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The following Eulogy was prepared by Grethe's eldest son Kurt and was
recited at her funeral service on October 01, 2005:
We are here on this beautiful autumn morning both to mourn the passing and to
celebrate the life of Grethe McKenna. We mourn because she is no longer with
us, and we will miss her very much. At the same time we celebrate her life. A
life that taught us so much by the way she lived and the example she set.
She was adventurous soul, and she loved to travel with her father on
his boat. She would tell us about trips that took her to Sweden, Denmark, and
other parts of Norway. As an adult she traveled from Norway to England, where
she got married and Ken was born. Later she moved back to Norway, where Ann
was born. A few years later she decided she wanted a better life for us, so
we packed up and came to Canada. I can only imagine the kind of courage it
takes to pack up and move with.3 small children to a strange country with no
family or friends to help you.
From the very beginning she worked hard to take care of her family. Her first
job in Canada was at the Cineplex Odeon theater on Bloor Street. Occasionally
she would get us passes so we could come and watch the movies when she was
working. I can still remember watching Ben Hur and Moses with Ken and Ann. I
can also recall her first day at at another job shortly after we moved to West
Hill. The work involved welding, and at the end of her first day she had been
tired and anxious to get home to see how we were doing, so she had hopped
straight on the bus. When she got home and looked in the mirror she let out a
scream. When you are welding you wear goggles, and when you take the goggles
off you have two big white circles around your eyes, and a dark face from the
welding fumes. She was so upset she had been riding on a bus like that.
She loved good company and good fun. At home she would have a big dinner at
Easter, Thanksgiving, and Christmas, where she would cook for over a dozen
people. I never realized how much work that was until Nicki and I did it, but
somehow she made it look easy and enjoyable. During the time we had a trailer
at Kashe we would sit around the fire at night and talk. At times several of
the other families camping there would come over and join us, and mom would be
there, making coffee and tea, passing out cookies, cake, and sandwiches, and
generally making sure everyone was having a good time. Even on her last day,
in the hospital, she managed to have a good laugh. When one of the nurses came
in to see how she was doing, the nurse pointed to Ann and asked mom if she knew
who she was. In her typical 'snappy answer to silly question' mom replied 'why
don't you ask her, she's standing right there?'.
She was a considerate and loving mother. I will always have fond memories of
the fish and chip dinners on most Fridays, and the big turkey dinners at
Easter, Thanksgiving, and Christmas. She made sure we enjoyed the holiday
celebrations. She also made sure we had whatever we needed, whether it was for
school, or summer camp, or any other reason.
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