Mom wrote down stories about her life and these are mostly her words.

Mom was born on December 9, 1928 at 6:45 am near the little town of Meskanaw, Saskatchewan.  She was delivered at the family home by a mid-wife, Ms. Annie Thail, who she was named after.  She was one of 10  children (4 boys & 6 girls) of Ned Sharp & Charlotta May Persinger. Her mother and father immigrated to Canada in 1919 from Richland County, Wisconsin.  Ned was a Mechanic that worked on threshing machines for neighbours and fixing motors on machinery in the winter.  Sometimes with no work in the winter the pay cheques were pretty skinny.  Charlotta or Lottie as she was called, worked at the home raising the 10 children.  She spent her days making meals with the bounty of her huge garden, washing clothes on a wash board by hand and in the fall canning a multitude of fresh vegetables from that garden to provide for the family during the long winter months.

She grew up in a 3 room house, two rooms downstairs and one big bedroom upstairs. They had a large family table for lots of kids.  The floor was just boards and were scrubbed every Saturday.   There was one wood stove which Ned had to add wood to in the middle of the night to keep them all warm.  They slept together in 4 beds with straw mattresses and feather pillows, which her dad renewed each year.  Mom remembered going into the cellar when there was a very strong wind & dust storm.  She said they had a lot of snow in the 1930’s but very little rain in the summer….hence the dirty 30’s. 

Some of mom’s first memories are of her playing with her brothers and sisters but even as a young child there was lots of chores to be done.  Things like peeling potatoes, picking berries, gathering garden  vegetables, bringing in the wood and washing dishes (which she didn’t much care for doing).  Unlike today’s children there was no such thing as an allowance for doing these necessities, they were just happy to have food on the table.  The whole family would go and pick wild fruit like strawberries, saskatoon, pin cherries, blueberries, raspberries and  cranberries. Her mom would pack a lunch and they’d stay all day.  They would all help cleaning the fruit and her mom would can many quarts of fruit. Her mom was a very good cook and they always had fresh vegetables but for meat it was either dear, partridge, duck, or prairie chicken.  They had no running water but they had a good well at the bottom of the hill, which they had to haul up to the house.  They also had a cow so they had milk most days. 

Mom started school at 8 years of age as her birthday was late in the year.  Just to go to grade school and elementary school she had to walk 3 ½ miles.  We’ve all heard the stories of walking long distances to get to school and it was uphill both ways!  Oh and the snow waist deep!  Her first school was Ben Loyal SD which had grades 1 – 8.  Her first teacher’s name was Mr. Eric Streetan.  Her noon hour and recess were made up of games such as ball and rugby in the summer and steal sticks and fox / goose in the winter.  I’m not sure what some of those games are but I’m sure they were lots of fun!  As a youngster they all used to go to a small lake near their home.  Her one brother was the only one that knew how to swim.  They also used to go shoot prairie chickens and grouse with a sling shot.  She said her sister, Mary was the best shot at it. 

The first time mom had dental work she had to have a tooth pulled and the only person “qualified” to do it was a veterinarian from St. Brieux.  At 8 years old she had pneumonia in both her lungs.  As she was getting worse they finally got a doctor to come.  Her fever was very high and she was delirious for a time.  Her mom made a mustard plaster and eventually she got better.  No trip to the walk in clinic there. 

They had two dogs, a Border Collie named Rover, who was the  outside dog and a little inside dog named R.B. who used to wake the kids up in the morning. 

At the age of 10 years old she left home for her first job!  Imagine that, sending your 10 year old out into the world to work!  Before and after school she would go to the neighbours house, another two miles away, to help with house work, chores, milk cows, feed calves and chickens.  She never got paid for her work but the lady made her some clothes.

When she finished Grade 8 she left school to go work in Melfort for a school teacher.  Her family also moved to a different farm house near Pathlow, Saskatchewan.   She attended Flett Spring School.  She ultimately took her Grade 9 through correspondence and her teacher was Ms. Eldeen Taylor.  When this teacher  moved to another school she asked mom to stay with her at the teacherage at Thackstead School.  After another move to Melfort, she went to work for another teacher and never did complete her Grade 10.  After working there for a couple of years she went back to Pathlow.  After sometime her brother, Everett and his wife  Eileen got her a job in Bresaylor, Saskatchewan working for his boss’s wife as they were expecting a baby.  Mom’s dad drove her to the train station in Ethelton, Saskatchewan and she embarked on another adventure.  Mr. and Mrs. John Petty lived right in Bresaylor and he ran the garage there.  She stayed there until their baby was born and then stayed to assist her brother and sister in law as they were expecting too.  While she was there her and a girl friend went to a school picnic.  This is where she met her future husband and my dad, Arnold Dutton.  They dated for sometime and then he returned back to the Armed Forces.

After leaving Bresaylor she came across the river to work for Lee & Anna Iverson who were expecting a child.  Mom said there was lots of work there. 

