Dirks, Nicholas Peter (1897-1978)

Mennonite Brethren Herald obituary: 1978 Nov 24 p. 33

Birth date: 1897 Apr 27

text of obituary:

NICHOLAS PETER DIRKS

Nicholas Peter Dirks of Winnipeg passed away peacefully on September 7. He was born April 27, 1897 to Peter and Elizabeth (nee Fast) Dirks in Mare, Crimea, Russia. As one of 12 children, he spent his childhood and attended elementary school near the village of Spat. In 1909 the family furniture business moved to Neu Schoensee, Sagradowka. He spent the years 1912-1916 with his brother Alexander, a teacher in Orechow. There he completed his higher education at the "Stadtschule" . He was then assigned to Red Cross duty and discharged in 1918.

After the war he found employment in the industrial village of Waldheim. There he met Anastasia and married her in 1921. At this same time the couple perceived the grace of God and acknowledged his power and salvation. In 1925 they emigrated to Canada and arrived in Gretna, Manitoba in October of that year. The following year they farmed in Sanford, Man. Unfavourable weather conditions resulted in their move to Winnipeg in 1926. In 1928 Nicholas was baptized into the Mennonite Brethren church. Since that time, he enjoyed the fellowship of the Church, and grew in the Spirit of the Lord. After his gradual retirement from furniture making prior to 1962, he continued to express himself as an artist in oil paintings.

He will be greatly missed by his wife, Anastasia; his six children and spouses, Walfried and Karin Dirks, Agnes Bernstein, Dorothea and George Penner, all of Winnipeg, John and Muriel Dirks, Minneapolis, Esther and Alvin Dick, San Jose, Calif., Evelyn and Henry Konrad, Thunder Bay, Ont.; one brother, 15 grandchildren, one great-grandchild, and many relatives throughout the world.