Obituary of Doris Radke

Doris Evelyn Radke of Camrose, formerly of the Donalda district, passed away on Sunday, May 15, 2016 at the age of 88 years. Mother was the first of six children born to Knut and Hanny Collin. This very Swedish family farmed in the Norbo District, northeast of Donalda. Mother was baptised and confirmed in the Lutheran Church, and she had a life long commitment to her Christian faith. She had a deep love for her family, for her community and for Bethany Lutheran Church, and in her last years she often asked us about Bethany. Following grade school at Norbo and several years of correspondence lessons, she and her brother Robert went to Camrose Lutheran College to complete high school. In 1948, after completing teacher training at the university, her first one room school was at Big Timber. This school was located east of Bashaw, and it was here that she met her future husband Norman. Dad had been away working, and the teacherage with the new teacher was located on his parent's farm. The story is that he had gone for a load of hay with the team and sleigh, and who should appear in the middle of the road but our blond haired mother, who was out for a walk. What to do? It was a narrow tree lined road, and he graciously offered her a ride on the hayrack. This led to a romance, and they were married at Bethany on June 30th, 1952. In 1954 mom and dad moved from their rented farm at Big Timber to the Hoffman farm in the Norbo district, and this was to be their home until their move to Camrose in 2008. That final move was made with much hesitation, and mother's heart always remained with their home community, the life long friends that had lived there, and the church that they had attended. Mother was a woman with many interests. Her greatest passion was working in her flower garden, which grew larger as the children left home and the vegetable garden became smaller. She enjoyed being a homemaker and decorating the house, and her children remember the smell of fresh baked bread as they came home from school. Making quilts and fine needlework were winter activities. Mother loved to sing and she accompanied herself on the guitar, as she sang at church services and special occasions. Mother kept extensive journals, beginning in about 1940, that detailed the activities and milestones of her family, of her community and church, and sometimes of provincial and national affairs. Mother liked to write poetry and she liked to write music, and it gave her much pleasure when Susan Dahl recorded a CD that contained some of her music. Mother was very interested in her Swedish roots and the family remaining in Sweden, and in later years spent much time organizing the accumulated history that our grandparents had gathered. In recent years mother struggled with short term memory loss, which was a great frustration for her. We are thankful that she always knew and remembered the people that she held most dear. Mother leaves a rich legacy of Christian love and devotion that her family will always treasure. She is survived by her husband Norman, her children Dwayne (Lorraine) of Bittern Lake, Melody (Dave) Brager of Camrose, Wendy (Bruce) Enarson of Camrose, Gloria Potter of Knaresborough, England, Mark (Jane Isakson) of Whitehorse; as well as seven grandchildren and four great grandchildren. She is also survived by her sister Florence Johnson, her brother in law Gene Jones, her sister in law Anna Collin, her sister in law and brother in law Doris and Roy Malmo, as well as many nieces and nephews and a large extended family. We give thanks for her memory, and a life that was well lived. A funeral service was held on Tuesday, May 24, 2016 at 1:00 pm from Bethany Lutheran Church, Donalda, AB with Rev. Garfield Vikse officiating. Interment has taken place in the Bethany Cemetery. Memorial contributions are gratefully accepted to the Bethany Lutheran Church.