Harry Shewchuk

Harry Shewchuk was born April 10, 1928, a year after his mother (Mary) and Father (Sam) had come to Canada from the Ukraine (Poland at the time). Sam and Mary came to Canada with 3 daughters – Lena (Paul Briziniski), Sandy Shewchuk, and Bertha (Edward Gryba).

Although Sam had considered going to Argentina with his buddies Harry Slusarchuk, and Joseph Bankowski, they come around to believe that Canada would be a better decision because of the political climate. After his birth, Sam joked with Harry Slusarchuk that the soil was sure fertile here since they both had sons birthed in Canada, a week apart, after having several daughters born in the Ukraine. To celebrate his birth, Sam brewed a batch of his famous homebrew, and planted a bottle under a fence post to be dug up on the day of his  marriage.

Harry grew up and stayed on the homestead continuing the mixed farming    tradition of his ancestors. In 1979 he married Margaret Zeleny who had 4     children, Bill, Barbara, Perry (Alex), and Curtis.  Naturally to mark the         occasion, which in true Ukrainian tradition started on Friday and ended on   Sunday,  Harry found the 50 year old bottle of hooch that he brought out on  Saturday morning. Yes, it was well aged and did create some excitement the following day. For a 50 year old bachelor, this was quite a turn around in his lifestyle, but Harry, a firm believer that family means everything, relished the idea of now being a father, husband, and part-time bachelor.

Harry was a man for all seasons. While farming kept him busy from spring to fall, he thoroughly enjoyed his fall hunts that would come after harvest. He and his buddies had built a hunt camp north of Lintlaw, where only a few were  privileged to know this secret hideout. Most importantly wives were definitely excluded.  The boys always came home with some combination of moose, elk, deer, and a hangover. The smoked sausages these boys made were a true       delicacy, and this fine tradition is now passed on to the next generation who have inherited the secret seasoning recipe.

Come winter time, Harry was passionate about curling. Attending weekend  bonspiels were a must and judging by the trophies he collected he was pretty good at it. He and his crew, George Mayer, Thelma Holmstrom, and Ruth

MacDonald represented Saskatchewan at the Canadian Seniors Mixed      Championships in Whitehorse in 2004.  When his physical abilities prevented him from being the weekend curling knight, he and Margaret took on a new hobby --- watching, being a taxi, and cheer leading the grandkids in their    hockey adventures. Indeed, any phone call to family and friends were filled with the highs of now being a perogy filled 3 generation family of weekend warriors.

In closing Harry’s life can always be imagined by the perpetual smile he carried whenever anyone, whether they wanted to or not, joined him in morning coffee, engaged in casual conversation during daytime walks, or played cards during the evening, and  always when the occasion warranted a couple of Di Bojas