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Wiebe, Cornelius W. (1893-1999)
Mennonite Weekly Review biography: 1943 Nov 4 p. 2
Birth date: 1893
text of biography:
COUNTRY DOCTOR
Winkler's number one citizen is Dr. Cornelius W. Wiebe who stared his medical practice in Winkler in 1926 and during most of the years since has been the community's only doctor. Born near Altona in the village of Weidenfeld, he attended school at the Mennonite Educational Institute at Altona and at the Mennonite Collegiate Istitute [sic] in Gretna. Before going to medical School at the University of Manitoba he taught school for a number of years in the local schools. He married Helen Gruening of Lowe Farm. The Wiebe's have four children: Leonard, in Toronto, Verna, Thelma, and Howard at home.
Dr. Wiebe is one of those rare professional men in the small community with vision, public spirit and unselfish devotion to the promotion of the common good. He is doing excellent work in lifting the health standards of the Winkler community through his efforts to co-operated with all public health programs and to launch hygienic and sanitation programs of his own. Besides his professional work, he is actively interested in raising the economic level of the under privileged. He is actively supporting the local co-operative organizations and is president of the newly formed Mennonite Agricultural Advisory ?Committee, an organization of public spirited citizens in the Western Reserve to promote local economic interests, look after the problems of drafted Mennonite young men and in a general way preserve and enrich rural living in Mennoite [sic] communities.
Wiebe served one four year term in the Provincial Legislature of Manitoba but refused to run a second time due to the pressure of his professional duties as a doctor. in commenting on this experience Wiebe quoted the words of another man which he said expressed his own feelings namely, that "it took only a short time to discover that political machinery is pretty greasy."
The quiet demeanor, the unselfish devotion to the public good, the generous spending of himself for his patients make Dr. C. W. Wiebe a much loved and highly respeted man, not only in his own community of Winkler but in wide areas throughout Southern Manitoba. Winkler can justly be proud of this number one citizen.
Note: A death notice is located at Canadian Mennonite 1999 Jul 26 p. 29 and Aug 16 p. 38
