Obituary of Eva Isobel Andersen

   Eva Isobel Doonan was born October 29, 1934, the fifth of six children born to John and Violet Doonan, and the fourth of five daughters. Eva grew up on the Doonan farm in Elmvale Ontario. Her nephews Bert and John Doonan still live and work on the farm; which has been in the family for over 160 years.

   Eva was the smallest of the family, and said she was always teased growing up. But as she proudly stated, she was the only one of the family to complete high school, and went on to earn a college diploma in Business.

   Eva almost drowned at Wasaga Beach when she was 16 years old. She and three friends had been wading from sandbar to sandbar when she went beyond her depth. Two American tourists heard the cries for help, and searched below the water’s surface to find Eva lying on the bottom. They pulled her to shore, and policeman Ernest Weaver applied artificial respiration until a doctor arrived on the scene. They worked on Eva for 15 minutes before she regained consciousness.

   When Eva was in high school, she dreamed of seeing the mountains in Banff. In July 1956, she and her older sister Margaret came to Calgary and stayed with their cousin Hubert Coutts. The very first night they arrived, they went down to the Calgary Stampede with their cousin Bert Doonan. Bert pointed out a tall blond haired man that he worked with on the postal train on the railway – Ray Andersen from Cappon Alberta. Eva met him in person a few days later… and on October 12, 1957 they were married. They honeymooned near Blairmore AB, staying in the little teepee motels. They made their home in northwest Calgary. Ray, still with Canada

Post, became a mail carrier with his own route; and Eva worked in the Accounts Receivable department of the General Hospital. In September 1962 they welcomed a blond haired little daughter, who they named Sheila Rae. And in June 1965 the birth of their son Jerry Melvin completed the family.

   In 1967 Ray, Eva and children moved out to the farm at Cappon where Ray had grown up; and Ray’s uncle, Martin Andersen, moved into their house at Banff Trail in Calgary. Eva, having grown up on a farm, was very happy to be back living in the country. Sheila and Jerry took all of their schooling in Oyen, 26 miles away, with Raymond and Alice Yake safely delivering them back and forth over the many miles of gravel roads.

   Ray and Eva loved to dance. They had so much fun going out while they lived in Calgary. And after moving to the farm, they attended all the Legion dances, Cappon sports days and picnics, and Cappon dances. They thoroughly enjoyed visiting with neighbors; visits which often resulted in impromptu jam sessions.

   Ray and Eva lived in the original farmhouse, which was actually two houses joined together. During storms, snow would drift inside the house by the windowsills! So it was very exciting when they built a new home in 1982. Sheila and Jerry arranged a surprise housewarming / 25th anniversary party. It was a great evening with family and friends alike coming out to help celebrate.

   It was just a year later that Ray found out he had colon cancer. He passed away on July 30, 1985. Jerry, just 20 years old, took on the responsibilities of the farm; and is still actively farming there today.

   With Ray’s passing, Eva’s grit and determination truly came forward. She began waitressing at the Tumbleweed Restaurant, and did catering with Doris Peters. In 1988, she started working at BJ’s / Debmart, a job she held for 26 years, right up until her 80 th birthday.

   Eva also joined the Oyen Legion. She served with the Legion Ladies for many years, and was awarded her Lifetime Membership Award in April 2024. She was honored to be the flag bearer for Remembrance Day ceremonies. She always held the very utmost respect for Sergeant at Arms John Dzuiba.

   Eva loved music and came from a very musical family. Her father played the mouth organ and was a caller for square dances. Her mother played piano and loved to sing. And her uncles on her mother’s side were accomplished musicians, who played in orchestras and bands. Eva put together a band with Ann Goodine on piano, Mary Anhorn playing guitar, and Eva playing accordion, which she taught herself to play. The accordion was almost bigger than her!

   Grandchildren started to arrive, and were the light of Eva’s life. Sheila had three sons: Christopher (1992), Kalen (1993) and Liam (1995), and Jerry had two children: daughter Rayla (2007) and son Jaden (2009). Grandma Eva always had time to read stories and play games. One time she hid leprechaun treasure (gold chocolate coins) out in the pasture! Favorite snacks were always on hand. Eva enjoyed taking her grandchildren on trips. She said it gave her the chance to “see things through the eyes of a child”. As they got older, they would help Grandma Eva in the store, filling the pop coolers or mopping floors.

   Eva was a great cook. Her busiest time was branding. She would start baking pies (at least four), squares and buns the day before; make salads the morning of – trying one new recipe each year; and then cook a variety of meat dishes – usually three entrees - in the afternoon. Everything was ready in time for the thirty or more people who would be there for supper.

   Eva did beautiful handiwork: knitting, counted cross stitch, embroidery, tatting, and quilting. She always had a project on the go, until she developed macular degeneration in 2011. She needed to go for monthly injections in both eyes for the rest of her life – 14 years.

   Eva loved to travel. Road trips, bus trips, train trips, ferry rides, even a bingo cruise! Some of the places her travels took her to were Banff, Jasper, Peace River, Victoria, Churchill, Watrous, the Maritimes, Jackpot and Reno Nevada, Disneyland and Disneyworld, Hawaii, Cabo San Lucas, England and Scotland, Ireland, Switzerland, the Nordic countries, and China. And of course, every 3 months or so she would head down to Medicine Hat for a ‘stress trip’: three to four days of shopping in the morning, bingo in the afternoon and again in the evening, always staying at the Medicine Hat Lodge.

   In 2021, through the combination of ancestry.ca and the court decision to unseal Ontario adoption records, Eva was reconnected with her two nephews - Dr. Peter Scott, and James Nopper; and her niece Nancy Hammond. Nancy, the youngest, who had been a baby at the time of her adoption, was 65 years old when this happy reunion occurred! Eva had always known that the three were out in the world, and it brought her so much joy these past four years to have this family back again.

   Health issues started to become a concern for Eva in her later years. In 2014, just a week after she turned 80, Eva required a major surgery, spending three weeks in Medicine Hat hospital, and another three in Oyen. As a consequence of this surgery she developed a large hernia, which would plague her for the remainder of her life. In April of 2022 Eva suffered a minor stroke, and moved down to assisted living in Meadow Ridge Seniors’ Home in Medicine Hat. In 2024, she had some complications when cataracts were removed from both eyes. Next it was determined she had diabetes. And then in May of 2025 it was discovered that Eva had breast cancer. In spite of all these medical challenges, she kept forging on. The consulting surgeon regarding the cancer said Eva reminded her of the saying “Keep Calm and Carry On”.

   Eva celebrated her 91 st birthday on October 29, 2025. It was a full week of festivities – visits from Jerry and Jaden, out for supper twice, a shopping trip, and an afternoon at Top Hat bingo. Eva thoroughly enjoyed every second of it. It was totally unexpected when Eva was rushed to Emergency just four days after her birthday. The hernia had finally gotten the upper hand. 36 hours after being admitted to hospital, Eva passed away peacefully at sunrise on Tuesday November 4 th

   Eva is survived by her children Sheila (Del Pratt) and Jerry Andersen; grandchildren Christopher Schuler, Kalen Schuler, Liam (Cynthia) Schuler, Rayla Andersen and Jaden Andersen; Vaughn Schuler; Sarah Pashovitz; her nieces and nephews; and all those who loved her.