TED BERT KOMADOWSKI

With heavy hearts, we announce that Ted Komadowski passed away peacefully on Sunday, March 26, 2023 at the Grace Hospice in Winnipeg at the age of 85 years.

Dad is survived by his daughter Candice and her children with Mike: Melissa and Nicole, his son Tim and his children: Dominick, Connor, Harmony and Brooklyn; great-grandchildren Adalyn, Tenley, Raya, and Amaya; brother Edmond (Ellen); extended family and many friends. He was predeceased by his wife Judy, parents Mary and William, and brother Casmir.

Dad was born in Beausejour and lived on the homestead with his parents William and Mary and brothers Casmir and Edmond. He worked hard on the farm with his family and his first “paid” job was in the construction industry in Winnipeg. He then started working at Canada Packers in 1959 and worked there for the next 33 years. He began in the hide cellar and eventually moved to the scale and slicing machines. He talked of how he fixed machines at work that the mechanics were unable to fix. He came up with his own ways of making the machines work, to the amazement of all the mechanics. He had a way of seeing things mechanically that others couldn’t see. Everyone benefited from his talents and ingenuity over the years.

When Canada Packers closed, dad went to work at Dominion Veterinary Laboratories, retiring at the age of 65. Retirement didn’t last, as he liked to keep busy, going back to work at Dominion less than a year later. His final retirement came at the age of 75.

He met his future wife Judy Boulton at a dance at Poplar Park Hall in 1965 and they were married April 23, 1966. Their first home was an apartment in downtown Winnipeg. In 1969 they moved to the small community of Southside Transcona. They had a basement dug on McFadden Avenue and bought an RTM home from Loewen Brothers in Steinbach. Dad was proud of the modifications he made to the RTM that improved the layout of the floorplan and would talk about the various ideas he had as it was being built. It was moved onsite and they had a nice big yard where he planted maple trees in the back and used sod from the farm for the front yard. He would often talk about the front grass coming from the cow pasture at home.

Southside was his home for 53 years until he was admitted to the hospital January 4, 2023. He was a pillar in the community and made many friends as he walked or rode his bike around the neighbourhood. When you drove up to the house you would see Dad sitting at his kitchen chair at the window reading the paper or playing solitaire at the table. He was always ready to have a cup of coffee when a neighbour would drop in for a visit.

Dad was a skilled craftsman. He had a large workshop filled with tools of all kinds. His favourite was the scroll saw, where he spent countless hours creating wonderful pieces for family and friends. Clocks, wall hangings, shelves, pictures, decorative items, Christmas tree ornaments, baskets. All out of many kinds of woods. Every child, grandchild and great-grandchild received a piece made just for them by Dad (Jajoo).

Dad had many hobbies. Puzzles, solitaire, crafts, bike riding, fixing his vehicle, walking the dog, visiting friends and having coffee with them. He loved sitting in the back yard in the sun against the garage on a lawn chair with friends who would come over to visit. Or sitting on the bridge in the sun in the front. Fishing for catfish at the Red River at “our spot” with Tim and Mike was a favourite springtime activity. He would often leave his rod in the water and “go shopping” for stray fishing lines and found much joy in taking apart a big tangled mess and reusing pickerel rigs with his own homemade spark plug weights. He was the ultimate recycler.

Sunday drives to the farm were an essential part of life. Many Sundays he would go first to Libau and then over to the farm in Beausejour to see his dad and brother for a visit. At both farms he would always take time to pet the dogs. He loved animals and could always be found with a dog at his feet. He enjoyed tractors and any kind of farm equipment. In summer he always made sure to go to the Beausejour Pioneer Village during the festival and watch his brother Cas participate.

Later in life he developed COPD and was unable to ride his favourite red Schwinn bike around the neighbourhood. He purchased a scooter and that gave him much joy as he went visiting his friends or picking up the mail.

He was never one to complain and even as he was in the hospital and hospice if you asked him how he was feeling he would reply in his cheeky way, “With my fingers, how else?” Dad’s sense of humour is the talk of many family stories. We will truly miss him.

The family wishes to thank the dedicated and compassionate staff at Grace Hospice for their loving care of Dad during the last couple of months as he bravely battled cancer. You all made his last days so peaceful and were a great support to the family during this difficult time.

A come and go celebration of his life will be held from 1 to 4 p.m. on Wednesday, April 12, 2023 at 124 Borden Ave (South Transcona Community Centre) with an informal program from 2 to 2:30 p.m.

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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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