Ray SWIDZINSKI

Ray Swidzinski
1945 - 2012
It is with heavy hearts that we announce the passing of Ray Swidzinski on Tuesday, Nov. 27th at the age of 67. Ray was born on October 3rd 1945 in Cudworth, Saskatchewan to John and Mary Swidzinski. He started working at Federated Co-op on Sep. 6th, 1966 as a Material Handler until he was promoted to Warehouse Supervisor where he remained until he retired in 2003 after 37 years of service. With family as priority in his life, Ray made a decision to seek early retirement so that he could spend his latter years devoted to family.
Ray spent countless hours watching his grandkids play sports and perform in school functions or extracurricular activities. His other passions included gardening, camping and fishing and he looked forward to his annual fishing trip to Flin Flon with his sister and brother in law. Ray was a truly special man and will be greatly missed by all who knew him. He lived his life with courage and dignity and maintained these qualities right up to the final moments of his life. He was a role model and an inspiration to everyone he met.
An incredibly generous and altruistic man, Ray never hesitated to help out wherever he could and the love he had for his family was always unconditional. Ray was diagnosed with cancer on June 3rd, 2011 and fought the disease until his passing. He was a strong believer in alternative medicine and spent many hours researching a cure for his cancer. We truly believe that he was able to be with us longer because of these alternate therapies. He wanted to acknowledge the staff at the Saskatoon Chelation Centre.
Ray was predeceased by his Father John, his Mother Mary, his brothers Mike and Irvin and his sister Irene in infancy. He was also predeceased by his son-in-law Gregory Edelman. Ray is survived by his loving wife of 45 years Arlene, his daughters Darcey (Brian Keller) Heather, Lori (Vern Wasylyniuk), Stephanie (Jason Bishop) and his son Sean. He also leaves to mourn his 11 Grandchildren: Brooklyn, Shelby, Tristan, Kael, Brandon, Jared, Kiara, Dylan, Tyson, Zachary and Mackenzie as well as one great- grandchild Grady. He is also survived by his brother Peter Swidzinski (Irene), his sister Delphine Hutlet (Rick) as well as numerous nieces and nephews.
Prayers for Ray will be held at 7:00 p.m. on Friday, November 30, 2012 from Park Funeral Chapel, 311-3rd. Ave. North, Saskatoon. Divine Liturgy will be celebrated at 10:30 a.m. on Saturday, December 1, 2012 from Sts. Peter and Paul Ukrainian Catholic Church, 1202 Munroe Avenue. Interment will follow in Hillcrest Memorial Gardens. Ray's family would like to thank the Doctors and Nursing Staff on the Palliative Care Unit at St.Paul's Hospital. If friends and family desire, memorial donations may be made in Ray's name to the Salvation Army (339 Avenue C South Saskatoon, SK S7M 1N5). To send online condolences to the family, visit www.parkfuneral.ca "Obituaries and Tributes". Arrangements entrusted to Greg Lalach, Park Funeral Chapel, 306.224.2103.
"To get through the hardest journey we need take only one step at a time but we must keep on stepping."