Anna May Litchfield

Anna leaves to mourn her 3 children, Terry (Laurie), Ron (Elsa) and Nancy (Jake DeBruyn); 19 grandchildren; and 27 great grandchildren. Predeceased by her beloved husband of 64 years Orv, son, Glenn and daughter in law, Barb Litchfield.

Anna was born in Larne, Ireland and when she was 18 months old, her family immigrated to Canada and settled in Brantford, ON.

In 1946, after the war, Anna married Orv. Later in 1958, they moved to Chilliwack with their 4 children.

Anna worked as a receptionist for Dr. Dubois for 20 years. After retiring she was content to spend time with her husband and took great delight in her grandchildren and many great grandchildren. Her family was her life.

A service was held on Saturday, November 30, 2013 in the Chapel of Henderson’s Funeral Home with Major Angus Haggarty officiating. Interment took place in Chilliwack Cemetery.

The family wishes to express our appreciation to Dr. Kishi, Anna’s faithful physician of 30 years. Also to Dr. Markey who looked after mom in the 6 months she was in hospital and who’s behavior reflected the true meaning of a ‘ physician’; approachable, showing empathy and on who takes the time to communicate honestly. To the compassionate nurses on 5 South, 4 South, 3 North and later in the Bradley Centre, Thank you, you became Mom’s friends. Your kindness will always be remembered.

Anna requested An Irish Blessing

May the road rise up to meet you,

May the wind be always at your back.

May the sun shine warm upon your face

and the rains fall soft upon your fields.

and until we meet again,

May God hold you in the palm of his hand.

Grandma was one of the most incredible women we have ever met! The love she had for her grandchldren was endless! As little girls grandma used to take us shopping every summer for one day! That day swa spent with grandma pulling us all over town and spoiling us with all kinds of goodies! We will never forget wathing her bounce all the bouncy balls in the container to find the onces that bounced the highest!. Grandma would not be grandma with out her love of buying us undies except she alwasy bought us exra large no matter how many times we told her we weren't that big! She the proceeded to tell us thats "its ok, they don't fit me so i figured i would give them to you guys!" Over the last year grandma has taught us so much. She has shown us what compassion, patience and love is all about! One of the things we will remember is the bond between our mom and gramdma! The love grandma had for our mom will be a difficult one to compete with! Grandma was her happiest with mom at her side. No matter how sick she was grandma could alwasy sense when mom was with her and when she left the room! Although grandma is gone, we are thankful because we have see that many of the things we admired in our grandma, we now still have in our mother.

We would like to thank our mom for giving us this past year of extra momemts with our grandma.

When I think of my mother from now on, many special thoughts will come to mind :

* Ireland Mom was proud of her Irish ancestry, as I am. Unfortunately she never made it back to her homeland, as my wife Laurie and I did a few years ago - and we saw many little ladies who reminded us of Mom. Fortunately for all of us, Mom did not have that famous Irish temper though, that was saved for my Dad and I.

* Hard Work Mom worked for many years with Dad in his many woodworking enterprises. She would get up early every morning, send us four kids off to school with our lunches, and then start her work day. She would go to the shop with Dad in the morning and work all day, then come home to make dinner for all of us, then clean up the house and get us all off to bed - and the next day she would start all over again. Later when Dad opened up his sporting goods and trophy shop business downtown, Mom took a job in Doctor Dubois office. She was actually a secretary receptionist, but to most of the patients she was like a nurse - dispensing medical advice at will.

* Penmanship Mom was a beautiful writer, having won penmanship honours when she was in school. You could always tell a letter from Mom before you even opened it up, just from the lovely handwriting. Mom was a sharp lady too, and had done very well in school - it was Mom who always helped us with our homework, never Dad - smart as he was in other ways.

* Antihistamines Mom swallowed an antihistamine every day for most of her life. I'm sure everyone here will always remember her constantly clearing her throat, and talking about her allergies or a cold coming on. And if she ever did get a cold, look out !! She would start throwing back pills right, left, and center. Obviously it didn't do her much harm though, as she lived to the ripe old age of 89 years and 11 months.

* Excellent Hearing If you didn't want Mom to know about something, you had better whisper, because she had exceptional hearing. You never knew what she had picked up until she responded to you out of the blue.

* Babies Mom loved babies, and especially when they were in her own family. She always talked about the newest family arrivals, and could remember the names and birthdays of all her grandchildren and great grandchildren ( which number over 40 last count ).

* Sports Fan Mom loved her Vancouver Canucks and Toronto Blue Jays, regardless of their usual dismal losing seasons. And over the many years that my Dad coached and ran junior hockey clubs, she was always there to support him and his teams. She also remembered all the players names, much better than Dad did.

* Unconditional Love Both my brother Ron and I left home very early, at 17 years old, so we never really got to watch our younger brother Glenn and sister Nancy grow up through their teen years. However Mom and Dad's home became a loving place for us to bring our families, and to enjoy our parents as friends. Mom was always very encouraging and supportive to all of us when we were growing up - she was never judgmental or mean. And Mom was truly an understanding and forgiving person - after all, she stayed with Dad through all those years, through thick and thin, and through many family moves and numerous ups and down is his various businesses.

Mom, you were loved and will be missed by all of us, everyday.

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