Cornelia Swertz

What a story, what a full life.
Born in Limburg, Holland in 1923, Corry and her two brothers were raised by her father and grandparents after the death of her mother when she was six years old. During World War II at age nineteen she and her father agreed to hide a little Jewish girl, Greetje, who was three when they began to shelter her. Corry was heartbroken when her parents came to take Greetje back two years later. Shortly after the war ended Corry married Alphonse "Morris" Swertz on August 25, 1945. As Holland recovered from the war the decision was made to immigrate to Canada in early 1950. With their young daughter Gertie they traveled to Halifax on a converted troop ship the Volendam although an ocean crossing in April led to many hours of seasickness for Corry. After landing in Halifax the family traveled by train across the country to Weyburn. Thanks to the sponsorship of the Porter family a house and employment was provided on Porter Farms #6 near McTaggart. The Porter and Swertz families remain close friends to this day. The family lived and worked on the farm until 1953 when Maurice was born and a new house was built on Albert Street in Weyburn. Swertz Bros. Construction began shortly after where Corry worked as the company accountant for forty years. Corry and Morris built their cottage at Carlyle Lake in 1956 and enjoyed it both summer and winter. Holidays were enjoyed in South America and in Europe. Family and friends from Holland were welcomed and entertained and many long lasting memories were made. Over time Gertie married Ken Dean, Maurice married Stella Ruthven and grandchildren began to arrive. Both Corry and Morris were devoted to their grandchildren and all sorts of kid friendly improvements were made to the cottage. Corry very much enjoyed her days on the pontoon boat. In March of 1994 Morris died suddenly and Corry had to work very hard to adjust to life without her true love. Thank goodness great grandchildren came along and Corry was interested in every detail of their lives and loved their visits. Shortly after her last trip to Holland in 2012 Corry suffered a stroke but recovered amazingly well. The last few years were spent as often as possible with children, grandchildren and great-grandchildren sometimes being flown to Calgary and Edmonton by Maurice. She just loved to fly. We remember her immaculately Dutch-clean house, her delicious chicken rose, the rye and cokes, the hugs and most importantly, the fact she never saw any one of us without being sure to tell us how much she loved us. Corry was predeceased by her husband, Maurice "Morris" Swertz; parents, Hendrick and Gertrude Lauf; brothers, Joe Lauf and Ed Lauf; Corry will be lovingly remembered by her daughter, Gertie (Ken) Dean of Edmonton, AB; son, Maurice (Stella) Swertz of Weyburn, SK; grandchildren: Amanda (Brandon) Van Unen, Jessica (Christopher) Delaney, Christy (Kelly) Mellings, Josh (Celina) Dean, Brandon (Jen) Swertz, Allison (Brayden) Rouleau & Adam Swertz; great grandchildren: Ryan and Parker Van Unen, Ava and Olivia Delaney, Verité and Mina Mellings, Ben, Scott and Emmett Swertz, Holly Rouleau; special friends, Elly Van Riet and Greetje Cohen; sister-in-law, Bep Lauf as well as nieces, nephews and special friends too numerous to mention. A Celebration of Corry's Life will take place on Saturday, October 22, 2016 from 3:00 p.m. to 5:00 p.m. at the Ramada Hotel Board Room, Weyburn, Saskatchewan. Donations in memory of Corry may be made to Weyburn & District Hospital Foundation at Box 1416 Weyburn, Saskatchewan OR TransCanada Trail (www.greattrail.ca).

Condolences may be left at:
www.fletcherfuneralchapel.com

Arrangements entrusted to
Fletcher Funeral Chapel
Weyburn, Saskatchewan
306-842-5432