Sawatzky, John (1914-2010)

Mennonite Weekly Review obituary: 2010 Aug 16 p. 9

Birth date: 1914 Nov 3

text of obituary:

JOHN SAWATZKY

John Sawatzky, 95, of Mountain Lake, Minn., died July 8, 2010, at Good Samaritan Home. He was born Nov. 3, 1914, to Margarete Lehn and Johann Sawatzky in Adelsheim, Russia.

His early years were filled with the realities of war and terror along with being the oldest son and assuming the responsibility of helping his mother feed the family after his father’s death when he was 19. Life was always being put on the line, and in spite of religion being banned he was steadfast in his faith. The brutality he lived with made a big impact on him. The fact that life goes on in difficult situations was a blessing. On Jan. 6, 1938, he married Elizabeth Forrer, though there were no churches to bless this union.

Working on the collective farm was difficult, and the threat of death was constant. Eventually he and his family arrived in Backnang, Germany, at the MCC refugee camp. It was there that both he and Elizabeth were baptized on July 4, 1948, by Peter Dyck. They came to live in Mountain Lake, Minn., in 1949.

He worked for P.G. Rahn, who sponsored him, and as a cabinet maker until, in 1953, he worked for Midland Coop Oil, from where he retired. He was a member of Bethel Mennonite Church of Mountain Lake. The church was a cornerstone in his life, and he served as Sunday school teacher, superintendant [sic] and deacon. He and Elizabeth enjoyed 46 years of marriage and many trips to see friends and relatives across the U.S. and Canada.

After Elizabeth died, on Aug. 9, 1989, he married Mabel (Worms) Janzen, and they enjoyed 17 years of marriage.

Survivors include five children, Elsie Stomberg and her husband, Robert, Gerhardt Sawatzky and his wife, Jeannie, Lorena Sawatzky Mierau, David Sawatzky and his wife, Jeannie, and Mary Frederickson and her husband, Timothy; a stepdaughter, Faye (Janzen) Krause; two brothers, Cornelius of Winnipeg, Man., and George of Dinuba, Calif.; a sister, Lydia of Winnipeg, Man.; 16 grandchildren; four step-grandchildren and 19 great-grandchildren.

In addition to his wife, he was preceded in death by a son, John; two daughters, Margaret and Elizabeth; and three sisters, Agnes, Helen and Elizabeth.