Obituary of Virginia Eloise Lockert

Virginia, 97, passed away peacefully on Saturday, July 8th, 2023 in her suite at College Park II, Regina. She had recently returned from a week in hospital where she had been treated for congestive heart failure, but had been stable enough to go back to familiar surroundings with her caregivers for what turned out to be her last days. She was happy to be home!

Born in Sovereign, Saskatchewan in 1926, Virginia was the eldest of 5 children. She had two sisters, Winona and Margaret, and two brothers, Bruce and Jack. Her parents, Birdie and Alfred Thomson, became homesteaders, acquiring a quarter section of land in the Meadow Lake area, clearing about 15 acres. Being the oldest, Virginia often helped with the chores: log splitting, milking the cows, feeding the chickens, and picking stones from the newly cleared fields. She was home-schooled by Birdie (trained as a teacher) until she was in Gr. 3. She then attended Ferris School, often commuting the 2-1/2 miles return trip on horseback. Ferris School only went to Gr. 10, so for Gr. 11-12 she attended Bedford Road School in Saskatoon, staying with a local Reverend and his family, and working with them for room and board. Following high school, she completed Normal School there and then began her teaching career. Early assignments included in Ferris School (1944-46), Rapid View School (1946-48) and Makwa School (1948-49) where she taught Gr. 1 - 3. It was in Makwa that she met her future husband, Roy. And the rest, they say, is history!

Married on August 16, 1949, Roy and Virginia settled as a couple in Morse, Saskatchewan, where Roy taught and was Vice-Principal at the new school. There they increased their family by 3: Carol, Mona and Elaine. After 10 years they moved to Saskatoon for a year, allowing Roy to complete his university education; then moved on to Hodgeville when Roy became Principal of the high school. There were 3 more additions to the family there: Colin and twins Mark and Mae. In 1963, the family of 8 moved to Regina, to a brand-new house and a new life in the big city! While Roy pursued various career opportunities, Virginia managed the household of 6 kids, soon to be 7 with the addition of Robin. The possessor of an amazing green thumb, she gardened and produced a bounty of vegetables and the prized tomatoes we all loved. She was an amazing baker, especially of the cinnamon buns, homemade bread, and strudel that we all devoured (even though she swore the strudel was never as good as Grandma Lockert’s!). She liked to sew and made clothes for the kids when time allowed and even made Carol’s wedding gown. She was involved in the CWL, and learned to play bridge (which sometimes caused her great stress). Retirement allowed them to spend thirteen happy seasons wintering in Mesa, Arizona. They enjoyed several years living at Marion Park (overlooking LeBoldus High School) in Regina, and when it became necessary to find some help for Roy, they moved into William Albert House in Emerald Park. Sadly, after sixty three years of marriage, Virginia was left to carry on by herself when Roy died there on November 28, 2012. She missed him every moment of every day.

Her final years were spent at College Park II, where she continued caring for her plants; took the occasional trip to the West Coast to visit the Blenders; many trips to the Farrer farm; trips to Carlyle to visit her sister; trips to Calgary to visit family there and enjoyed the many visits of her family. Her fierce independence and her love and devotion to her family was worthy of admiration, and sustained her for 97 years! A special thank-you to Bill Horbach and all her caregivers and staff at College Park II who did their best to make sure that she was happy and well cared for, even when that independence looked a lot more like a stubborn streak!

In addition to her husband, Virginia was predeceased by her parents, Alfred and Birdie Thomson; Roy’s parents Jacob and Eleanor Lockert; her sister, Winona; her brothers Jack and Bruce, son-in-law Randy Arthur and many brothers and sisters-in-law from both the Lockert and Thomson families. She is survived by her sister Margaret (Randy Krenz); by her sister-in law, Leila Thomson; by her children: Carol (Doug Blender); Mona; Elaine (Ken Friesen); Colin (Jacqui); Mark (Trina); Mae (Donn Farrer), and Robin. There are 16 grandchildren: James, Sean (Janice), Adam (Sarah) and Kevin (Amanda) ; Curtiss (Kelly), Kendra (Matt) and Kyle (Jennifer); Kelsey (Braden) and Julie; Mac (Brooke), Becky (Lee) and Ben (Jocelyn) ; Roy (Kelly), Ian and Lee (Taylor); and Amanda (Roberto). In addition there are 12 great-grandchildren: Tallulah and Elliott Blender; Lilyanne Blender; Viktor and Violet Blender; Grace, Hazel, and Lily Arthur; Madeline, Penelope and Charlotte Arthur; and Luke Lockert. As to extended family, there are many Lockert and Thomson nieces and nephews to carry the memories of Aunt Virginia. She was the last surviving individual of that era on the Lockert side, and what a legacy the descendants of Jacob & Eleanor and Alfred & Birdie have left the world!

Virginia's funeral will take place at St. Anne Parish, 1701 Cowan Crescent, Regina, SK on Wednesday, August 16, 2023, 1:00 p.m. Internment will take place at Riverside Memorial Park Cemetery following the service.