled to sit in a chair with her feet up.  Even then I was impressed with her patience, gentleness and spirit of acceptance.  It can't have been easy since your siblings were still relatively young, but I never had the feeling that she was frustrated or distressed with her situation.  What an example for us to emulate!"

Marilyn & I wish the family sincerest condolences during these days of celebrating their Mother's life. Our Care Group friends, Bert & Carol, are on our hearts as they experience their Mother's graduation to glory.
R&M Hiebert

Here are the family memories that I've collected over the past few days that Niki will be reading at the service.

As members of the family we all wanted to honor our Mother and Grandma with some of our precious memories of her. 
My Uncle Vern remembers “when we were living in the house in Hepburn, before we moved to the switchboard house which was when I was 11, Mom and Dad used to milk up to 5 cows. When Dad was away working shift work over milking time I was told that Mom was not allowed out to milk the cows unless I was with her. I have memories of being out in Saskatchewan winters feeding and watering cows with Mom in the barn. Mom seemed to like the cows and since I got my own cattle in New Zealand she was very interested in our cattle. Everytime I phoned her she wanted to know about my cows, how many there were and why I wasn't milking them.
I remember Mom coming to watch me play basketball once, even if I did guilt her into coming. I told her that she always went to everything that Carol did and never came to watch me at basketball. She never said she was coming but at one game I looked up and there she was sitting up on the benches. I was very surprised as it was so unexpected.
I enjoyed talking to Mom on the phone over the years as we would chat for two or more hours. We would catch up on family news and what was happening to people we both knew.
Mom always claims that she went grey when I came to New Zealand, but I don't believe a word of it."
His wife Andrea recalls “Vern and I had been married for two years before I met Mom and Dad. From the very first time I met Mom she accepted me and treated me like a daughter. I loved her from the start. I learnt so much from her especially how to cook Mennonite food. We baked buns, cinnamon buns, doughnuts, verenicke, and roll kuchen together and I still make them now and it always reminds me of Mom. She showed me how to make dill pickles too. We used to go to the Saskatoon Farmers Market and go out for coffee and muffins. I was always impressed by how many cups of coffee she could drink.
I can still see Mom sitting in the shade of our pear tree with Dad and my parents and family shelling buckets of peas for me to process for the freezer.
Mom always seemed to be liked by everyone who met her. My parents thought very highly of her and have been saddened by her illness and suffering.
Mom loved flowers and was especially delighted that the bedroom Mom and Dad had at our house looked out onto some of my roses.
I always looked forward to the few times I had the chance to spend time with Mom - what they lacked in quantity they sure made up for in quality. Mom loved her family and was so proud of her children, grand children and great grandchildren. She was a very special person and I feel so privileged to have been part of her life.
My cousin Matthew remembers “a special close time that I had with Grandma was the last time we were in Canada. I pushed her in a wheelchair around these gardens because it was too far for her to walk. She seemed to really like the flowers. I wasn't that interested in them but I enjoyed showing Grandma around, so much so that I wouldn't let anyone else push the wheelchair.”
And his sister Debra wrote “My special memory of Grandma was when she was at our place for Christmas once and we made Animal Cookies together (this was Grandma's recipe from the Mennonite Cookbook). We made lots of different coloured icings and she let me dip my finger in and test each one. This is still the best cookie recipe too.”
Matthew and Debra also wanted to say that “Grandma was always happy to see us even if it was only on very few occasions and we enjoyed seeing her too.”

My Mom's “favorite memory of Mom was when I was a young mom.  Mom Klassen and I didn’t know each other well then, but there I was at their place with my very young and restless baby.  My little girl just didn’t want to settle down, and I was beginning to lose my patience with her, and trying desperately to not show it.  Mom began a poem which I will never forget.  She said “Patience is a virtue, posses it if you can.”  And then she paused.  At that point I just about blew up at her.  Didn’t she know how hard I was trying?  And then she calmly finished the poem.  “Seldom found in women, never found in man.”  I burst out laughing and we have been friends ever since.  You see, she was not judging me for my lack of patience rather it was her way of telling me how proud she was of me.”
My older sister Tonille Peters “remembers when our baby sister was born, she was so very tiny; I was 8.  Our mom was worried about all the diapers being way too big for our tiny little sister.  And Grandma calmly and logically suggested that we would make some.  So she went and got some old sheets that had been washed enough times that they were very soft and she asked me to help her sew them.  We cut them out and then we got out the old treadle Singer sewing machine and I helped Grandma sew these little diapers which were still too big on Kristi.”
Jen Klassen remembers lots of Grandma's Chocolate Cake – it was sooo good.
My cousin Christine Geisbrecht writes, “I have great memories of staying with Grandma after school sometimes in Hepburn. We made clothespin furniture, play house downstairs, or she would read to me from the Elsie books. 

Baking animal cut-out cookies and decorating them with silver balls at Christmas was also a highlight. She often came to look after us during the parent-teacher interviews in November and we would make them then. She would ice the cookies and we would painstakingly put the candy decorations on them. 

In Saskatoon she and Grandpa would take us out to Cheesetoast restaurant for lunch or to Robin's Donuts. She bought a book of punch-out houses that folded to make this incredible town. Later, I also remember going over to Grandma and Grandpa's house on King Crescent when she sewed my grade 8 grad dress to get it fitted. She always had several projects on the go. 

Another highlight was pressing poppies and violets with her from her garden and the days when she would come to our house for a day of verenike making. She taught me how to make home-made noodles and chicken soup, my all-time favourite dinner she prepared. When we went over for dinner, she would always make a chocolate pie for me because I didn't like fruit pies. 

In June, just 2.5 months ago, she gave my daughter Anika, age 3, an Easter balloon for her birthday. Although bought from a "garage sale" at the senior's home and out of season, that balloon never left Anika's side for at least 6 weeks. Grandma had an uncanny ability to know what would appeal! She always made it fun for her great-grandchildren to visit right until her final days, whether it was a fridge-front full of magnets in their assisted living apartment or choice dolls and musical stuffed animals rapping "Jingle Bells" in their room 3 weeks ago.

Her unconditional warmth, joy, enthusiasm and love were magic.”
“Thank you for the opportunity to share some of our memories of a wonderful Mom and Grandma who we loved very much.”

OBITUARY

Mary Gunther Klassen

9 April, 1926 – 13 September, 2011

Woodlawn Funeral Home

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