Obituary of Rose Alexandra Baydock

Rose Alexandra Baydock (nee Rozecki) Peacefully, surrounded by her family, Rose Baydock, age 88, passed away on August 22, 2011 at Golden West Centennial Lodge. Rose was born at her family’s Malonton homestead on January 10, 1923 to parents Alex Rozecki and Anne Kuzma. She was the oldest of four children and after attending Striy School she helped her parents with farm work for a year. She then became the first in her family to receive her grade 12 diploma from Teulon Collegiate. After attending Normal School in Winnipeg, she began her teaching career and positively touched the lives of hundreds of students throughout her life. Rose taught in a number of country schools before she met a fellow teacher, John Baydock in Poplarfield. They were married on August 7, 1948 in Winnipeg and continued to teach in rural Manitoba until they ventured out to Bella Bella, British Columbia for two years of teaching and adventuring. They relocated to Manitoba to start a family and Rose continued to teach and care for her eldest two children, Roger and Donna. With the arrival of Terry and Alice, she chose to be a full-time homemaker for awhile. On the day Alice started kindergarten, Rose went back to teaching full-time at St. Charles Elementary. She taught grade two for the rest of her teaching career as she felt it was the most important year to make sure her students had a good foundation in reading and writing. In 1959, Rose and John bought a piece of farmland around Seech Lake in western Manitoba. Over the years they developed the property into a resort where family and friends were always welcome. They celebrated strong ties to their Ukrainian heritage and rural upbringing. After all her children and husband achieved a university degree, Rose decided it was her turn and at the age of 60 while she was still working full-time she earned her Bachelor’s degree from the University of Manitoba. She was an inspiration to her children and those students that were lucky enough to have been taught by her. Rose and John loved to travel and see the world and they took their children and encouraged their extended family to join them in their adventures. Rose was a member of the Retired Women’s School Teachers and served with the Women’s Auxillary at St. Mary’s Ukrainian Orthodox parish. Rose was predeceased by her husband John in 1992 and is survived by her sister Mary (late Cyril) Nelson from Lethbridge, brother John (Ann) Rozecki from Gimli and brother Bill (Gladys) from Surrey, BC. She will be sadly missed by her children Roger from Jasper, daughter Donna from Courtenay, BC, son Terry and wife Kathy from Winnipeg and daughter Alice and husband Darin Keewatin from Edmonton. She will also be missed by her beloved grandchildren Cameron, Michael, Russell, Steenan, Akaiyan, Annika, Tyanna, Joel and Samantha and many nieces, nephews and extended family members. A Celebration of Life will be held on Friday, August 26th at 6:00pm at Cropo Funeral Chapel, 1442 Main Street. An Interment service will be officiated by Reverend Father Alexander Harkavyi at Chapel Lawn Memorial Gardens at 4000 Portage Avenue on Saturday, August 27th at 10:00am. In lieu of flowers, donations can be made in Rose’s memory to CNIB or to the St. James Scholarship Foundation, c/o St. James School board office, 2574 Portage Avenue, Winnipeg, Manitoba, R3J 0H8.