Obituary of BEVERLY MARILYN THIESSEN

BEVERLY MARILYN THIESSEN (nee Brown), age 86, died on June 11^th, at Bethania Personal Care Home, her residence for the past 7 years. A celebration of life service will be held at NKMB Church, 1513 Gateway Road, Winnipeg at 1:30 pm on July 4, 2023.

Bev was born in Morden, Manitoba. After finishing high school, she graduated as an LPN from a Winnipeg college and began her nursing career.  She married Henry (Harry) Thiessen on April 21, 1956. They had 3 children, Sherry (Ken), Patricia-Lynne (Marv), James (Susie), 11 grandchildren and a growing brood of great grandchildren. She also opened her arms and heart for many foster children.  Until her retirement, due to a long-term disability, Bev faithfully worked first as a nurse and then in administration at Bethania PCH for more than 20 years. 

Bev was predeceased by her husband Harry, foster son Richard and many unborn children who will have welcomed her with loving arms on her arrival to her eternal home. 

Mom loved her family and was always willing to open her heart and their home to those that needed a place to stay.  When Grandma Brown needed a place recuperate after surgery, she was there.   Family in need, come on over.   Over the years there were also many foster children that she lovingly brought into their home and nurtured until her health started to fail.

Mom loved to travel and was always planning their next trip.   Between atlases and CAA Trip Tiks,  there was always something new to discover.  If she heard of anyone thinking about travelling, she would invite them over and share all her knowledge.   You could not leave until you had a stack of trip tiks and notes about where to go and the best hidden gems along your way.   U – turns never stopped them, they would see a sign and if they thought it was interesting, they would turn around and explore.   Not always a lot of fun if you were trying to follow them.

Mom and dad were always coming by to visit and more than willing to lend a helping hand.  Whether it meant babysitting, checking out whatever project you had on the go or just because, you never knew when they might stop by to say ‘hi’.   You might not even see them but when you went outside to see your flower beds weeded or yard work done, you knew they had stopped by.  Even when you were off camping, there was a good chance that they might stop by for coffee with fresh baking in hand.   They would drive for hours to see what spot you had chosen for camping, or to see if the campground had changed since the last time they had been there or just to visit.

Bev loved to invite family and friends over for special meals, like Thanksgiving, Christmas and Father’s Day. The house would be spotless and the table set as if the Queen was coming.  Once Bev was retired and slowing down, the beautiful table setting might even be in place a few days before the actual meal.

The latter years were not kind to mom.  A decades long struggle to cope with lupus and then   Lewy Body Dementia that was diagnosed in 2015, meant a slow and arduous decline in both her physical and mental health.   But she still loved to reminisce about their holidays and so many memories, many that would spark her lovely laugh and joy to come to her face. She also loved to follow up on what all the grandchildren were up to.

We would like to say thanks to all the staff at Bethania Personal Care home with special thanks to Victor, Cherrise , Wanda and Margaret.

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