ECKER: Bertha Rose Ecker December 9, 1930 - August 10, 2012. The death of Mrs. Bertha Rose (nee Lange) Ecker occurred peacefully in her sleep at her residence in Marysburg, SK on Friday, August 10, 2012. Born to hard-working parents John & Olivia (Stauber) Lange, Bertha spent many hours doing farm chores and working with cattle and horses, chickens and pigs. She told stories of picking rocks and stooking bundles of grain, cleaning barns and hauling manure. Bertha enjoyed curling, 4-H, whistling, yodeling, playing guitar and singing harmony; in-fact, Arnold now owns the pew where she sat as a young member of St. Bernard's Choir. In her late teens, Bertha worked as a switchboard operator at the Egger home in exchange for material and thread rather than for a pay cheque. She had an amazing, creative talent when it came to sewing, and if she saw a dress in a catalogue or a store, she would sew a precise replica from her own pattern! Bertha loved to be dressed in stylish outfits with necklaces, rings, bracelets and broaches, and her hair had to be just "so" or she wasn't happy with the ensemble! She married Arnold in 1951, and they soon purchased a lot and built their home on 13th Street in Humboldt and then, in the summer of 1967, the family moved to a bigger house in Marysburg. Bertha was proud of the fact that she always got up with Arnold when he went to work; she made his coffee, breakfast, and packed his lunch every day. They joined a square dancing group for a few years, and she also enjoyed playing card games like solitaire and rummy. In the last 13 years, they tried to start new lives in a variety of places, but were happiest when they settled back into their home in Marysburg. In 2010, with declining health and mobility, and with the odds against her, she made a huge decision. She underwent an extremely risky procedure to fuse her ankle joints and lengthen her Achilles tendons because she was determined to dance with her Arnie on their Diamond Anniversary.and dance they did! She miraculously came through the surgery, learned to walk, AND waltzed with her love on their 60th Anniversary last year! Many of us were blessed to witness that miraculous event! In the last year, Arnold and Bertha made many miles in their new car; trips to Minnesota to visit Viola and Dick, to AB to visit Lisa and Scott and family in Bruderheim, and to Kathy and the 101 year old gentleman Louis that she cares for in the Bergen area, to Gerry and Camille's cabin, to Torquay to visit with their great grand-daughter Ayden, to Saskatoon and PA and all around the province. They spent many hours travelling to see family and friends. In the last weeks before she passed away, Arnold and Bertha drove up to PA for their great-niece Melissa's wedding; they also took in the Holy Mass at St. Laurent, and just five days before she passed, we have the beautiful and treasured memories and pictures of their celebration and dancing at their grand-daughter Chantelle's wedding in Saskatoon! The smiling picture with this write up was taken that night! "One" of the best ways to get a smile from her was to put a baby in her arms, especially a great-grand-baby, and everyone knows how much she loved to hug and hold the hands of her grandkids! In the last couple of years, the daily Rosary and devotion to the Blessed Mother got Bertha and Arnold through many surgeries, heart attacks and kidney failures. Bertha persisted in the last year to share her faith by handing out religious pamphlets, scapulars and details about the Pardon Crucifix. She lived 81 years, raised ten children: Shirley, Floyd, Bruce, Bob, Kathy, Darcy, Jim, Gerry, Lisa and Lyle; buried three of them, and dreamed of easier days with less work and stress, and more money and music. In years gone by, she spent many hours wish-list shopping from the Sears catalogue and making out phone orders that were never sent. She shopped at Value Village for shoes, dresses, jewellery and material; their home was a visible testimony to her many collections of hummingbird trinkets, wind chimes, religious statues, holy pictures and all kinds of silk flowers. The beautiful floral arrangement on her casket and the flowery ribbons on the pews were both lovingly created by her daughter-in-law Sandy from that very collection. She also loved her real plants and flowers because she enjoyed caring for them and watching them grow and bloom. Recently, she encouraged Arnie to plant some evergreen trees at the driveway entrance and was so pleased that all of them "took"! Bertha's life was never easy; she fought many battles and lived through many life lessons; some that she learned, some that she taught, and we're all grateful that many of those lessons "took" with each of us. The Service for Bertha was held at St. Augustine R.C. Church, Humboldt, on Wednesday, August 15, 2012, at 7:30 p.m., led by Jenny Irwin. Scripture readers were Chantelle (Dubé) Smith and Laura Diebert, and the eulogy was delivered by Jim Ecker. The Funeral Mass was offered at St. Augustine R.C. Church on Thursday, August 16, 2012, at 2:00 p.m., celebrated by Fr. Gregory Roth and con-celebrated by Fr. Bernard Stauber. Others taking part were: Irene Litwin and Ed Ecker, crossbearers; Matthew and Jason Struck, altar servers; Lisa Ecker and Valerie Wegman, scripture readers; Jordan Bergermann, intercessions; Abigail and Alexis Rice and Fiona Heneghan-Ecker, giftbearers; Harold Schmitz, communion minister; Anna Therres and Viola Maas, memorial table attendants. Music ministry was led by Kathleen (Ecker) Dubé and Lyle Ecker, and a send-off tribute was sung by Amanda and Kristen Dubé, and Chantelle (Dubé) Smith. Pallbearers were Bruce, Bob, Gerry, Lyle, Jim and Sandy Ecker. Interment followed at St. Bernard's R.C. Cemetery in the Pilger district.Bertha is survived by her husband Arnold, children: Bruce, Bob (Lori), Kathy, Jim (Sandy), Gerry (Camille), Lyle (Elizabeth), Lisa (Scott), a growing list of grandchildren/spouses and great grandchildren, her sisters: Catherine Fugger, Anna Therres, Donna Lee (Jordan) Bergermann, Helen Lavallee, her in-laws: Ed Ecker, Irene (Ecker) Litwin, and Harold Schmitz, numerous Aunts, Uncles, nieces, nephews, cousins, extended family members and many friends. Bertha is pre-deceased by three children: Shirley (Ecker) Hargreaves, Floyd and Darcy, her parents John and Olivia (Stauber) Lange, parental in-laws John and Susan (Fleischhacker) Ecker, siblings and their spouses: Adolph Lange/wife Bernardine, Marie Korte/husbands John Korte, Jim Dunn, Fred Jurgens, and her sister in-law Marion (Ecker) Schmitz, and by numerous Aunts, Uncles, nieces, nephews, cousins, extended family members, friends and beloved ancestors.. it's just, "bye for now"!
