Minna Leicht

Minna was born on June 28, 1930, in Gnadenfeld, Ukraine, the fourth of five children born to Karl and Lydia Fried (Bujer). The family lived a simple, but happy farming life until the evacuation of ethnic Germans from the Black Sea region of Ukraine to Germany in 1944. The trek from Ukraine would change Minna’s life forever. In the turmoil and chaos of WWII, she was separated from her entire family, and this would be the last time that she would ever see her Mother. It’s unimaginable what this 14-year-old girl would have experienced and endured. She spent the next five years working on farms in Poland, focusing solely on survival and dreaming of reuniting with her family. Her strong faith, which she often accredited to her Grandmother, saw her through many hardships.

In 1949, Minna reunited with her Father, and her brother Edgar in 1950. It was within the first year of arriving in Germany that she met Gottlieb Leicht. Minna and Gottlieb were married on September 3, 1950, in a double wedding with her brother and his bride, Ida Abel.

In 1953, Gottlieb and Minna were sponsored to work on a southern Alberta sugar beet farm, which gave them the opportunity to immigrate to Canada. They both worked hard, and after coming to Calgary, Minna spent some time working at the YWCA and in a bakery so that they could build their new home in Calgary. Minna and Gottlieb’s only child, Linda, was a newborn when they moved into their home in Highwood; and that home was Minna’s pride and joy until her passing. Every corner of Minna’s house and yard were always immaculate. It was her sanctuary, her place of peace for 66 years.

A lasting sadness struck Minna and Gottlieb in 2004 with the passing of Linda at the young age of 47. Minna then had to face being alone when Gottlieb passed away in 2007. Until her siblings Melina, Nelly, and Edgar predeceased her, they and her niece and nephew Ingrid and Earl and their families were her support in Calgary, along with her sister Agathe Seiler and her niece and nephew Elvira and Albert from Germany. Minna’s lifelong friend and neighbour, Alvina Sailer, offered her help and assistance throughout Minna’s life.

A Funeral Service for Minna Leicht will be held at FOSTER’S GARDEN CHAPEL, 3220-4th Street, NW, Calgary (Across from Queen’s Park Cemetery), on Saturday, January 7, 2023, at 2:00 pm with Pastor Markus Zeuch from St. Matthew Lutheran Church officiating. Interment will take place immediately after the service at Queen’s Park Cemetery.

The family wishes to express their heartfelt thanks for the care provided Minna in her last few weeks at the Peter Lougheed Centre and at Dulcina Hospice.

In lieu of flowers, memorial donations may be sent directly to: Alberta Cancer Foundation www.albertacancer.ca or you may choose a charity of your choice.

Those wishing to attend virtually may do be using the link below in our service section.