When Dick got home this evening from work he received a phone message from Regina General Hospital that Uncle Arthur was in serious condition. While we were having supper Bud phoned Birns and told us that Uncle had died.
January 12: When I got through my work I drove to Lipton calling in at the San on the way where Dick told me that Mr. Ellis could hold the funeral either Thursday or Friday. When I called at Buds he wasn't home from Regina. He had to go to sign a release before the hospital would let Uncle Arthur go.
I then called at Walton's to see about the grave plot. Then to Mrs. Goff to see if she had any suggestions as to pall bearers. We were expecting Bud to call in on his way home but he never showed up. As we had been up late the night before we went to bed fairly early. Hannah (undertaker) phoned up Birns and they got Dick out of bed to provide the necessary information so he could put a death notice in the Leader.
January 13: Dick phoned Bud from work and found out that he couldn't start his car when he got back to the Fort last night and had to get a ride home. Bill Lindsey let me off work at 8:30 and I went home, started the car and drove down to Lerat's home in the Fort. He wasn't ready, told me to come back in an hour so I went home, kept the fire going and went back for him about 10:30. We drove to Lipton and he stopped at the hotel for lunch while I called at Bud's where Mary told me that Bud had got a ride back to the Fort to get his car.
I went to the municipal office and Walton told me where we could dig. I picked up Lerat and we drove out to the cemetery. We had to shovel some snow at the entrance where the snow had drifted. I made a couple of rounds with the car and Lerat started digging about 11:45 and I went home to dinner.
Tough times, in more ways than one.
ReplyDeleteI'm just imagining how difficult it was to dig a grave in our frozen ground. In January our frost zone is measured in feet, not inches. The grave digger really earned his pay on this job.
Deletefrom Moira (Nevard)
ReplyDeleteI was eight years old when Grandpa died. I have very vivid memories of what I had lost. He was an extremely special person to me. We took the bus into Regina several times to visit at the Centre. When Grandpa came to visit us in Lipton it was so great. Grandpa lived with us for the first few years in Lipton. I would have been one when we had to leave the farm.
I remember worrying so much about Grandpa lying in that cold, frozen ground and I did not want him there.