Friesen, Susanna Dick (1907-2002)

"Mennonite Brethren Herald" obituary: 2003 Feb 7 p. 20

Birth date: 1907 Oct 31

text of obituary:

SUSANNA DICK FRIESEN

Susanna Dick Friesen passed away Dec. 12. She was born Oct. 31 1907 to Peter Dueck and Justina Klassen in Schoenfeld, Schoenfeld Colony, Ukraine. In 1910 the family moved to an estate near Besheran, Crimea. Her mother died in 1911. Her father married Katharina Rempel in 1912. They moved to Tsche-Tsche, Crimea in 1915 and to Gnadenfeld, Molotschna in 1918. She accepted Jesus during revival meetings, was baptized at 17 and joined the MB church. They immigrated to Waterloo, Ont. in fall 1925. For the next 2 years she milked cows and did housework on the Hallman farm , separated from her family. She met Jacob Friesen at George St. Mennonite Church youth activities. They married Oct. 5, 1929 and lived in Waterloo until 1932. Jacob then found work at E.D. Smith in Winona, Ont. for 2 years. When Peter Wall offered land to Mennonites near Virgil, Ont. in 1935, they chose 10 acres. They worked hard on this farm and became charter members of Virgil MB Church. She taught Sunday school, first nursery moms and then, for almost 40 years, preschoolers. After Jacob died in 1965, she moved to the retirement home they had built in Virgil. Here she hosted many visitors. In 1986 she moved to Pleasant Manor, where she participated in singing groups, sewed quilts for MCC and visited other residents. She was a faithful prayer partner for her family and missionaries. She was a prolific letter writer and kept a personal journal from her teens until mid-1999. She is remembered as cheerful, gentle and energetic. She is mourned by children Hedwig Enns of Sanford, Fla., Henry of Penticton, B.C., Lou of St Catharines, Ont., Ernie of Virgil, Margaret Borne of Kelowna, B.C., Bert of Winnipeg and Edith Block of Saskatoon; 31 grandchildren; 69 great-grandchildren; 1 great-great-grandchild; and 1 sister. The memorial service was Dec. 16 in Cornerstone Community Church, Virgil, with Victor Loewen and George Wichert ministering.