Marie Anna “Mary” Giesbrecht (Voth)

Added at request of member # 48847489

Obituary from The Messenger of Truth Issue 4, 2002:

Mary Anna (Marie) Giesbrecht was born to Tobias and Julia Unruh Voth on April 4, 1913, at Coy, Oklahoma. She passed away on January 15, 2002, at the Brooksville Assisted Living Home at Brooksville, Mississippi.

At the age of four, she moved with her family by covered wagon to Durham, Kansas. The family spent the winter there and then moved by train to Montezuma, Kansas. She was converted at Montezuma and baptized on December 23, 1926, by Min. John A. Koehn. She was faithful to her vows, and although she had faults and failings, she was always ready to confess them.

On August 25, 1929, Mother married Gerhard (George) Giesbrecht, a widower with five children, at Montezuma, Kansas. Thirteen children were born to this union. This marriage also made her sister's five children Mother's own. She said accepting this responsibility was a decision she never regretted. The willingness with which she accepted the care of her sister's children, the impartiality she showed her large family, and the dedication she gave to being a wife and mother will be an enduring inspiration to us. She was a practical, unpretentious woman. "Modesty, simplicity, and economy" defined her walk of life.

In 1968, our parents moved to Brooksville, Mississippi, and enjoyed their retirement years. Dad passed away in 1980, and left Mother in loneliness, which she bore without complaint. She was a widow for nearly twenty-two years, most of which were spent in the home of her daughter Phoebe. She and the family always appreciated the loving care she received in Phoebe's home.

Several months ago Mother's age and weakening condition made it necessary to consider professional care. She was admitted to the new Brooksville Assisted Living Home. Mother knew "my days are numbered." She expressed her resignation to this fact and left a clear testimony that she was ready to meet the Lord.

Many friends and family members feel the pain of her passing: eleven sons: Alvin and wife Betty, Louisville, Georgia; Milton and wife Madesta, Clarksdale, Mississippi; Tobias and wife Elda, Montezuma, Kansas; Benjamin and wife Pauline, Leland, Mississippi; Arnold and wife Ormah, Dumas, Arkansas; William and wife Betty, Tweedside, Jamaica; John and wife Emily, Rogue River, Oregon; Jerry and wife Carol, Dumas, Arkansas; Ronald and wife Saundra, Colorado Springs, Colorado; Stanley and wife Jane, Brooksville, Mississippi; and Douglas and wife Yvonne, Brooksville, Mississippi.

Six daughters: Edna and husband Clarence Schneider, Ithaca, Michigan; Margaret and husband Leo Classen, Macon, Mississippi; Bonnie and husband Dennis Decker, Dumas, Arkansas; Mary Alice and husband Kenneth Dirks, Copeland, Kansas; Anna and husband Vincent Berend, Grants, New Mexico; and Phoebe Giesbrecht, Brooksville, Mississippi.

There are sixty-two grandchildren, one hundred fifty great-grandchildren, and fifty great-great-grandchildren. She was preceded in death by her husband, one infant son, one son-in-law, four grandchildren, one great-grandson, all of her brothers and sisters, and all of her brothers- and sisters-in-law.

Funeral services were held at the Brooksville Congregation, Brooksville, Mississippi, on January 18, 2002. Min. Galen Schmidt, Min. Don Seiler, and Min. Verle Giesbrecht officiated. Burial was in the South Haven Mennonite Church cemetery, Macon, Mississippi.

Used with permission.

• Reference: Find A Grave Memorial - SmartCopy: Jan 9 2021, 15:47:07 UTC