John Hunka

HUNKA, John W. 1924 - 2009 John Hunka (born on October 12, 1924, Soda Lake, Alberta) will forever be greatly missed by his wife, Anne; daughter and son-in-law, Judy and Donald Oborowsky; daughter and son-in-law, Jo-Anne and Arthur Langner; son and daughter-in-law, Ron and Heather Hunka; son Dwayne Hunka and girlfriend Shannon Scott; and Amelia Hunka, mother to Andrew and Sarah Hunka. Gidi was a favorite with his grandchildren, Shonn Oborowsky (Jenn Ragan), Sharleen Oborowsky Blake (Travis Blake), Jason Langner (Heather), Rychelle Langner (Evan Tuck); Aaron Hunka, Andrew Hunka, Sarah Hunka and Roan Hunka. They all loved to joke around with their Gidi. But they had not yet left the doorway and Gidi would always be asking in his cute Ukrainian accent, "When are you coming again?" As soon as his great-grandchildren could understand their Great-Gidi, he would begin joking with them and in no time they would learn to joke back. Great-Gidi has five great-grandchildren - Lola, Lennon, Lou, Sawyer and Weston. John is survived by two sisters, Mary (late John Semotiuk) and Anne (late Frank Zaharichuk); two brothers, Nick Hunka (late Ann Hunka), and Orest and Elsie Hunka; as well as numerous nieces and nephews. John was predeceased by his Dad and Mom, William T. and Alice Hunka of Vegreville. John always hoped he would live longer than his dad and this he did accomplish. Dad was a model citizen during his lifetime. He believed in solid honest hard work. He began by farming, then changing careers to shipper and receiver of a lumber yard. At the age of 50 he switched careers again, taking an extensive refrigeration course. He was employed by Gateway Refrigeration for 18 years. He retired and went back to work at Gateway for one more year. Dad was a proud, caring man and one of few words. He had little education but he continued to read, do crossword puzzles, and has accomplished a fairly good knowledge of the computer. Not too long ago a nephew found an old letter written in Ukrainian and we gave it to Dad to decipher. In a very short time, he converted it and typed the English version on his computer and emailed it to his family. His knowledge in the Ukrainian language in this day and age took us completely by surprise. We knew he could read in Ukrainian slightly, however he amazed his family. Dad set a very high bar for his family, his co-workers, and especially himself. He taught everyone he encountered hard work ethics, an honest days work for an honest days pay, and with very little, you can still succeed in life. The word No was not in Dad's vocabulary. And he NEVER accepted the word No. He taught by example. He pitched in wherever he was needed and he always found a way to accomplish what needed to be done. John travelled to many places in the world with Anne but they went most often to Hawaii. However over the past few years they could no longer travel as Dad's lungs were poor and he was using an oxygen tank. Dad deeply loved his wife of 62 years and his favorite song to her was always, "You are My Sunshine". Dad deeply loved his family and in recent years portrayed it as much as he cherished life itself. He was so very happy a few years ago when his stubbornness prevailed and he defied death and he gave to us a few more years of his strength and determination. We love you for it Dad. His legacy will live on while those of us left behind contemplate the sudden void of his absence. John passed away suddenly on July 9, 2009. A Celebration of Life and Memorial Service will be held on Thursday, July 16 at 2:00 p.m. at Evergreen Funeral Chapel, 16204 - Fort Road (1/2 mile east off Manning Freeway on 167 Avenue and 1/4 mile south on the old Fort Road). In lieu of other tributes, donations may be made to the Alberta Diabetes Foundation, 1-020 HRIF East, University of Alberta, Edmonton, AB T6G 2E1 and or to the Heart and Stroke Foundation of Alberta, 10985 - 124 Street NW, Edmonton, AB T5M 0H9. To send condolences, visit www.parkmemorial.com Park Memorial Edmonton 780-426-0050 Family Owned Funeral Home, Crematorium, Reception Centre