Mrs. Louise McIntyre Shelvey

Louise was the firstborn in our family of 5 children and I am the middle child. Our Granny was a midwife so we were all born in her home in the little village of Sidney, Manitoba. We lived in a small house that Dad had built directly across from the Sidney school we all attended. Louise was a very responsible girl and a big help for Mom. The huge, tree-lined and fenced yard was a wonderful place for four little girls and one boy to play. Louise had a great imagination and, being the eldest, she led us into many adventures....during the summers, there were playhouses and forts built, there were 'pretend' stores & shops, post office and train station (depicting the main street in Sidney). The swings and the teeter-totters in the schoolyard were popular, but we were allowed to go across the road to the schoolyard only if Louise took us by the hand and stayed with us. At only age 8 or 9, Louise demonstrated much patience with us. There were many big oak trees around the perimeter of our yard. To Louise, one oak tree in particular looked like the perfect one for a tire swing. Louise dug into her piggy bank and produced 90 cents to buy the heavy rope required and Dad brought home a big used tire to complete the job. Louise was always very generous and loved to give. Ninety cents was a lot of money in 1948. It was a real gift to her little sisters.

When Louise was very young (7 or 8 yrs of age), she took a great interest in the old pump organ at our granny's house. Louise was thrilled when the organ was eventually moved to our house. Mom taught her a few notes from sheet music and a hymn book. Louise had also been fascinated by the piano in our little church and loved Sunday School and church from a very early age. I am told she would play for hours whenever she had access to a piano. Although there was very little money in our home for any extras, Mom and Dad decided to send Louise(about 9 or 10 yrs of age) for music lessons. She took approximately one year of piano from a teacher in MacGregor (about 20 miles away). Every Friday afternoon, Louise and her cousin rode the Greyhound Bus to MacGregor for their lesson. Because of her love of music, and the time she spent on a piano stool, Louise began playing for the church services at age 10 or so. When she was 12 years of age, our family moved to Brandon. We were soon involved in Bethel Temple Church. Louise's talent was soon recognized. She was asked to play regularly for the gospel radio broadcasts of Living Waters with Lydia Williams. A few years later she was playing piano for two more recorded church radio programs (Alliance Chapel and eventually for The Gospel Half Hour with Bethel Temple). Louise also played the accordion in the Bethel Temple orchestra. For many years, she regularly played piano and organ for church services. She played for citywide Youth For Christ and other traveling crusades as well as accompanying guest singing groups at Bethel and other churches.

It was 1953 when Louise began teaching her 3 sisters to sing in a quartet with her. We were 8, 10 and 12 yrs of age and Louise was 15. Every Saturday, after our household chores were done, Louise would call us together and teach us how to read the notes for our parts, pounding out our separate notes till we got it right!!. After a year, Louise taught us to sing as a trio. We sang regularly on two radio broadcasts, in church services and for other church functions for many years until some of us married and scattered. Going back to the mid 1950's, the orchestra at Bethel Temple was a growing compliment to the worship services. My other two sisters and our brother showed a keen interest in the musical instruments. Louise picked up on this and regularly coached and accompanied Stella on the trumpet and the saxophone; Rosemary quickly learned to play the piano and organ by ear (later reading notes), and Dale, at age 8 or 9, chose the drums and later played the baritone. Unfortunately, I was Louise's one musical instrument failure.

Louise and Percy married in 1958 and lived on the Shelvey farm 10 miles north of Brandon. This was a new experience for this city girl. I am told that Louise would sometimes help Percy in the barn at milking time. With the size of the herd of dairy cows, the Shelveys were up to speed with modern technology by this time and were using 'milking machines'. So I understand Louise didn't actually milk a cow, but she did get to wash down a few cows' udders. I am impressed!!

On April 13, 1963, Laurel was born.......a perfect 25th birthday gift to Louise. She embraced motherhood with passion. She loved it so much that she and Percy were blessed with the arrival of two more children .....Todd came along in November, 1965 and Tim arrived in May, 1970. Louise was a great Mom and would spend many hours playing with her children teaching life lessons, giving them new experiences and instilling in them respect and kindness for others. Louise and Percy regularly took the children to Sunday School and church. At age 31 and with two preschoolers at home, Louise studied piano (evenings) at Brandon University for a year and a half....acquiring her Grade 7 and 8 piano and theory. After Tim was born, Louise began teaching piano students in their home after school four days a week. She kept Wednesday open because that was the day "Lassie" was on television. Todd needed to sit on his Mom's lap because the story was often very sad.

