RYAN FREDERICK ARABSKY

It is with heavy hearts that we announce the sudden passing of Ryan Frederick Arabsky on August 19, 2020, at the age of 48 years.

In 1972, Ryan was born in Sioux Lookout, Ontario. His dad, Bill, who was working for CN, was transferred to Winnipeg in 1978 and Winnipeg became Ryan’s forever home. Ryan graduated from Vincent Massey Collegiate and went to the University of Manitoba. Before completing his degree, and following his dad’s footsteps, he started his career at CN, working there for over 10 years. Ryan was a dreamer and wanted to venture into business. He worked for his father-in-law and then published a couple of magazines on his own business journey. Having a young family at the time, he made the hard decision to return to the transportation world in 2008. He worked his way through various positions at the City of Winnipeg. He was driven by doing what was right for Winnipeggers. As the Manager of Parking Authority and with a creative entrepreneurial mind, he made a lot of positive changes to promote customer service and community involvement through various safety campaigns.

Ryan was passionate about many sports. He adored golf and was a member at Southwood Golf Course for most of his adult life. He managed to get,  not one, but two holes in one, both in 1999. He built many friendships over the years and was often at the course at 7 AM with the Wagon group. Ryan was what we would say a competitive sports watcher. For reasons we will never understand, he was devoted to The New England Patriots and the Toronto Maple Leafs. Of course, he also loved the Winnipeg Jets. He loved bringing his kids to games and spent many Sundays cheering or cursing his teams. He clearly passed on his passion for sports. His son, Eric, is now a member at Southwood and is at the course almost daily driven to beat his dad. His daughter, Kate, also enjoys golf along with hockey and softball; what she will carry the most is her ability to rattle off most NHL players and if you need a hockey stat, just ask Kate.

Ryan during his whole adult life was always giving back to the community through love of hockey. He coached his brother and then moved on to help with various assistant coaching of his kids. He was always seen at the rink watching from the “Corner of Knowledge”, never with the moms in the stands.  Continuing to give back, he became a hockey convenor for several years and also joined the board of South Winnipeg Hockey Association.

Ryan was the guy in the room that always put everyone at ease.  He went out of his way to get to know you, he made everyone laugh no matter what age.  At family gatherings you would always see kids gravitate towards him even though he pretended to push them away. He was a kid at heart and likely explains why he always aspired to be like “Jim” from his favorite show, “The Office”. When Ryan was looking for an escape and solitude, you would often see Ryan strolling through King’s Park with Crosby, the family dog that could do no wrong.

Ryan was the cook in the family.  If his grandmother (Baba) were here, it would be a tough match.  Ryan loved entertaining and no one would leave hungry after a visit.  Ryan’s sense of humour, his joy in the little things and his ability to capture memories when he sees them and tell great stories will be forever missed.  Instagram will never be the same.  Ryan adored his kids, Eric and Kate.  We can already see the sarcastic sense of humour in Eric and Kate, with her strength, has no problem talking back which no doubt comes from their dad.    

Ryan will be dearly missed by so many.  He is survived by his parents Bill and Linda, his wife, of 20 years, Holly, and their precious children Eric and Kate; brother Darren (Chera) their children, Nicholas, Laine and Alexander; parents-in-law, Bill (Beth) Brathwaite, Joan Wilton (Bernard Boland), brother-in-law David Brathwaite (Stephanie), children Hayley, Pippa, Deaglan, Dean Brathwaite (Jae-Lynne), children Emily and Audrey.  He will also be missed by many aunts, uncles, cousins, friends, and colleagues. 

In keeping with Ryan’s wishes, cremation has taken place. A private celebration of his life will be held.  Unfortunately, due to COVID-19, the service will have restricted capacity and invitations will be emailed directly. For those that are not able to attend, the service will be video recorded and made available for viewing on, September 7, 2020, on this page.

In the meantime, Ryan’s family kindly requests that all  of  his  friends  and  relatives  take  a  few minutes  to  honour  his  memory  by  watching  the photo-biography above.  Please,  also consider  sharing your own photos and/or sharing your own memories and stories using the comment section on this page.

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ETHICAL DEATH CARE

Cremation & Life Celebrations

530 St. Mary Avenue - Winnipeg

204-421-5501 - www.ethicaldeathcare.com

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