Jean Hovrisko

Prayers will be held Friday, April 14, 2023 at 7:30 pm from St. Joseph Roman Catholic Church, Langenburg.

Funeral Service will be held Saturday, April 15, 2023 at 2:00 pm from St. Joseph Roman Catholic Church, Langenburg.

Interment to follow at St. Joseph Roman Catholic Church parish cemetery.

With heavy hearts, the family of Jean Hovrisko announces her passing on January 27, 2023, at 82 years of age.

Jean was born Oct. 28, 1940, in Yorkton, Sask, to Cecil and Sadie Klingman. She lived on the family farm near Stornoway, Sask. until three years of age when the family moved to Stornoway for Jean’s older sister, Dorothy, to start school. Jean attended grades 1-9 in Stornoway and grades 10-12 in Yorkton. After completing high school at Yorkton Collegiate in 1959, Jean started nursing school at Yorkton General Hospital, graduating as a Registered Nurse in 1962 and working at the newly built Yorkton Union Hospital from 1962-1964.

On June 29, 1963, Jean married Paul Hovrisko; they moved to Langenburg in 1964 where Paul started his career at the mine and Jean worked at the Langenburg Union Hospital. In 1966, they built their family home where they raised their family, retired and where Jean lived until her passing. In her earlier years Jean was involved as a volunteer with local minor sports programs including baseball, softball, figure skating and a season or two behind home plate as an umpire.

After the closure of the Langenburg Hospital, Jean returned to work in Yorkton, initially at the nursing home then at the Yorkton Union Hospital on the medical wards. She retired from nursing in 2005.

Until days before her passing, Jean stayed in touch with many of her nursing classmates. From the class reunions over the years in Ottawa, Vancouver Island, or Good Spirit Lake to the monthly lunches in Yorkton, Jean cherished these lifelong friendships. By all accounts, including many stories and pictures as evidence, this group of ladies played as hard as they worked.

Jean was soft-spoken and modest, rarely speaking of her accomplishments or successes. Around her friends and family however, she had a great sense of humor, loved a good practical joke and was always up for an adventure. She was very patient and gentle, qualities which made her an excellent nurse. Her warm smile and bright eyes could light up a room. It was hard to miss her flair for fashion. Jean was an accomplished shopper and was always well-dressed with an impressive collection of shoes, jackets and sweaters. She still insisted on Boxing Day shopping for “maybe a new sweater” in late December. Always predictable, she bought not one, but three new sweaters and loved her final shopping trip.

After Paul’s passing in 2006, Jean, newly retired, became very independent. Her grandchildren were her world. She made many trips to Calgary on her own to be part of their lives. There were few home repairs Jean would not at least attempt on her own, with a butter knife her tool of choice.

Jean was very active until days before she became ill. She was a lifetime walker and could often be seen on one of her many routes in the morning and cruising around on her bike in the evening. She loved to curl in the winters and always looked forward to the many bonspiels in the area. Jean also loved to golf and openly admitted she was not very skilled but loved the exercise and many laughs with her golfing crew. She was also a big sports fan with a love for the Blue Jays and the Riders, forever in training as an armchair coach/GM for whichever team called first. She was also a curling fan watching most major events on TV and attending the Brier in person three times. Jean was also a hockey fan and one of her grandson’s biggest supporters as she cheered him on at many WHL and AHL games at arenas across Canada.

Jean was happiest at home. She was an amazing cook, a skill and a love she learned from her mother, Sadie. It was impossible to leave Jean’s house hungry and there were always leftovers for days. She also enjoyed gardening in her younger years and always maintained a beautiful yard.

Besides her home, Jean’s other happy place was Lake of the Prairies. Before Paul’s passing, they spent several summers at Killman’s. She loved to fish and had plenty of fish tales and memories with family and friends. On a mid-summer day, Jean would often sneak in a short nap on the boat with her rod unattended.

Jean treasured time with her family making memories in bigger ways like vacations to Mexico, Dominican Republic, and Phoenix to name a few, but also doing simple things like playing cards and dice games, baking cookies, making cabbage rolls or coloring Easter eggs. Loving and caring for others was her life’s work. She instilled those same values in her children and grandchildren by how she lived every day.

Jean was predeceased by her husband of 43 years, Paul (2006), her parents Cecil (1991) and Sadie Klingman (2011) and her sister, Dorothy Milgaard (1994).

She will forever be remembered by her children, Michelle (Kade) Klimchuk and Marlin (Melodie Totton) Hovrisko and three grandchildren, Morgan Klimchuk and Jayme Klimchuk of Victoria, BC and Alexa Hovrisko, of Calgary, AB, her sister, Joyce (Jack) Burkell of Yorkton, Sask, and several nieces, nephews and cousins.

Many thanks to Carly Bergman, Tina Costello, Jenny Rumancik and the Langenburg Home Care team as well as the nursing staff at the Esterhazy Centennial Special Care Home for the excellent care provided to mom and the family support at a difficult time.