While the children were young and attending elementary school, Louise took a 'piano tuning' course by correspondence. She passed with flying colors, received her diploma, purchased the necessary equipment and carried her kit to many rural locations...a career she enjoyed for a number of years. At one time, she completely overhauled an old piano for a client. There were parts spread out all across the room. She did manage to complete the task with no parts left over!!

Louise continued to serve musically in Bethel Temple and later in the new Calvary Temple in Brandon. When Louise and Percy and children moved to Calgary in 1976, they soon found themselves here at Beddington Church. I know they have contributed greatly to the life of this church. Their musical gifts and their generous volunteer work over the years have been a blessing to many. I know Louise will be missed by her many friends here.

Louise has always loved flowers and gardening. She regularly grew a big garden on the farm in Manitoba...including raspberries, various vegetables and many flowers.... one of her favourites being the hollyhock. I have always been in awe of Louise's creative spirit. She loved to entertain in their home.... serving meals for friends and family followed by playing games and visiting. Besides her music, her home-making skills and gardening, Louise loved to sew. Hand made gifts from her sewing room were treasures to receive. After grandchildren came into their lives, Louise was like a little elf during the weeks leading up to Christmas.....busy sewing flannelette pajamas for her grandsons, Kyler and Keenan, and flannelette nighties for Hayley and Elissa. Christmas was the most exciting & joyous time of the year for Louise, mostly because she could show her love in so many tangible ways by creating gifts, shopping for presents, baking Christmas goodies with the grandkids, trimming the tree together, attending school concerts, participating in church concerts, entertaining family and friends, playing games and especially stuffing stockings Christmas Eve!! In recent years, Louise was working, intermittently, on a memory book for each of their children, Laurel, Todd and Tim. During November and December of last year, Louise worked especially hard and completed those booklets in time for Christmas, 2009.

Louise has always loved to shop....And she was a very good shopper!! She had an eye for spotting signs that read 80% or 90% off the last ticket price. She would sometimes buy gifts (for no one in particular) and tuck them away in boxes, in drawers, in closets, etc. until just the right person or occasion came to mind. Louise's "habit" really forced Percy to always drive a van! On our winter visit with Percy and Louise in Phoenix a couple of years ago, Louise showed me a number of her purchases....mostly beautiful new baby clothes for the shelves at NeighborLink in Calgary where she volunteered countless hours. Louise and I have always had great fun shopping together. How I will miss the stops for coffee, snacks and giggles that went along with shopping!!

Louise and Percy have felt very blessed to have all of their children living in Calgary. They are very proud of their children and thank God for the love, support and attention that Laurel, Todd and Tim have shown throughout this past year. Louise told me recently how proud she is of her daughter-in-law, Mandi. She told me Mandi is a wonderful cook and could make entertaining in their lovely home look effortless. Louise was comforted to have Mandi, a very competent nurse, often accompany her and Percy to medical appointments, to chemo sessions, and to meetings with the oncologists and surgeons. During Louise's last weeks in hospital, we have very much appreciated Mandi's popping in often to see Louise and to see that her care was 'on track' and that she was comfortable.

Louise also had a special relationship with her son-in-law, Charles. Through his work connections in the food and entertainment industry, Charles has introduced Louise and Percy to some unique dining experiences and cultural events. Charles dubbed his mother-in-law "Lady Louise" many years ago and has truly treated her as a lady.....except maybe for some sparring with her during card games which they both love so much.

During the last few weeks, we, as family, took turns sitting by Louise's bedside. It gave each of us opportunities to visit "one on one" with her. We were able to share how much we have meant to each other, talk about old times, laugh together, and it gave her an opportunity to give little bits of advice.....such as "You are exhausted - Relax", "This is so hard on everyone", "Someday we will all have a good laugh about this!". One evening as my husband and I were about to leave, Dennis asked Louise if there was something we could specifically pray for. Her quick response was, "to keep my family safe".

