Edah Katherine Melnicker

Edah Melniker was a strong, tough and compassionate woman who led a difficult life, as much as possible, on her own terms, and frequently shared her wisdom, accumulated during that difficult life, with us, her friends and family, whether we needed it and sought it, or not. She cared passionately, and sometimes stubbornly, about her friends and family, and was cared for and about, in turn, by us.

She was a single parent, before that phrase was coined, raising her son Barry under very challenging circumstances. During this time, she worked at two jobs to provide for herself and her son. When Barry was grown, and launching his career in the military, she created a new life in Palm Springs; a Canadian in the California desert, which she loved.

She was a hard working person, and had only a very few employers during her working life in accounting and office management. Wherever she worked, she formed warm ties with her employers and co-workers. I remember, from my childhood, hearing her stories and advice gleaned from the work place and her experiences in it. She once told me that she was never an attractive woman. It is true that the Wodlinger women tend to acquire more dignity than beauty as we age. Edah certainly had great dignity for most of her life. However from an early photo of her, which we found in her home, she was “a looker” when she was young. We also found a clipping from the war years, of a story about a young Edah Wodlinger, accompanied by a photo of a flashing eyed, dark haired attractive young woman in the uniform of the Canadian Woman’s Army: while in service, she went to some event to cheer up our troops, only to discover that she had got the date wrong and was the only woman, with 500 men at a stag! The clipping went on to say that they invited her to stay and talk and dance with them. She had a great time. So did they.

I think that story exemplified my Aunt Edah’s heads up and confident way of facing life’s little and big challenges.

Since 1987, when she was the victim of a dreadful traffic accident, she has coped with many health problems and much pain. She never whined and complained. She always tried to be positive about her current condition and her future, even while being frightened for her own prospects. She showed amazing resilience in bouncing back from one serious health crisis after another, as well as life’s other set-backs.

She raised a fine son - Barry - and was very proud of her grand-daughter Sarah who’s photographs we found tucked away in many places throughout her home.

She was an important figure in my life, especially over the past 12 years and in the lives of many other people, some of whom are gathered here today or who joined her for her very gala 75th birthday just 10 short weeks ago. We are a small family. I know my brother Michael, and my cousins Bayla and Harold and their children loved her and appreciated the great effort she made to join in family milestone events, even recently, when traveling became a greater challenge for her.

Edah - thank you for everything. I hope your legacy lives on in each of us, in the way we manage our lives, especially its adversities. You will continue to live for a long time in our memories.

The above were my remarks at Aunt Edah's funeral, which came just ten weeks after her 75th birthday in Palm Springs California.

Karen Harrison Dyck