Obituary of VIOLET YABLECKI

VIOLET YABLECKI (NEE PUZNIAK) 1927 - 2016 Violet Yablecki peacefully passed away in her sleep on Sunday, December 4, 2016, at the age of 89. Wasylyna (Violet) was born on March 29, 1927 in Winnipeg, MB. She was the oldest of the four children of Michael and Sophia Puzniak. After attending St. John's High School, Violet’s curiosity and sense of adventure led her to accept a clerical position with the Norway House residential school in northern Manitoba. It was there that she met Edward Yablecki, a Transair flight engineer who soon thereafter became her husband for the next 63 years. Shortly after the birth of their first son (Glenn), Ed and Vi decided to relocate to a more domestic lifestyle in Fort William, Ontario, where two more sons (Paul and Dave) were added to their family. In 1960 a new job opportunity took the family back to their roots and relatives in Winnipeg, where daughter Lorraine was later born. Hard work, at several concurrent jobs, allowed Vi and Ed to raise their family and purchase a cottage at Winnipeg Beach. The cottage was a wonderful gift for the entire family, where Ed would build, and Vi was constantly creating something new in the kitchen for her ever ravenous clan. Vi's curiosity and never ending need to experience new things meant that you were never sure what new recipe she would serve, or what new piece of music or activity she would select for entertainment. This lifelong curiosity and need to try as many different things as possible was only exceeded by her devotion to her family. To the very end she never lost track of who had been affected by any malady or injury, with greatest concern that it might again threaten one of the family. Both she and Ed made many sacrifices over the years to ensure that all of their children were healthy, happy and were given every opportunity that they could have only wished for, when they were younger. As the years went by and her nest started to empty Vi set out on a new adventure, which coincidentally involved taking care of others. At the age of 46 she went back to school, and later graduated as a Licensed Practical Nurse. Vi first worked as a personal care nurse, and later on as an occupational safety & health nurse at Bristol Aero Space until she retired. By that time Vi and Ed had been promoted by the rest of the family to the titles of "Baba & Gigi". Baba & Gigi occasionally hit the road for few years after Ed retired, travelling through North America and Europe. Baba continued to pursue her curiosities, meeting different people, eating this, drinking that, and sometimes returning with little oddities that were not exactly legal for import. They reveled in spoiling their grandchildren, overindulging their kid's pets and spending more time at their cottage in Winnipeg Beach. Violet was predeceased by her husband and lifelong companion, Edward in 2014. She is survived by her brothers Ed and Joe; sister Jenny; sons, Glenn (Noreen), Paul (Sheree) and David; daughter Lorraine (Greg); grandchildren, Jessica, Katie, Eva, Georgia and several nieces and nephews. The family greatly appreciates the care and affection that Vi received from all of the staff while she was a resident at the Deer Lodge Centre. In accordance with her last wishes, an intimate celebration of Vi’s life was held with her immediate family prior to this publication.