My sister, Stella, and I are Louise's only surviving siblings. Stella and her husband, who live near Brandon, Mb., are very sorry they could not have been here to see Louise recently or to attend her service. Stella is in poor health and unable to travel. Their youngest daughter, Christie, lives here in Calgary. A few days before Louise passed away, Christie visited Aunt Louise for a few minutes. Thoughtfully, Christie dialed her mom in Brandon and held the phone for Louise & Stella to say goodbye. Stella has been very helpful the last day or two in jogging my memory & contributing to some of the memories of the earlier years of Louise's life.

Louise kept a diary beginning 10 months ago when she was first diagnosed with cancer until she was too weak to write anymore on March 4. Her diary included, among other notes, a daily record of cards received, phone calls, visits, flowers, meals & baking. The family is so appreciative for the thoughtfulness, caring and love shown to Louise and Percy throughout her illness. Most of all, we want to thank everyone who has prayed that, as the disease progressed, Louise would feel no pain. Your prayers were definitely answered.

Throughout her illness, Louise's incredible courage, strength, positive attitude and her trust in God have been truly remarkable, an inspiration and encouragement to her family and to all of us. Louise, we love you and will miss you always.

Lovingly remembered,

Hazel

Tribute to Mom, by her daughter, Laurel

My Mom was special to many people. She was first-born daughter, big sister, beloved wife of 51 years, sister-in-law, daughter-in-law, aunt, cousin, Mom, Mother-in-law, Grandma, not to mention Grandma to many children outside her immediate family, piano teacher, faithful friend, best friend, role model, mentor, a woman of prayer, and had more positive influence and impact on others than she ever realized.

Mom was always proper and beautiful. I was recently told by Dad's cousin, Diane, that she was invited to Mom and Dad’s wedding when she was just 10. She was very excited as girls that age were not usually invited to weddings. As a young girl, she thought that Mom looked like a beautiful princess in her dress and always aspired to be like her someday when she got married. Mom loved flowers, dresses, handbags, hats, scarves…and was well coordinated and stylish all the time. She always knew what style and color of clothes to wear and which shoes best coordinated with the outfits. She did her best to teach us kids to coordinate appropriately. Dad could probably talk for awhile about the number of shoes and outfits he had to make space for in the closets!

She always said the right things, and how they were said. My grammar was corrected frequently as I was growing up. She instilled honesty in we kids, no room for white lies or misleading information. Our consciences are fine tuned!

She was proud of her family, her work and her church, and all of these areas of her life received her dedication to being the best she could be for them.

God gave Mom the gift of musical talent! She was an accomplished pianist and organist. You heard her piano playing when you arrived here this afternoon and have heard my Aunt Hazel speak of her talent starting as a young girl. She even played the accordion, although not as much and I’ll never understand how she knew where to put her fingers on that instrument, there were so many buttons and the keyboard was out of sight.

She also was good at decorating and re-decorating, nothing ever got out of date looking. She enjoyed painting furniture, whether it varnish, color or folk paint. In her retirement years she learned how to paint pictures with watercolors. She also quite enjoyed doing that in the little spare time she allowed herself among all the other things she kept busy with. She was gifted with many talents and they were appreciated as much by those around her than by herself. She had an eye for beauty…inside and out.

When we kids were growing up we lived on the family farm in Manitoba. Mom always had new clothes for us, sewn with love and expertise. She took sewing lessons in Brandon, including Stretch'n'Sew which I seem to remember the most. She made our family all kinds of clothes, including a suit for Dad, and bathing suits and winter coats for my brothers and I.

Mom earned extra income for our family. She took a correspondence course and learned how to tune pianos. I remember a piano she picked up from somewhere that was painted with wall paint and it was a wreck inside and out. She stripped the paint off and refinished the wood, replaced pretty much everything inside …new strings, hammers, keys. How many of us would attempt that project? She also traveled the country around the area tuning pianos. Using her musical talent she also taught piano lessons. After school for 2 or 3 days each week, extra kids would come home with us on the bus for piano lessons with Mom. We’d play with them around the farm until it was their turn for their lesson and then their parents would pick them up. Mom entrusted us with the duty of keeping them busy and out of trouble.

