In Loving Memory Of
Benjamin George Schatz
Benny Schatz passed away Sunday, July 5, 2020 at the age of 79 years.
Benny was born September 21, 1940 in a small town in southern Alberta called Foremost, located in between Medicine Hat and Lethbridge.
Like most families in those days, making a living was hard. His father fumbled to make a living for the family and one means to this end was having dairy cows. As a young child Benny, his two sisters, and two brothers, spent many, many hours milking cows and delivering milk to local families, until milk production became regulated.
Benny was not a big fan of schooling and, in his mid to late teenage years, he and his friends would skip school, take their horses to a nearby water source, and have a great time laughing and just being young fellows. Benny was adventurous and a hard worker. He took on many jobs near and far away. He spent a fair amount of time working in Thomson, MB working with draglines on the muskeg so a railway could be built.
Eventually Benny’s career path led him to the earth moving business. Many, many of the roads, dugouts, irrigation ditches and those fancy man-made lakes in housing subdivisions in Lethbridge were built by Benny and his employees. He also excavated the coulee basin in 1975 so that the University of Lethbridge could be built. Even though he hated and did not do well in school, only completing grade 9, he was very intelligent and ingenious when it came to contributing to the landscape of southern Alberta.
In his early twenties, his friend and brother in-law told him to come on up north to work on the rigs in Fort St. John. That was Benny’s first taste of a nasty, cold, northern winter of -50oC. The young men slept in their cars to save money. He sustained a broken ankle after what could have been a near fatal accident and he high tailed it back to southern, AB.
In August 2019, Benny moved to northern Alberta into Hythe Pioneer Home so that this daughter could help and support to him.
Benny will be sadly missed by his family. His son Trevor and daughter Sherry live in Lethbridge and his other daughter Diella lives in the Hythe/Beaverlodge area. His grandson Joshua lives in Boyle, AB.
Memorial donations may be made to Hythe and District Pioneer Home Foundation (Box 388, Hythe, AB, T0H 2C0).
Eulogy
I received a phone call this morning that my dad had passed peacefully in the night. In some ways it was a shock but not entirely. Due to our fragmented Canadian elder care system, dad needed to be moved to a higher level of care, and that meant a move to Valleyview. Two weeks prior to his passing, he was moved to South Valley Residence. With that, due to these times of Covid-19, dad had to “quarantine” in his room for 14 days. I called and Facetimed (video chat) with him a few times but, like many other seniors during this pandemic, visceral loneliness was certainly one factor in his demise. During one video chat he told me that he was “ready to go home”.
Luckily, I was able to visit him the day prior to his death and he let me know in no uncertain terms that I had “dumped” him there. He was dishevelled and lost as his “quarantine” period had just been lifted. I noticed that he had extensive periorbital edema (swelling of the lower lids of his eyes) and I thought to myself, “this is not good” and that his kidneys were shutting down. He complained again of aches and pains and of course being so cold. My dad has suffered for years from pain, gut wrenching sweating and chills and of course, loneliness. I wish that I could have and would have broken the Covid-19 physical distancing rules and given him a hug goodbye. Instead I told my dad that I loved him and that I would be back next weekend. He told me that he loved me back and he toddled off back inside with his walker and the care aid. And that was it.
I have prayed for many years now that dad could be taken home in his sleep to the peace and comfort and warmth of the good Lord’s home. My prayers were answered today. For now, it is my mission to maneuver his passage back “home” to southern Alberta to the Bow Island cemetery where he will be laid to rest with his beloved mother Kathryn.
As I went for a walk today, a hawk hovered above me and squawked and squawked and squawked at me. Intuitively I felt deep inside that it was my dad channelling his energy into this majestic bird letting me know that he is flying free and now no longer lonely and alone in this world. I love you dad and thank you for all that you have done for me. Rest in peace and I hope that you are now toasty warm and comfortable, and at peace.
– Diella
Our most sincere sympathies to the family and friends of Benjamin George Schatz September 21 1940 July 5 2020..
Death notice for the town of: Grande-Prairie, Province: Alberta