Obituary of RUDY SERKES

RUDOLPH "RUDY" SERKES

It is with sadness that we announce the passing of Rudy Serkes, after a brief hospital stay, at the age of 89.

He leaves to mourn his wife of 66 years, Pearl, daughter Cindy (Doug), son Rob (Cor), daughter-in-law Kim, grandchildren Travis (Leslie), Curtis (Cianna), Sam and Kaitlyn, and great-grandchildren Lawson and Casey.

He was predeceased by his sons Terry and Randy, whom he missed dearly, especially when it came to operating his cell phone.

Rudy was born in Winnipeg on August 3, 1936, and spent his childhood years in the north end doing many things his mother did not know about, like playing hockey on the frozen river when he was supposed to be at the community club outdoor rink.

He excelled at school, and in 1958 graduated second in his class with a Bachelor of Mechanical Engineering from the University of Manitoba.

He married his high school sweetheart, Pearl, on February 28, 1959.  After short stays in Calgary and Ottawa they settled in Pinawa, where they raised 4 children.  He worked for AECL in Pinawa until his retirement.  Dad was very involved in many of our activities including figure skating, hockey and Boy Scouts.  He spent many hours at the rink for early morning practices, learning how to sharpen skates because nobody could do it better, travelling to many rinks and towns to play hockey or attend skating competitions, and becoming an accountant to tabulate competition results which was quite a job before computers.

In 1977, our family moved to Winnipeg, and in 1992 (upon retirement) a cottage was purchased near Grand Beach.  Many enjoyable summers were spent there.  Garage sales, dinners and get togethers with their neighbours Joyce and John were treasured.

He enjoyed Manitoba Theatre Centre season tickets for several years, and going out for breakfast and dinner (or maybe it was Pearl that liked going out but he was happy to indulge her).

He actively followed his grandsons’ curling careers (albeit he did threaten to wear a paper bag over his head if things were not going well and did in fact do so once in Stonewall).

He was very proud of his children and grandchildren and quite amazed with his great-grandchildren.

The last few years were challenging health wise, but with the help of home care (thanks to Olga) and his in-home “nurse” (mom) he was able to stay at home.

In lieu of flowers please consider a donation to Winnipeg Pet Rescue Shelter, 2727 Portage Ave, Wpg MB R3J 0R2.