Donald "Don" Ralph Nakoneshny

It is with profound sadness that we announce the passing of our beloved father, grandfather, great-grandfather, companion and friend, Donald, who passed away peacefully, surrounded by his family, after a courageous battle with cancer. Dad was born in June 1937 to Mike and Anne Nakoneshny. Don grew up in Lanigan, Saskatchewan. He married Rita Bergerman in 1959 and together, they raised two daughters, Yvonne (Les) and Jeanne, and three sons, Reginald (Kerri), Robert (Jody) and Russell (Lynn). In the family, there are also twelve grandchildren and two great grandchildren.

Don's career as an educator began as a teacher in several country schools, later in Humboldt and Vanscoy. As his career progressed, he became assistant superintendent of education with Saskatoon West School Division. In his retirement, he continued working with special needs clients at Cosmopolitan Industries as a special needs care giver. He always spoke of the many treasured moments and wonderful people he worked with in the service of educating.

Don enjoyed everything polka, especially playing his accordion with his brothers-in-law around many a family campfire, singing all the old-time favorites. Christmas holidays always meant a great kaiser match with his Dad, sons-in-law and family that would usually last into the early morning hours.

His passion was his family. It would be difficult to talk about Dad without mentioning how he loved spending time with his family. As a teacher, he looked forward to summer holidays including many trips to British Columbia, summer weddings and visiting relatives. One of his most memorable adventures was taking his family to Disneyland. He also enjoyed many an ice cream cone at Waskesiu with his sweetheart, Rita.

Don was very proud of his children and loved to celebrate their accomplishments. He made a point of calling each of his sons on Father’s Day to commend them on being great examples to their families. Dad initiated many family traditions. The completion of a year of post-secondary exams had to be rewarded by a banana split at Dairy Queen. Also, his thermos of “garden coffee” accompanied us on a day of picking peas at the enormous garden our family kept at the homestead in Lanigan, Saskatchewan.

Don loved his grandchildren. He made it a priority to attend piano recitals, soccer, baseball and hockey games, dance recitals, and Christmas concerts, to name a few. He loved to find out what was important in his grandchildren’s lives. He made it a priority to help every family member catch their first fish during fishing outings to Montreal Lake, even if it involved a short trip to the clinic to remove fishhooks from fingers.

Don’s life was grounded in his Catholic faith, each night praying the rosary with the family after dinner. He was active in the Knights of Columbus and recruited many new members to the council. He received his 25-year participation pin. Don and family were original parishioners of St Anne’s Church in the formative years when the congregation met in the school for weekly mass. He was extremely proud to witness this faith and pass it on to the next generations. Don’s priority was to be as formative as he could possibly be, for each member of his family.

Vigil of Prayer will be held at 7:30 p.m. on Tuesday, July 18, 2023. Mass of Christian Burial will be celebrated at 10:30 a.m. on Wednesday, July 19, 2023. Both services will be held at St. Anne’s Catholic Church (217 Lenore Drive, Saskatoon).

In lieu of flower donations in Don’s memory may be made to St. Paul’s Palliative Care C/O St. Paul’s Foundation (1702 - 20th Street West, Saskatoon, SK S7M 0Z9).

For those unable to attend please visit https://saintannes.ca/saint-annes-parish-online to view the service.

Arrangements entrusted at Aimé Laventure.