Obituary for Mae Allen
On Tuesday, April 12, 2017 Mae Laurea Allen passed away peacefully at the Swan Valley Lodge at the age of 93 years.
Mae was the fifth of seven children born to Alanson and Marie Louise Ball in Grandview, Manitoba. They moved to Bowsman Burrows Mills soon after.
Mae’s mother passed away when Mae was only six years old. Mae received her education in Bowsman School to Grade 10.
At the age of 16 she married Leonard Ferriss of Bowsman on September 7,1939 near the beginning of World War II.
Then the battle was on: they had five children spread over nineteen years. Shirley in 1941, Duane in 1943, Gaylene the favourite in 1946, Lance 1956 and Marvin in 1959. Lance says they had three… then they got it right, they had two more. MOM said she had a girl, a boy, a spare, a dammit and an oops. Those statements alone could start the next war NOW!
Mae and Len farmed east of Bowsman in the Cropper Tops School district until they moved to Swan River in 1966.
They were married thirty-one years when Len passed away.
In 1973 Mae’s son, Marvin, the youngest of the family, became a little brother in Swan River Big Brothers Association paired with Ed Allen as his Big Brother. They were the very first pair in Swan.
Ed had lost his wife, Olga, in a tragic car crash in 1972 leaving him to raise his youngest daughter, four year old daughter Bonnie by himself. While Ed spent time with Marvin as his Big Brother doing boy stuff, Mae often took care of Bonnie. When Ed would return with Marvin he would ask Mom to join them in going out to dinner… and so it started…. they dated for a couple of years and were married December 20, 1975.
At that point, combined they had nine kids and six grands… the fun began!
In her 93 years Mae was fortunate to not have to work outside the home. She worked very hard and loved every minute being a wife, mother and grandmother. She was an amazing cook and pie baker, story teller to kids of all ages.
Mom always loved to dance, regular country dances as well as square dancing and sewed many of their dance outfits.
She was an avid gardener, on the farm out of necessity to feed the family. In later years for shear enjoymen .. .she joyfully provided many people with garden vegetables.
She worked out frustrations on the end of a hoe… we brats teased telling her she was the best hoe-er in town.
Mae and Ed had a cottage at Wellman Lake which Ervin has now. They spent many hours on the lake loving fishing and boating
and the peace and quiet.
She was a great support to Ed as he served on many community boards … Legion, Senior Centre, Credit Union, Valley Hoedowners Square Dancers and Co-op of Swan River.
They enjoyed a couple decades of retirement that most people dream of… dancing, fishing, seniors’ bus trips, playing cards, senior games, shuffleboard.
Their family could only get a hold of them when they weren’t dancing or at the lake. They thought nothing of driving to Flin Flon, square dance and drive home the same night. Any four hour drive became an eight hour drive with many scenic detours. They would drive miles for Sunday dinner and often took a different route – “the road less travelled”.
They were married 31 years when Ed passed away.
The last eight years Mae lived in the Swan Valley Lodge where she was loved and cared for by the amazing staff. She was well loved and taught many people how to HUG.
Mae will no doubt be dearly missed by family and friends.
She is survived by her three sons and five daughters: Lance (Florazel) Ferriss, of Ft. McMurray, Marvin (Lorraine) Ferriss, of Alida, Saskatchewan and Ervin (Sharon) Allen, of Swan River Manitoba, Shirley Ferriss, of Millville, New Jersey, Gaylene (Don) Smith, of Regina, Saskatchewan, Beverly (Dwayne) Matheson, of Calgary, Alberta, Heather Allen, of Kelowna, British Columbia and last but certainly not least Bonnie (Guy) Constant, of Carrollton, Texas, and daughter in law Marie Ferriss, of North Bay, Ontario, and sister in law Lois Wilson.
She is also survived by twenty-two grandchildren and twenty-three great grandchildren.
Funeral Service will be held at St. Andrews United Church, Swan River on Tuesday, April 18, 2017 at 2 p.m. with Pastor Troy Smith (grandson) officiating.
Mae Allen’s cremated remains will be interred in the Veterans section of the Birchwood Cemetery to be re-united with Ed Allen.
Should friends so desire, memorial donations in Mae’s name may be made to the St. Andrews Church Memorial Fund or the Alzheimer’s Society of Manitoba.
Arrangements have been entrusted to Swan Valley Funeral Services Ltd, 363 Kelsey Trail (Hwy 10 North) Swan River, MB 204-734-5775.

Nos plus sincères sympathies à la famille et aux amis de Mae Laurea
Allen – 1923 – 2017.source

avis deces Mae Laurea
Allen – 1923 – 2017- avis mortuaire Mae Laurea
Allen – 1923 – 2017