Darryl Lorne Freeden

Darryl Lorne Freeden was born in Saskatoon Saskatchewan on March 15, 1952 to Lorne and Marguerite Freeden. He spent his childhood in Dundurn Sk. His two brothers Wes and Warren followed closely after his birth and together they spent time at their grandparents Myrtle and Eric Prime. The Freeden grandparents (Earl and Zella) lived in the basement of the Freeden home. Darryl always had fond memories of time spent with his grandparents. Darryl told many stories about his time with his two brothers and as he was the oldest was relied upon to look after them and report any misdemeanors. One time when Wes and Warren decided to try smoking he didn’t report the incident to his mom and it was Darryl who received the reprimand. When Darryl’s brother Kevin was born the family was complete.

Darryl loved all sports and his grandfather and two uncles taught him to play ball. Darryl played so well he was asked to play on the Merchants Ball Team. He played short stop and had a fast arm that wasn’t always accurate. People learned not to park behind first base as they could end up with a broken windshield. Darryl also played hockey, football and curled with his brothers in many bonspiels as well as league curling. He could run like the wind and watching him torque around the bases was an awesome sight. Darryl played competitive fastball on a university team with his cousins Todd and Blair until he was 46.

Together the boys would roam the town and play with the neighbours children. Darryl had many interests including flying and invented a way to fly. He convinced a friend to try to use the apparatus he invented and jump off a roof. Thankfully no one was hurt.

Darryl’s dad bought a mixed farm in 1962. Darryl, Wes and Warren worked on the farm after school and on weekends. Darryl always enjoyed the hard work spending time tossing bales and herding cows with his family.

After high school Darryl worked at a plumbing & heating wholesale company. He met Lynn and they were married in November 1974. We lived on the farm in a mobile home for a few years moving to the Grove in 1980. Darryl continued to work on the farm helping take off the harvest in the fall and in the spring with the cattle. One year we had a German Shepherd pup (Dusty) who tried to help herd the cattle. He wasn’t helpful at all so Darryl put him in our new truck. When the day was over Darryl let Dusty out of the truck and discovered he had completely torn apart the dash of the truck.

Lynn loved cats and although Darryl wasn’t all that enthused they had several cats and kittens. One year a black and white cat came to visit. We thought someone had dropped him off and he visited off and on over the summer. In the fall he came and we realized his jaw was broken. Lynn took him to a vet and it was decided that a horse had kicked him. The vet wired the cat’s jaw together and he became our cat. We named him Yeller as he liked to talk a lot. He was with us for 16 years. He was friendly and good with whoever came to visit. When Yeller passed away we waited for about a year and then adopted two black and white kittens called Spitz and Spatz. Unfortunately they both passed early on and we decided not to adopt any more cats until our nephew found a ginger kitten that had fallen between two walls at the farm. He was only 5 weeks old and weighed 9 ounces. We named him Wally. He grew into a big cat weighing 16 pounds. He was Darryl’s buddy and would sit beside him or on his lap in the evenings.

Darryl built our home which we moved into in 1984. Darryl was always looking for ways to improve and the home had many innovative ideas incorporated into it including an elevator built especially when Lynn had both knees replaced.

After the house was completed Darryl started working on the yard. There were several maples with caragana bushes in amongst the trees. Darryl decided to chop out the caragana bushes and one morning went out to start chopping. The next thing he was in the house, grabbed his gun and went out with a determined look on his face. BOOM!!! Returning to the house he exclaimed “that’s one wasp nest that won’t be bothering me again." A wasp had stung him on his lip and he’d taken his gun and blown the wasp nest out of the tree.

We had a beautiful yard to enjoy and we spent many hours working and relaxing in it. Our nephews came and helped us with landscaping. We have two grass areas plus flower beds and a xeriscape area all surrounded by trees. Darryl built a gigantic pond with a waterfall behind it with water cascading into the pond. We purchased some goldfish and as the pond was deep enough the fish usually survived over winter. We thought about buying more expensive fish but when a heron came and fished out the goldfish we were glad we hadn’t bothered. The pond lasted for many years but when a muskrat came and tore up the liner we moved on to a big patio. Also garter snakes had moved in. Darryl was unhappy with this development and shot many of them.

Darryl’s love of family was his highest priorty and he and Lynn had many parties including several Boxing Day parties plus an Easter egg hunt and wiener roast on Good Friday. There were also barbecues and special occasion parties that included over 100 people. Darryl and Lynn hardly ever missed a birthday or anniversary. As the family expanded it kept them busy attending and joining in on all the fun. On one occasion Darryl and Lynn took their nephews to the Exhibition. Five nephews - Brenden, Cohen, Linden, Kaleb & Chad all dressed in western costumes and had a photo taken. It continues to be a cherished memory.

Darryl worked for a plumbing and heating wholesale company. He started with E & P which changed to Westburne and then Wolseley. Darryl was a salesman for many years and then moved into the office doing quotes.

We loved to travel going to Hawaii with my parents and having other friends and family join us. The first trip to Hawaii Darryl was homesick and couldn’t wait to get home to see his brothers.

