Tribute

Katharina (Katie) Dirksen passed away peacefully April 3, 2023 with the love of her family surrounding her. She wanted to go to Heaven and now she is there. Born in Herbert, Saskatchewan October 26, 1927 to Peter and Katharina Barg, the 3rd of 6 children.  Her Parents were loving and life on the farm was simple, not easy. A small house with 2 bedrooms upstairs, 1 for boys and 1 for girls. Parents slept on main floor. No phone, no lights, no fridge, no bathroom, no furnace, no electricity, no running water, No Complaints!  Heat came from a coal stove and in summer the stove burnt dried cow chips. Cooking was also done on this stove. Food was kept in the ice house. A hole in the ground covered with ice blocks chopped up in winter and covered with straw. It melted in the summer, but then the food was fresh from the garden.  In summer they would keep the milk on the shady side of the house. The wooden outhouse was the solution when nature called. The Sears Catalogue was the cleanup crew. The outhouse was good for all seasons. No one spent much time there. Horses and a wagon were the transportation. School was 4 miles away. The town of Beechy was 12 miles away. Church was 25 miles away, the family went twice a year. The mailbox was 1.5 miles away, a short walk. They did get a car and a phone about 1940. As a child, Katie accepted Jesus as her Saviour. She attended Herbert Bible School 1945-1947.

The Barg Family moved to Abbotsford BC in 1946. At the Clearbrook MB Church she met Peter Dirksen. They married August 15, 1948, then went to Seattle for a 2 day honeymoon. They lived on Fraser Highway starting a family in 1949 thru 1962 with 5 boys and 1 girl. Life was full. Having babies, cooking, baking, cleaning, sewing, laundry, all before modern conveniences. An indoor bathroom came in 1956 with a toilet, tub and sink, but only cold water. Hot water Tank about 1962. Having a bath was a once a week event, with hot water being boiled on wood or oil stove and poured in bath tub. The youngest child started with clean water and then the next child would bath in the same water. There was a 1 minute time limit in the tub because the water was getting cold.

With 6 children, Katie did a lot of baking. Buns by the dozen were eaten by the children and their friends before they had cooled from the oven. Her Delicious Apple Pies and Cinnamon Buns did not last long. Cookies were always available and packed in every school lunch, especially ‘Jam Jams’.

Sunday clothes for the children were often bought from ‘Thrift Stores’ and re-sewed to fit so we looked our best. She taught her children by example to have Faith in God, be honest, helpful, loyal, patient, loving, accepting, always do and be your best. Be careful how you spend your money.

Her house was clean, guests were welcome and fed. She always showed an interest in our friends and what they were doing. She loved her Grandchildren. At her house they ate ‘Robins’ doughnuts, ‘McDonalds’, fast food, drank Coke, watched videos and enjoyed the Swingset. Grandma’s house, Grandma’s rules.

She was a member of the Bakerview MB Church and served on several committees. She was also a member of the MEI Women’s Auxiliary. Annual family vacations were to the Okanagan Lake in Penticton a 9X12 Tent in the campground behind Kelly’s Motel on Lakeshore Drive. All day at the beach, Katie floating in the deep water waves in a tire tube. Supper was hamburgers and Kool Aid. 1 trip to the Dairy Queen or Mini Golf. Life was good!

Palm Springs, Hawaii, Driving across Canada and the US, she enjoyed long trips in the car. She valued her faith in God and shared it with family and friends.

Katie will be lovingly remembered by her children: Glen (Elaine), (Doris), Gary (Marlene), Lorin (Cecelia), Mark (Kim), Myrna (Al), plus 18 Grandchildren, 21 Grandchildren. Siblings Jake (Arlene) Barg, Agnes Barg, Anne Barg. She was pre-deceased by her son Ken in 1997, husband Peter in 2020, her brothers John in 2007 and Peter in 2017.

A Graveside Service was held for Family on April 6, 2023. A Family Lunch followed.