Erwin Peter Pipke

Erwin was born on a farm near Stony Plain on March 30th, 1932. He was baptized on April 1st, 1932 at St. Matthew Lutheran Church in Stony Plain. He grew up on the farm in Stony Plain until his mid-teens. Erwin left high school to pursue employment in Edmonton. He worked at Loveseth’s and Morris Fairbanks in Edmonton. This is when he met, and then married, Joyce on December 30th, 1954. He volunteered at the High Park community league for eight years and worked at Northwest Industries for thirteen years. He started as an office boy and worked his way up to Production Planner. He worked at Northwest Industries until 1967.

During this time, Erwin and Joyce raised four boys. Erwin also worked part time jobs to earn extra money. He worked at the Tivoli Ballroom, sold fruit at a fruit stand, did shingling, and also cut and removed trees for a housing developer. Erwin bought his first house in Jasper Place. Over the next few years, he renovated this house. He purchased a new house in High Park Community in Edmonton and rented out the first house. Somehow he managed to build a custom tent trailer that he used to take the family camping. It was at this time he sold both houses and bought the farm in Lamont.

While farming in Lamont, Erwin worked at Swifts Canada as a Production Incentive director for two and a half years. He also worked numerous other jobs as a laborer at the Lamont Rec Centre and the County Building. He drove truck in Redwater, and built houses. He worked for the ERCB as an inspector for five years. Erwin farmed in Lamont for nine years, and then sold the farm and moved to the Drayton Valley area in 1977. Here he bought and ran his own grader for two years. He then started a job with West Parkland Gas and moved again back to an acreage near Stony Plain. Erwin stayed there until 1982 at which time he purchased the farm at Rocky Rapids. He lived there with Joyce until she passed away in September of 2001. He stayed on the farm until September of 2002 when his new house at Lilly Lake Estates near Spruce grove was completed.

Erwin met Muriel Lambert in 2010 and was her companion for nine years until she passed away in May 2019. He continued living at Sheppard’s Care in Edmonton until he moved into Copper Sky Community Centre in Spruce Grove in September of 2023. He made lots of friends with the staff there.

At 4:20 am, December 1st, 2023, passed away peacefully, saying to the nurse that he was going to meet Joyce. Erwin was survived by his four sons and their families: Rick and Elaine, Wayne and Debra, Keith and Kathy, Randy and Dana; eight grandchildren, fifteen great-grandchildren. He was also survived by his brother, Emil and his wife, Doris.

We ask that any donations be made to the St John’s Lutheran Church Beach Corner, with “Cemetery Perpetual Care Trust” in the RE line.

A visitation for Erwin will be held Saturday, December 16, 2023 from 12:00 PM to 1:00 PM at St. Johns Lutheran Church, 1533 Parkland Drive, Parkland County, Alberta T7Y 2T6. A Funeral Service will be held from 1:00 PM to 2:00 PM. And a Committal Service will take place from 2:00 PM to 2:30 PM at St. Johns Lutheran Cemetery.