Schmidt, Hedwig Ratzlaff (1922-2007)

"Mennonite Brethren Herald" obituary: 2008 Feb p. 30

Birth date: 1922 Nov 27

text of obituary:

HEDWIG SCHMIDT

Hedwig Schmidt died Nov. 14, 2007. She was born Nov. 27, 1942 to Franz and Anna Rqtzlaff in Deutsch Wymyschle, Poland. Hedy accepted Jesus as Saviour at 11, and was baptized in 1938. A nature lover with an inquisitive mind, she worked on the family farm, and later attended agricultural school, eventually supervising farm labour for a Polish family. In 1945, Hedy's family evacuated, her father later killed by German soldiers. They fled to an MCC camp in Gronau, West Germany, where she rekindled a friendship with Arnold Schmidt. They were married in 1949 in Linden, Alta., settling in Richmond B.C., where, they attended Culloden MB Church and showed great hospitality. She read many books and wrote articles for the Mennonitische Rundschau, and was described as a "deep thinker" with a strong faith in God. In 1976 she beat a strain of fast-spreading cancer. Predeceased by Arnold in 2005, 2 brothers, 3 sisters; she is mourned by daughter Ann Kroeker; 2 grandchildren; 3 great-grandchildren; 1 sister. The memorial service was Nov. 20 at Culloden MB Church.