Bernhard (Ben) Dyck
1934-2019
Ben was born in the fall of 1934 in the town of Biggar, SK. His father had a small sawmill and little Ben would help out as a boy. It would be a blue-collar life for Ben, all the way through.
As a young man, Ben left home to work fixing high-elevation train bridges with CP. But the single life, working on the railway was not for Ben.
Soon Ben met Helen and they were married at the Altona Sommerfelder Mennonite Church on September 9, 1956.
Their first home together was in Winnipeg. They were in the big city now and Ben and Helen were known to have a good time. They played a lot of bunko. They curled. They spent late nights with friends around the campfire at their little shack out at the lake.
But Ben worked hard. He never got rich, but he was driven to take care of his family, or literally driving to take care of his wife and two daughters. Ben loved cars and he loved to drive. He worked at Grey Goose Bus Lines, both as a driver and a mechanic.
As a born independent, it was inevitable that Ben would run his own business. And he did. He quit at the bus line and ran a little delivery business. Among other things, he delivered barrels of ink to printers on the back of his half-ton GMC.
“To save time, let’s assume I am right,” read one of Ben’s favourite t-shirts – and he had all kinds of opinions about what was important.
Above all, Ben was devoted to his family. He was fiercely loyal to his wife Helen. He was so proud to be a father of two daughters, whom he always said he hoped would grow up to be strong, independent women. He was a fun grandpa and a favourite uncle to many.
In later years, Ben became Helen’s caretaker. Helen, the love and focus of Ben’s life slipped away into dementia. He did what he could with heart-breaking devotion.
Now in his 80s, Ben was living alone for the first time since he was 21. It was painful to be separated from his wife whom he could no longer help.
Ben always liked the feel of the road under his wheels. The road took him many good places in life, even if that last stretch was hard. As Helen would say when they finished their highway journey to the lake, he’s “done arrived”.
Ben will be missed by his wife Helen; daughters Virginia and Pearl; sons-in-law Dave and Kevin; siblings David, Kathy and Helen; brother-in-law Albert; sister-in-law Myrna; grandchildren Colleen, Nathaniel, Lyndon, Terrell, Chelsea, Ryan, Shannon and Alannah; granddaughter-in-law Tessa, grandson-in-law-to-be Joe; and numerous nieces and nephews.
In the room when Ben passed away was his first great-grandchild, Kit, who brought joy and hope into Ben’s life right at the end when things were most difficult.
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Our most sincere sympathies to the family and friends of Bernhard Ben Dyck Friday March 1st 2019..
Death notice for the town of: Winnipeg, Province: Manitoba