Dad came to  visit when he was discharged (when the war was over) and he proposed!  At the age of 16 years old they were married by Rector R. Willis on December 8, 1945 in North Battleford at St. Paul’s church. Uncle George and auntie Marjorie Dutton were mom and dad’s best man and matron of honor for the ceremony.  The bride was lovely in her floor length dress of white shear crepe with silver slippers.  She carried a bouquet of pink and white roses.  Following the ceremony a reception was held in the Blue Room in the Savoy Café. 

Dad had a farm at the Bresaylor District and built a two room house in his brother George’s yard.  This is where the first three boys born, Thomas, Elden, and Alan.  When Tom was born dad added 2 more bedrooms to the house.  Mom said they were very comfortable there.  The house had a wood cook stove, oil heater, no plumbing, but were one of the first to have electricity.  There wasn’t even a fridge until Elden was born so they would have to dig a hole on the north side of the house to keep milk for the babies there.  They had some cattle, 2 horses and pigs.  She helped dad build a barn and always helped with the hay bales and feed for the livestock. 

Sometime later they moved across the river just west of Prince.  They packed everything they owned in a grain truck and headed out to cross the frozen North Saskatchewan river.  I remember hearing stories of them having the windows rolled down on the truck as to make an easier escape if they broke through the cracking frozen river.  This is where they built the farm house I grew up in.  The next boy that was born was Melvin.  During the time they were building the house they lived in a shack.  When the house was  completed the first girl was born, Laurie.  Then five years later I came along.  Like that wasn’t an oops!  But whatever I think they just saved the best for last!

After many years on the farm mom and dad decided to move into town in 1981.  This is where she worked mostly outside the home as a waitress and a store clerk.  Some of her greatest inspirations were the fact that she was able to go out and  count money, meet people, and work outside the home as she never thought she was capable and by her doing it, it showed her that she was. Like raising 6 kids and running a household and a farm doesn’t prove that she was capable?  She loved the social interaction these positions gave her.  A little social butterfly! 

On November 24, 1982 we experienced one of the first great losses a family and a parent should never have to face….the loss of a son, Melvin.  Mom and dad lost their last born son…their baby boy to cancer at the young age of 21.  This was a hard road for mom and dad and us as siblings.  This is something that I think broke her heart every day after. 

Many years later on September 2, 2000 we experienced the passing of our father, her husband.  He suffered from alzheimer’s for many years and after being institutionalized to have proper treatment and care his fight came to an end. 

Then on March 24, 2003 her grandson Glenn passed suddenly.  This hurt us all deeply but I know she felt the weight on her shoulders of how she could of helped him ease his burden.  He was her family, her grandson.  He was hurting and she always wanted to help any and all of us feel better.  To take our troubles and lighten our load.

On November 3, 2006, she felt another ultimate hurt.  A son, Elden, passed away from cancer.  There are no words that can ease the pain from losing one son, but then to lose another is something no mother should have to face.  How does a mother carry on?  How do you put a happy smile on your face?  I’ll tell you how.  You have my mother’s outlook on life.  You concentrate on your love for your family whether they are physically with you or not.  She knew they were with her in her heart and in her memories. 

Did you all know that mom was a great, great grandmother?  Glenn’s daughter, Bailee has a little boy, Ziah.  If you wanted to see moms face light up with joy and be as proud as a peacock all you had to do was bring up any of her 10 grandchildren, 21 great grandchildren  and 1 great great grandchild.  Now if Mackenzie would just hurry and have that baby it would be 22 great grandchildren!  Go Mackenzie!!

One thing she wished she could have done is gone back to school.  Some of her favorite things to do were going for coffee, sewing, playing scrabble with friends, gardening on the farm, doing crossword puzzles.  She loved curling and watching curling on TV.  You could be guaranteed that if curling was on she was giving her favourite team all the advice they could handle from the couch!

She was always very active and involved in her kids lives.  Anything she could do to help them she would do….the mother we all strive to be. 

Being with her family.  That was her happy spot….spending time with her family.  Knowing that they were safe and sound, having a good life. 

Mom was a proud and independent lady, some might say stubborn, but not me that’s her other children! She remained living on her own until the age of 89 when her many health struggles lead her to residency at Harwood Manor.  She enjoyed many group events there and friendships with residents and staff.  On July 18, 2019 she was admitted to Battlefords Union Hospital and her struggle ended peacefully in her sleep the following morning.

Mom wrote that some of the most important lessons she learned throughout her life was to be kind.  Do unto others as you would have them do unto you.  To love, to be with family and friends and don’t take anything for granted. 

 

By Sherri Halter (Daughter of Anne)

Funeral Service for Annie will be held 2:00 pm, Wednesday, July 24th, 2019 at Third Avenue United Church, North Battleford, SK. with interment to follow beside her loving husband Arnold. Condolances may be left at www.SallowsandMcDonald.com

Sallows and McDonald-Wilson & Zehner Funeral Home in care of arrangements. 306-445-2418

• Date : 2019-07-19
• Location : North Battleford, SK.