Mom love to shop, wow! When we were kids we always had great gifts for birthdays and Christmas times. Mom would shop all year and stash them in the attic. She would meet with her girlfriends and sit in the Red Grill in the Brandon Woolco. They'd wait for the announcements of 10 minute specials. They’d grab their carts and dash over as quick as possible to be the first to the sale tables. She’d come home with things she spent no more than 10 to 25 cents on, such as pj’s for my brothers, shirts for Dad, shoes for herself, craft sets for me. She could make a dollar stretch further than anyone. I really don’t think Dad minded her zeal for shopping considering how little she spent to get so much. Later, once she and Dad retired they vacationed several winters in Phoenix. There she could do much the same thing, finding amazing sales and would stock up on gifts for the entire year. And still she always selected everything with care and thought for the intended recipient. Dad would have that van packed solid to the ceiling when they arrived home in the spring, not even a mouse could slip through.

She enjoyed capturing moments on camera and has lots of special photos documenting special occasions and vacations. She enjoyed scrapbooking all her photos and also could do any craft or sewing project with ease. It was just part of her creative talent. My nieces and I have enjoyed many hours with her doing crafts or baking.

This past Christmas Mom blessed my brothers and I with a memory book for each of us. Each book contains her stories and memories of each of us when we were growing up, along with photos with her. Such a treasure for us. Many hours, love and thoughtfulness she put into each one, knowing that she was leaving us her own remembrances of us as keepsakes.

She was a homemaker, in every sense of the word. She enjoyed decorating every room in her house, gardening, canning, cooking, baking, cleaning… even managing the finances – all were done with love for her family. And with everything, she was always well organized.

She worked a full-time job in Brandon after graduating high school and for the first few years of marriage. Once moving to Calgary in 1975 she worked at the University of Calgary in the Purchasing Department from 1976 to retirement in 1996. She started as a clerk typist. With strong work ethic, skills, knowledge and eagerness to learn, she retired as the Assistant Manager. I started working in the same department as her in 1981 and the boss always said that he wouldn’t know we were mother and daughter until we got in the car to go home. I got to know Mom as my supervisor and saw how well she performed that role in the workplace. She treated people with respect and she received their respect. No one would even swear around her! Mom and I not only shared the same workplace but the same birthday. So you can imagine how much time we spent together. We were close and she was not only my Mom but my best friend. Those who still work at the University, those she hired, those she supervised and worked alongside, thought highly of her and still often ask about her . Several attended her funeral and the flags at the University were at half mast.

She was a ‘snowbird’: she loved to travel south to Arizona and California with Dad every winter. Shopping for deals, sightseeing, visiting, and of course playing games, all brought her much joy.

She was a fighter: she went through two surgeries and ten rounds of chemotherapy just because her family wasn’t ready to give her up. This is truly putting others before herself.

She was a Christian: she loved Jesus Christ more than any thing or any one in this world. She served Him and His church with her whole heart and for her whole life. She’s at home with Him now in her mansion.

She was a volunteer: more recently with ESL and NeighborLink…who benefited from her servant’s heart. She felt rewarded by the lives she touched.

There is so much more that I could say, and that my brothers could.

I'll miss you Mom!

Love,

Laurel

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SHELVEY, Louise

April 13, 1938 – April 1, 2010

After a courageous battle with cancer, Louise Shelvey passed away on Thursday, April 1, 2010. Louise will be lovingly remembered by her husband Percy; daughter Laurel (Charles) Cheltenham; sons Todd (Amanda) Shelvey and Tim Shelvey; grandchildren Keenan Cheltenham and Kyler, Hayley and Elissa Shelvey; sisters Stella (Jerry) Paterson and Hazel (Dennis) Sirett; mother-in-law Eva Shelvey and numerous relatives and friends. Those wishing to pay their respects did so at a visitation held at FOSTER’S GARDEN CHAPEL, 3220 – 4 Street N.W., Calgary (across from Queen’s Park Cemetery) on Tuesday, April 6 from 7:00-9:00p.m. A Memorial Service was held at Beddington Pentecostal Church, 16 Bermuda Drive N.W., Calgary on Wednesday, April 7 at 3:00 p.m. In lieu of flowers, Louise suggested that donations be made in her memory to World Vision (1 World Drive, Mississauga, Ontario, L5T 2Y4) or Samaritan’s Purse (20 Hopewell Way, Calgary, Alberta, T3J 5H5). Friends and Family are invited to write memories and tributes at www.fostersgardenchapel.ca.

FOSTER'S GARDEN CHAPEL

FUNERAL HOME AND CREMATORIUM

Telephone: 403-297-0888

Honoured Provider of Dignity Memorial