Gertrude "Trudy" Violet Brown

Trudy was born in 1930 in Castor, Alberta. Her parents had immigrated to the area in the twenties, Pauline Weger from Poland and Jacob Falkenberg from Bessarabia. Pauline and Jacob farmed and ranched in the Castor area after they married in 1927. They had come from Europe after the First World War ended and there was extended family who also moved here with them and some even lived with them.

Mom was the middle of three sisters, Polly was the eldest and Edna the youngest, and her uncle and cousins also lived there at times. I remember Mom saying that my grandmother took care of 2 of mom’s grandmothers in their old age upstairs in the small farmhouse. Mom mentioned how her dad built a waterwheel for their garden, a necessity in those days. Her father passed in his mid-fifties and Pauline, or Grandma Falky as many called her, moved the girls into the Town of Castor. Our grandma grew a market garden and she and her girls did domestic work for Doctor Cousineau and others in the community. Mom and Dad made many trips to Castor and I remember summers spent hanging out with the cousins who lived in the area, from both sides of the family.

Trudy valued education very highly. When she started school in one of the small country schools in the area, she spoke mostly German. She did well in school and decided that she would like to be a teacher. She pursued that goal, in spite of the pressure at that time to focus on being a homemaker, wife and mother, the typical expectations of the time. In Castor, she met Russell Brown in high school. Just recently, Dad recalled how they were partners in the high school graduation exercises. She went on to Normal School in Edmonton. The school had become part of the Faculty of Education in 1945 and classes were held in Corbett Hall. Dad says that he almost let her get away during that time. She did some teaching in the Castor area for a few years, and then they began to date and plans were made to marry in 1957 and move to Calgary.

In the next chapter of life, and there are many chapters to celebrate over nine decades, Russ and Trudy bought their home in northwest Calgary. Highwood was a new neighbourhood on the edge of the city and they joined the new Lutheran church there and attended as long as Mom was able. I came along in 1958 and mom taught for one more year as Auntie Edna did the babysitting. When Warren arrived four years later, Mom became a full-time homemaker. Doug arrived four years after him and we were the best loved and cared for family around. The house is still full of cookbooks and gardening magazines. She sewed our clothes and made sure we got music and swimming lessons. She and Dad went to many piano recitals, band and choir concerts and hockey games. We enjoyed family vacations and camping trips and frequent visits from cousins and extended family. She wasn’t a big fan of camping - but she did it for us! Mom was very devoted to family; it should be mentioned that she brought her mom to live with us when she could no longer live alone and Grandma Falky brought a bright spark of energy to us. I remember Grandma loving the fights in the hockey games, the Stampede wrestling matches and playing Saturday night Bingo on TV.

Mom and Dad celebrated their 25th anniversary in 1982 in their huge backyard in full July splendor. The first grandchild was there, Ruth, and the other was present but did not make her appearance until October. Mom doted on Ruth and Krista, and Pete and Dawn were grateful for her willingness to babysit. Krista remembers that Grandma showed her love through food. She always knew what everyone’s favorite food was, like always making chicken for Ruth at Christmas or Thanksgiving because she didn’t like ham.

You’ll notice the lovely picture of Mom. That was taken when Dad retired early and they went on a trip of a lifetime for them to Europe and Scotland with Edna and her husband. In 1988, Warren and Joanne married and another set of grandchildren came along in ‘92 and ‘94, Sean and Katelyn. Into every life must fall some troubles, and so it was when Doug developed a serious mental illness in 1992. Mom and Dad learned everything they could about the illness and supported Doug in his steady progress on completing his university degree. Around 2010, mom and dad helped Sean out by having him stay with them for 2 years while he finished university. Sean recalls:

"I remember always trying to do her dishes. Grandma was pretty stubborn about that. Only if she was really tired would she let me do them on my own. She let me dry most of the time.

I helped build the shelf in the kitchen with her. She did a lot of measuring and planning for that and let me put it together. (Uncle Peter helped too.) Grandma and Grandpa liked to play solitaire a lot. We would do crosswords together in the morning." Sean was extremely helpful to his grandparents.

To conclude, I’ll draw you a picture of the last 3 years of Mom’s life. She began to fail in February 2018, greatly weakened by congestive heart failure and staying home as much as possible, getting around with the trusty 2 wheel walker. She did not want to be a burden to others, as her style was to always take care of others, but reluctantly, she let us and home care aides take care of things more and more. Mom and Dad celebrated their 63rd wedding anniversary this summer and because of COVID-19 the party was outside. Doug took pictures of the inflatable dinosaur and flamingo that attended, aka Ruth and Krista. These were posted on the kitchen wall and Mom smiled to see them every day. We were a devoted family team. Dad brought her treats every chance he could, chocolate pudding and hot chocolate; Doug was ready to go and shop for groceries and occasionally a roast beef dinner at mom’s request; Warren and Dawn teamed up to visit regularly and take the folks to the doctor and generally keep the ship afloat; Joanne and Pete, our respective mates took care of us as caregivers; and the grandchildren visited, Mom was always delighted to see them. Katelyn, who inherited Mom’s penchant for plants, planted a flower garden which the aides from All About Seniors regularly harvested and put on the kitchen table.

Mom kept her sense of humour right up to the end. We had to wear PPE to visit her at Peter Lougheed Centre in October. Watching Dad put on the mask, she noted that he really could use another set of ears because he had his glasses and hearing aids looped over his ears too. In our yellow gowns, we were called bumblebees and one day I was a yellow bird.

I could go on, but to sum up, Mom was love in action, her values: family, education, loyalty and faith. I’ll close with a poem picked out by Krista:

In Memory of a Dear Grandma

It’s always sad but comforting to recall your smile and dear familiar face so loved by one and all,

The world will keep turning and changing, but precious memories of you will never fade away,

And here’s hoping this message that carries so much love will somehow find its way to you in heaven up above,

It’s to let you know, dear Grandma that although you are at rest you will live forever in the hearts of those who loved you best.

* * * * * * * * * *

Trudy passed away peacefully, surrounded by family, at the Peter Lougheed Hospital on Wednesday, October 21, 2020 at the age of 89 years. She was born in Castor, Alberta and was predeceased by her mother, Pauline (Weger) Falkenberg of Poland and Jacob Falkenberg of Bessarabia. The family farmed northeast of Castor in the Rosetta school district. Trudy, her mother, sisters Edna and Polly moved into the town of Castor when her father passed away at the age of 55 years.

They tended a market garden and did domestic work in town. Trudy met her husband of 63 years, Russell Brown, in high school. She taught for a number of years after training at the Normal School in Edmonton. Trudy taught for one year after the birth of their first daughter while Edna babysat. A loving wife and mother, she created a home for her family with a beautiful garden.

Trudy is lovingly remembered by her husband Russ; daughter Dawn Hansen (Peter); sons Warren Brown (Joanne) and Doug Brown; as well as grandchildren Ruth, Krista, Sean and Katelyn. She is also survived by her sisters Edna Schultz and Pauline Baird and numerous nephews and nieces. The family wishes to thank the Conservative Kidney Clinic, AHS Homecare and All About Seniors Aides who helped grant Trudy her dearest wish in the last 3 years, to be at home; as well as EMS and all medical staff at Foothills Medical and Peter Lougheed Centres.

In lieu of flowers, donations may be made to the Alberta Heart and Stroke Foundation.

All arrangements made through Foster’s Garden Chapel Funeral Home and Crematorium