The last 10 years Lynn worked out of town quite a lot and relied on Darryl to keep the yard and house looked after. She retired in 2004 and was looking out at the yard and asked Darryl why there were orange garbage bags at the back of the house. He replied that the shed was full. When asked why the shed was full he showed her bags full of pop bottles and cans. Darryl said he kept them so he could use the money for his retirement income. Lynn spent all summer taking them into Sarcan earning a whopping $1200.00. It was then her retirement income.

After Lynn retired a trip to Australia and New Zealand was planned. They flew to Sydney Australia and then Darryl drove from Sydney to north of Melbourne, to Brisbane and on to Cairns. Darryl was always a good driver and driving on the left side of the road didn’t take him long to figure out and feel comfortable. On our way to Cairns we stopped for the night at a motel by the ocean. We met and talked to a fellow who worked in the area and left our patio door open. When we retired for the night there were 2 geckos in the room in opposite sides of the ceiling. They chirped back and forth all night. Needless to say we had little sleep that night. Upon arriving in Cairns we requested a room on a top floor. We sat on our balcony which overlooked the hotel pool and watched the birds which turned out to be very large bats. Thankfully they didn’t get into our room.

We also enjoyed going on many cruises with family. On the first Caribbean cruise Darryl’s brother Warren, wife Linda, their three boys Cohen, Linden, Brenden and Ashley plus Lynn’s mom and a friend joined them. One of the highlights was getting a stretch Hummer limo to take them from Ft Lauderdale to Miami.

A cruise to Alaska with Uncle Glen and Aunt Shari was a fun time with Darryl’s boisterous laugh resounding throughout the ship.

A Mediterranean cruise starting in Barcelona and going to Italy, Turkey, Greece and Malta was spectacular. Another cruise starting from San Juan, Puerto Rico and going to many islands like St Kitts, St Martin, St Lucia and Barbados was enjoyed too. Warren, Linda, Cohen & Brianne plus Grant Catt and Grant Souter joined us on this cruise.

Also a repositioning cruise starting in Quebec City and down the eastern seaboard of the USA finishing in Ft Lauderdale, Florida. Our friends Arline & Greg joined us on this cruise.

We were able to use our time share in Kenya and decided that we would go to Egypt as well. Seeing the pyramids and the Sphinx was something we both had on our bucket list. We then flew to Luxor and floated down the Nile stopping at a different ruin every day. Back in Cairo we flew to Mombasa, Kenya to a resort and from there went on safari seeing many animals in their own habitat. Cheetahs, elephants, hippos, zebras, dicdics, wart hogs, and giraffes just to name a few.

Touring China was unbelievable. We saw all of the east coast cities and were treated very well by the Chinese people. The tour guides were informative and helpful. In every city two or three guides would join us to tell us about their city and introduce us to different customs and food.

Going to England, Scotland and Northern Ireland was so much fun with Warren and Linda. We visited a cousin in England and were able to tour London and Stonehenge. We went to see the cousin and had to drive through Nottingham both ways. We went up and back twice and got lost every time. Warren drove and Darryl was navigator eating nuts most of the time we travelled.

Our last trip to Hawaii we decided to take a cruise around the islands and had Warren, Linda, Grant Catt, Grant Souter and his mom Barb Souter join us. We were also able to see a friend Caesar who lives in Hawaii. Hawaii is beautiful place to see and we’ve enjoyed the 7 times we’ve been there.

There were others joining us on different trips. Roland and Lorraine Tamke plus Glen & Shari have been there with us as well.

We also travelled extensively in Canada visiting the Maritimes and Newfoundland. We’ve visited all of the other provinces including the Northwest Territories.

Back home there was always many activities both with family and sports. Lynn & Darryl bowled a few years with Lynn’s parents and in later years both played on a slow pitch team.

Darryl enjoyed hockey, ball, and curling. Darryl curled with his brothers going to bonspiels and they were also in a weekly league. He was also an avid golfer playing at the Shields golf course most mornings in the summer. He also played at some Saskatoon courses and has 3 hole in one trophies.

Darryl loved planes and took lessons and was able to buy a Cessna which he flew for a few years.

He also greatly enjoyed singing with his three brothers and together they would entertain family and friends at gatherings. He had a powerful voice and could fill the parts of both tenor and bass. There were many evenings that we sat around a fire and listened to them singing and sometimes joined along.

When cousins came to visit from England Darryl tried to imitate a phrase “going down to the pub”. He never got it quite right but said the phrase louder and louder. Many Dundurn residents said they could here him throughout the town.

They also sang at several community events and had 2 CD’s out called Green As Grass and The Best We Could Do. The group was named Bald Prairie.

Lynn loved to knit and crochet and on Tuesdays and Thursdays she and Darryl would go to a Restaurant/Bar named Somewhere Else. They both had lunch and then Lynn would stay with the knitting group while Darryl went next door to golf at YXE Simulated Golf. Darryl laughed and talked with the knitting ladies and they decided that he was their mascot.

Darryl had a strong voice and a booming laugh and he could be heard enjoying a joke from a great distance.

He was a friendly, happy man and will be missed by all of his family and friends.

There will be a celebration of life luncheon at The Circle H Ranch on July 16, 2026 at 2:00 pm.