Helen Lorraine Atkinson

It is with great sadness and heavy hearts that we say goodbye to our mother, Helen Atkinson. After a long and courageous time with advanced cancer, mom passed away on Sunday, October 9th, 2016 at the Swan Valley Health Centre. She was 79 years old.

Helen leaves behind her three children and grandchildren, son Darren (Vickie) Atkinson, Kass (Amber), Matt (Sabrina) and Kelsey; daughter Marilyn (Joel) Delaurier, Melissa (Ron) Badger, Dillon Johnson and daughter Maxine (Scott) Larway, Ryley and Mckenzie and several great grandchildren. She is also survived by four siblings, Mary (Rex), John (Jean), Henry (Kay) and Margaret, with numerous grandchildren, great grandchildren and special friend Irvin Hiebert. Helen was predeceased by her husband Verne, her son Darrel Atkinson, parents, George and Mary Goertzen and siblings, Anne and George.

Helen was born in Winkler Manitoba on October 31, 1936 and moved to Gladstone in 1950 where she was raised until leaving home at the age of 16. She was raised with 6 siblings. Between 1952 and 1961, Helen moved back and forth between Portage, Winnipeg and Calgary and worked mainly in the healthcare field as a Nurses Aid. She met the love of her life, Verne Atkinson, in 1961 in Winnipeg (Verne was fresh out of the Navy) and soon after they moved to Durban to reside with parents, Mina and Marvin Atkinson to work in the family logging/sawing business. Over the next 10 years, Verne and Helen lived in several places in the valley and away and often in the bush as they worked hard to build up their own business. Helen was often camp cook. They finally settled back in the valley in 1971 where they took over the family farm and started up Intermountain Logging. In 1974, they built a new home 6 kms south of Durban. Helen and Verne continued to farm and log over the next several years spending summers camping and boating and winters ski-dooing, when not working. Helen worked for the Personal Care Home in Swan River for several years and finally took a full retirement in 1996. She had also enjoyed volunteering with the Royal Purple. Helen stayed on the family farm until 1996 when she moved into Swan River.

Mom was an amazing, unbelievable strong, independent women. She never once, in 6 years, complained nor dwelled on the cancer.

She took every day as it came, no different than the way she lived her life with dad. Mom, we miss you so much and we are so proud of you. You may be gone from this world, but you will forever remain in ours.

Helen will be buried in the Durban Cemetery beside her late husband. The service will be held in private. In lieu of flowers, donations graciously accepted in Helen’s memory to the Swan Valley Health Facilities Foundation – Palliative Care, Box 1450, Swan River, MB R0L 1Z0.