April 11, 1928 - October 3, 2022
In the last few weeks our amazing Mom & Dad / Oma & Opa left this world.
Friede grew up in Oftersheim, Germany. From the moment she opened her eyes 94 years ago, she made the world a better place. Andy was born in the village of Budaors, Hungary where he lived with his family until they were forced out post WW2. He relocated to Germany in 1946, where he eventually met & married Friede. Together they would become the most legendary Oma & Opa the world ever knew.
In the summer of 1962 they made their forever home in Canada. They bought their small acreage at Hamm Rd where they raised their 2 daughters & Opa stayed to his very last moment. Oma spent her last years at Menno Home where she was loved by everyone and her care givers were amazing. They both worked as janitors for the Abbotsford school board with pride & dedication, many of those years at Peardonville Elementary where Opa rocked the ping pong tables! Oma retired first & in 1993 Opa retired to focus on his true calling of being our fearless leader.
Oma is survived by her 2 sons Wolf & Klaus & together they are survived by their daughters Johanna & Eva, 10 grandchildren & 8 great grandchildren.
Opa lived a life most of us can't fathom & had the most amazing stories, but to all of us he was a small but stern permanent fixture out in the yard or at the dining table. He was sharp & witty like no other. He once told one of the grand kids that he'd blackened his thumbnail by hitting it with a hammer. It took weeks to clue in that was impossible because he'd been short one arm since the Second World War.
Opa enjoyed playing cards with his friends, croquet & kicking around a soccer ball & he was king of the badminton court. He loved watching soccer, tennis & hockey. When we cheered that the Canucks might win the cup he would always say 'Not in your lifetime!' He was an avid Jeopardy fan, a history buff & followed politics & loved a sharp discussion. He could always be counted on to come out for a bonfire. He liked to keep his grass perfectly trimmed & he gardened up to his last years. As a great grandfather he lost his sternness & more often than not could be spied feeding the great grandkids jam by the spoonful & letting them add a tenth serving of whipped cream to their waffles. He was humble, no nonsense & brave & he lived by his convictions to the end.
Our Oma was generous & kind & cool, not just to her people but to all people. She loved people & made friends everywhere she went. To her grandkids friends she wasn't Mrs. Weber, she eventually just became Oma. She made everything a celebration, attended as many of our events as she could & was always ready for fun. We have memories of fresh baking after school, magic Christmases & trips back to Europe to visit family. Oma loved her garden & there was no such thing as too many flowers, both in the garden or in the house. She pulled out all the stops for her guests, whether they came from next door or across the world. She loved to shop & said one of the secrets to life was to bring in only one shopping bag from the car & leave the rest till your husband isn't looking! From her we learned if you love someone love them just as they are. And she loved us all incredibly, was gracious with us when we made mistakes & our biggest fans when we succeeded.
Together they took many road trips, whether to visit kids & grandkids or touring relatives from Germany around. When Opa was happiest at home, Oma would jump on the Greyhound & go, usually with a grandchild in tow. Oma & Opa enjoyed hosting their friends from the street for wine nights that often ended at 3:00am with lots of singing & wheelbarrow shuttles.
We are blessed to have had them with us all those years. In our hearts our family hoped they would live forever & would always be there like they had as far back as any of us could remember. They are so loved & will be missed from all our lives.