Tribute

Cornelius (Corny) Braun was born in Neudorf, Ukraine, on April 4, 1942, the 15th child of Johann and Katarine Braun.

Being born during World War II meant for an eventful childhood. Neudorf was a small Mennonite colony in the Soviet Union. Germany had invaded Russia the year before his birth, and when Corny was just a year and a half, the German army took the Mennonites with them as they retreated. The Mennonites were sent ahead of the retreating army. They travelled by foot, train and wagon all the way to Germany. On the wagon, Corny sat between two sacks of flour to keep him warm.

The family ended up in the American zone of Germany in 1946, and that same year, Mennonite Central Committee (MCC) organized the Volendam ship to leave with over 2,000 Mennonites from Germany to South America. On February 1, 1947, the family boarded the Volendam for a 21-day journey to Paraguay. They ended up in Argentina due to Paraguay being in the middle of a revolution. They lived in a refugee camp for three months in tents. It was time to move the refugees into Paraguay, but the family, along with 170 other people, went to the Argentinian Government and got permission to stay. They were seen as black sheep for staying while the rest moved on to a very hard life in Paraguay. The whole family then got a job in a dairy farm in Álvarez, Argentina. After that, they worked in a chicken farm and then as caretakers of a doctor’s weekend house.

Corny attended school from ages 5 to 14, and at 14, he became a Christian.  He then went to trade school and was an apprentice for a machinist. Over the years, he did many different jobs, like a lathe operator, pipe fitter in a Goodyear factory, sheet metal shop and welding in a shipyard.

Everything changed for Corny in 1960 when he was with his friends at Mi Rincon Restaurant in Agua de Oro, Cordova in Argentina. There, he met Irma Naumann. They danced together, and Corny gave her a ride on his motorcycle back to the camp she was staying at. The next day, the camp went on a day trip to Three Falls, and Corny met them there. They also went on a hike to a castle.

Shortly after Irma returned from camp. She was very surprised to see Corny on a motorcycle outside her home. They began to see each other regularly, and after three years, they were engaged.  One month after their engagement, they were married with plans to come to  Canada. Corny and Irma immigrated to Canada. First to BC and then settled in Winnipeg in 1964 and welcomed their first and second child, Monica in 1964 and Haidi in 1969. Corny worked as a drywaller for 7 years.

In 1971, Irma was very homesick, so Corny decided to take a road trip back to Argentina with his family and his brother’s family. They had 5 kids, 10 years old and younger. They slept mostly at gas stations and had lots of van troubles. They did laundry and bathed in lakes along the way. At Panama, they took the Donizetti ship for 15 beautiful days on the ocean. They went through a lot on that trip, but they made it back to Argentina. The trip took them a month and twenty days to go from Chilliwack to Buenos Aires, Argentina.

They were a year and a half in Argentina, and their son Walter was born in 1972. Due to theft and murders in Argentina, they decided to return to Chilliwack in 1973. They flew back to Chilliwack with Corny’s parents. Corny was self-employed as a drywaller for 15 years. Later, he bought a chicken farm.

The new era started in 1990 with the birth of their first grandchild. They had seven grandchildren, which filled their lives with so much joy. They did lots of travelling abroad, fishing trips and visiting Haidi in Ontario. They found the “Fountain of Youth” in Palm Springs, California and went there for approximately 30 years.

Corny developed prostate cancer 13 years ago and bone cancer two years ago. He passed away in hospice on November 13, 2025.

Corny is pre-deceased by his mother and father, and siblings Peter, Isaac, Hans, Agnes, Jacob, Arthur, Gerhard, Gredel, Kathe, Hans, Franz, Lene, Heinrich and Paul.

Corny leaves behind his loving wife, Irma. Their children, Monica (Victor), Haidi (Paul) and Walter. His grandchildren, Audrey (Mark), Isaac (Kara), Ian (Marcy), Arden (Antonia), Jake, Aidan and Rhian. His great-grandchildren, Kaeti, Pippin, Myles, Riley, Ariella, and Aniya.