Obituary of Elinor Georgina Bardahl

BARDAHL, Elinor Georgina - Elinor Georgina (Anderson) died April 4, 2016 in Swift Current, Saskatchewan, just one week after the belated celebration of her 90th birthday. She was born March 11, 1926 in Cabri, the fourth of six children of Ingwald and Idella (Edwards) Anderson. Her childhood was spent on the Anderson family farm near Lancer. She took her public schooling at Ararat Springs School in the Lancer-Abbey area. Determined to get an education despite Ararat Springs not offering high school, she completed grades nine and ten by correspondence and worked for her room and board to finish grade eleven in Lancer and grade twelve in Swift Current. She then attended Teachers' College in Moose Jaw, graduating in June of 1945 after one year's training. Her short teaching career was at Jorgenson School in the Leinan district, 20 miles north of Swift Current. It was there that she met a local farmer, Kenneth Bardahl, marrying him on December 27, 1947 after teaching for two and one-half years. He had the job of hauling coal for the school furnace and it was joked that there was a coal supply that lasted for several years after their courtship. They raised their family of four children and resided in the Stewart Valley area until moving to Swift Current in 1993. Elinor took an active part in farm life, hauling grain during harvest and growing a huge garden to supply the family with pickles, jams, and canned and frozen food for the winter. Elinor was an excellent cook. Her grandchildren remember always finding their particular favourite cookies when they arrived for a visit. She sold Norwegian lefsa at the Farmers' Market in Swift Current and was known as the "Lefsa Lady" until she encouraged her son and daughter-in-law to take over the business. Elinor was a talented and capable seamstress, making many of her daughters' clothes, often with no new fabric and on short notice. She tried her hand at numerous creative endeavours, and after retirement from the farm concentrated on painting and artwork. She was a founding member of the 55 Plus Art Club and also belonged to the Southwest Artist Guild. Her specialty was Norwegian rosemaling. Elinor is remembered for her welcoming smile and endless patience. She loved to dance and couldn't sit still if good old-time dance music was being played. She enjoyed doing challenging cryptic crossword puzzles and playing card games (with elastic rules that, according to some of her grandchildren, sometimes seemed to bend in her favour). Elinor never shied away from a good competition and was a stickler for accuracy, arguing her position to the end. Elinor and Ken enjoyed travelling and visited many places, including the Holy Land and Scandinavia. She had many early New England ancestors and enjoyed seeing the locations associated with them in England and New England. She seemed to be able to sniff out her ancestors in cemeteries, frequently heading straight to their headstones. Mostly she will be remembered as a much-loved and much-loving family member: sister, aunt, mother, grandmother and great grandmother. She was predeceased by her husband Ken, sister Eunice Watson and brothers Robert and John Anderson. She is survived by two sisters: Helen Gillespie and Kathryn Foulds; four children: Joanne (Graham) Barnard, John (Patricia) Bardahl, Sandra Penny (Brian Barcham) and Craig (Melanie) Bardahl; ten grandchildren; fourteen great grandchildren; plus numerous nieces and nephews, step-family members and unrelated people who simply loved her and adopted her as "Grandma". The funeral will be held on Monday April 11, 2016 at 11 am at St. Olaf Lutheran Church in Swift Current. For further information or to sign the family book of condolence, visit www.parksidefuneralhome.com. Funeral arrangements have been entrusted to Parkside Memorial Funeral Home - Ryan Cappelle.