Lena Justine Tomkins was born March 1, 1922, in Grouard, and passed away surrounded by her family March 15, 2011, at the J.B. Wood Extended Care in High Prairie at the age of 89 years.

Left to mourn her passing are: her niece, Adele Laderoute; son-in-law Donald Laderoute; and her siblings Louis, Leonie and Sammy. Lena will really be missed by all her nieces and nephews who are too numerous to count.

Lena was predeceased by: her husband, Charles Marvin “Checker” Tomkins; son Ronnie; parents Peter Anderson and Alice Supernault-Anderson; her sister, Amy L’Hirondelle; and her brothers George, Ernie, Joseph, and Leonard.

Lena, a long-time resident of High Prairie, married Checker Feb. 8, 1939, and together they traveled wherever his army career took them. With their son Ronnie, they lived in places such as Jasper, Petawawa, Ont. and Winnipeg. During this time, Lena was a homemaker and seamstress. They moved to Calgary when Checker retired from the army. Their lives were filled with joy when Lena’s niece, Adele, 7, came to live with them. They loved and cherished her for the rest of their lives.

For many years during their retirement years, they managed the apartment building they lived in. Lena continued to manage the building even after Checker’s death. Even though she was in her eighties, she was always repairing whatever needed fixed. Lena was the “mother hen” of the apartment building and made many friends who in turn, watched out for her.

Lena loved to have people over to visit and never missed an opportunity to have visitors over for tea and cookies. Weekly bingo was a must in their lives and Lena continued to go to High Prairie for as long as her health allowed.

When we were little girls, we were always so excited when Lena would send us these great big boxes of baby diapers, flannelette and clothes that she had made or gathered at the discount stores. It was like Christmas when those boxes would arrive because she always hid some caramel suckers inside for us.

Lena’s niece, Eileen, remembers living with her sister, Dorothy, in Calgary. She always enjoyed going over to see Lena and Checker. They would always tell all sorts of stories and have lots of food to eat. They wouldn’t let any visitors leave until they ate something.

Nephew Lawrence Anderson remembers driving for Lena and Checker when he was young. They had a beautiful ‘67 Chevy Caprice Classic. Lawrence was hesitant to drive as he didn’t have a driver’s licence. Checker told him not to worry as all he had to do was use two hands and off they went. It was the longest two hours of his young life.

Another memory Lawrence Anderson had was a visit they made up north. They followed a truck into Super A when Checker commented, “I don’t know who this stupid farmer is taking his bloody time.” When they parked next to this truck they discovered it was Louis Anderson, Lena’s brother. Lena never let him forget that he called her brother a stupid farmer.

Also, when Gloria, Lawrence Anderson’s wife, was close to giving birth to Lawrence Anderson Jr. in February 1985, Lena insisted he call as soon as the baby came and sure enough they came right over to the hospital.

During the last few years, Lena suffered many losses: Checker in 2003, her Calgary home in 2005 and her leg in 2008. Her positive attitude, faith and inner strength were an inspiration to all of us. Through it all she always talked about moving back to Calgary, where she was eventually laid to rest.

The funeral for Lena was held March 19 at St. Paul’s Roman Catholic Church in High Prairie with Father Abraham Srambical officiating. The eulogists were Dorothy and Thelma Anderson. Interment followed at the Queen’s Park Cemetery in Calgary.