Obituary of Peter Okraincee

Peter Okraincee of Fir Mountain, SK passed away on Sunday, September 4, 2016, at the age of 85 years. Peter was born on August 27, 1931 on the family farm near Wood Mountain. He was the second child born to William and Nellie Okraincee. A baby brother for Anne and later, a big brother to Steve, Mary, Bill, Roman and Lily. In 1935, the family moved 5 miles north of Fir Mountain. Peter attended his first few years of school at Fir Mountain and then continued his education up to grade 9 at Mount Zion. After that, he began working on the farm, in the field, tending to the animals and helping the neighbors whenever needed. In 1951, Peter married Olga Kiel. They bought a home and began their life together. They welcomed 3 children, William, RosaLynn and Terry. Peter’s days were spent farming the land, raising chickens, cattle, and pigs. He was especially fond of and had a special way with animals throughout his whole life. In Peter's later years, his beloved dog Shep kept him company and protected the animals when he was away. Peter also supported his family by working as a drayman for the Fir Mountain grocery store transporting supplies as they came in on the train. He also hauled grain, hay and coal for anyone who needed it. He was a firm believer in doing things according to the moon and therefore always knew when the best time was to plant the garden, seed his crops, butcher an animal or castrate the bull-calves. His insight became well-known to his friends and neighbors and they would call on him from time to time for advice. Peter was community-minded and served on hall, school, and library boards. He served as a councillor for the RM of Waverley for 18 years and was a respected member of the Knights of Columbus, which was very important to him. He was a proud member of the Wildlife Federation and attended many horn-scoring events, winning a few trophies of his own. He was an avid outdoorsman and loved all things in nature; northern hunts, fishing trips and nature walks were a few of the things Peter enjoyed and passed along to the younger generation of his family. Peter was certainly someone who enjoyed the little things in life, he saw value in things that money couldn’t buy—newly hatched chicks, a home cooked meal, a deck of cards to play, a game of crib and of course, card tricks. He had quite a sense of humor and loved to tell jokes. More than anything, Peter was a people-person; there was nothing he enjoyed more than visiting and he made the time to spend with everyone. He loved being a farmer and had many blessings in his life but was no stranger to hardship. He met difficult times with a strong faith in the Lord and believed that God would always provide for him. He lived his life with a grateful heart. Even when his health began to fail, he found something to be thankful for. Peter was kind and generous to all; he worked hard, was proud of all that he had and he loved deeply. His was a life well-lived. Peter is survived by his loving family, son William, granddaughter Petrina (Chris), great grandchildren Cheyenne, Thomas, grandson Tim, grandson Willis, great grandchildren Dominic, Daniel; daughter RosaLynn (Peter), grandson Kevin (Shirley), great grandchildren Shaelynn, Karsten, Shiloh, granddaughter Melanie (Sheldon), great grandchildren Mikki, Lexie, granddaughter Natasha; sisters Anne (Metro) and Lily, brother Roman (Katie); as well as numerous nieces and nephews. Predeceased by his brother Bill (1953); mother Nellie (1964); father William (1967); son Terry (1967); wife Olga (1996); great niece Tabitha (1998); great niece Pyper (2002); brother-in-law George (2003); brother-in-law Lawrence (2008); niece Marcella (2008); nephew Armand (2008); sister Mary (2008); brother Steve (2016). Prayer Service was held on Friday, September 9, 2016, at 8:00 p.m., and Funeral Mass on Saturday, September 10, 2016, at 11:00 a.m., both at St. Joseph Roman Catholic Church, Glentworth, SK, with Father Basil Malowany celebrant. Cross Bearer was Jynae Petersen. Reader was Miriah Petersen. The eulogy was shared by Lorry Okraincee. Pallbearers were Knights of Columbus, Ray Packet, Terry Kirkpatrick, Paul Dumont, Dean Layman, Duane Clermont, Pierre Jalbert. Interment took place at the Assumption of the Blessed Virgin Mary Ukrainian Catholic Cemetery. Memorial donations in memory of Peter to the Fir Mountain Hall, c/o Bill Greffard, Box 192, Glentworth, SK S0H 1V0 or the Assumption of the Blessed Virgin Mary Ukrainian Catholic Church, c/o of Roman Okraincee, Box 6, Glentworth, SK S0H 1V0, were greatly appreciated.