Margaret Merle (Newbury) Gervais

Mrs. Margaret Gervais passed away peacefully at the Galloway Health Centre (Long-Term Care), Oxbow, SK. on Tuesday, June 24, 2025 at the age of 94. 

She was predeceased by her parents William and Ivy Newbury; husband Paul in 2005; older brother Dennis Newbury; special sister Rita Murray; and all of her Gervais in-laws. 

Margaret is survived by her brother David (Peg), sister Shirley; seven children: John Gervais, Tony Gervais, Denise (Ken) Young, Dennis (Tammy) Gervais, Donovan (Valorie) Gervais, Melanie (Wade) Warner, and Shannon (Mike) Biberdorf; sixteen grandchildren: Derek Mazur, Tim (Lori) Gervais, Chantel (Scott) Cameron, Tasha (Corey) Lees, Derek Young, Amy Gervais (Jeff Barrett), Jill (Jason) Zyla, Lana (Adam) Walliser, Matthew Gervais (Bonnie Wakefield), Devon (Jena Mae) Gervais, Jennifer (Kayle) Swanson, Brendon Warner, Jonathan Warner, Kelsey (Kenton) Mathison, Bailey Warner (Neil Braun), Mason Biberdorf; twenty-five great-grandchildren: Myah, Hayden, Braxton, Jessica, Mason, Tayla, Daniel, Alexander, Lennox, Emma, Kyla, Becca, Lachlan, Arlo, Finlay, Ryker, Cooper, Taryn, Karson, Daxon, Milo, Rhett, Nova, Quade, and Charlotte.

A public funeral service was held at St. Peter Lutheran Church, Oxbow, SK. on Monday, June 30, 2025 at 11:00 a.m. with Pastor Adrian Kramer officiating. A private family burial took place later in the day at St. Raphael Roman Catholic Cemetery, Cantal, SK.

Donations in memory of Margaret can be directed to the Bow Valley Villa, Box 207, Oxbow, SK. SOC 2BO.

Eulogy (delivered by son, Dennis at the funeral service for Margaret)

Thank you for coming to pay tribute to my Mom today. She would be humbled and honoured, but she would have said you must have had something more important to do. But I want to welcome you as my Mom would have.....You drove a long way, how were the roads, did you have lunch? I wish I could make you something to eat and maybe a cup of tea. That was my Mom, always wanting to feed and care for you.

Margaret Merle Newbury was born right here in Oxbow to William and Ivy Elizabeth Newbury. She was the second child of 5, a little sister to Dennis. I recently found out that my Mom and her older brother, once walked into town with their Dad, and when they returned hours later, she was greeted with a baby sister Shirley. This is funny because I've been teased for years about a similar situation in our family. Totally unaware that I was getting a baby sister, until she turned up on the doorstep, well not in a box, but a surprise just the same. I think Dovovan was pretty surprised too.

She recieved her schooling in Alida in a 2 room school house that included 12 grades. She enjoyed her school time, especially the singing and writing. She had beautiful hand writing well into old age.

Family life with little money, and her father's varied and intermittent working career, home was not likely story book material. My grandfather fought in World War I, enlisting underage after his 18 year old brother was killed in action. My Dad often said “men that go to war come back broken” and this was probably the case with my Grandpa. He and Granny came to Canada from England with $26 and the clothes they carried, and started a new life in 1926. Times were lean for their family, and photos of that time, show meager surroundings.

Mom once told a story to our eldest, trying to give her an appreciation of gifts. She said one Christmas, all she recieved was an orange. 4 year old Amy couldn't grasp the depth of the story, and said “Grandma, why didn't you just ask for something more”? Mom also relayed stories of toes sticking to the frosty nails in a cold house on a winter morning, when only a wood stove provided the heat for the whole house. They lived in several homes in around Alida area, as my grand parents never owned a car, their own home or land their entire lives.

Mom started her working career as a young teenager, cleaning big homes in Alida. About this time in 1947, she met a handsome young man, Paul Gervais. We recently asked her why she married Dad, she said “he was the only one who came to visit”. We all laughed as at 17 she was a tall, dark and pretty young woman, who probably turned a few heads. Those visits led to a marriage on November 24, 1947 in Alida in a blizzard.

She wore a beautiful full length satin dress, which is hanging in my sisters closet right now. She said it cost quite a lot. She purchased in Brandon on a trip with Dad. Another intersting tidbit, her going away outfit was a 2 piece jacket and skirt, with matching hat and shoes. When asked not long ago, where she got that, she said from a door to door travelling salesman. Mom said it didn't cost too much, and it fit perfect. They honey mooned in Winnipeg for a few days, and celebrated with a wedding dance when they returned.

The first winter they lived in a suite above the pool hall, which Dad owned at the time. I believe he sold this in 1948, and moved to the farm, one mile north of Alida. They lived in a small building which we turned into a granary years ago, it was small. Also in 1948, they started building a new house. Grandpa who was a handyman and labourer helped Dad build the house. He and Granny actually lived with them for awhile. As life often happens after marriage the children started showing up, in quick succession.

John 1950, Tony 1952, Denise 1954, her favorite in 1956, Donovan 1958. Then as Mom recently shared with us, she said she had always wanted another little girl. Denise was alone in the middle of all those brothers, and lo and behold, she got 2. Melanie 1965 and Shannon 1967. This rounded out the flock to an even 7. There was a Doris Day movie from 1968 titled “With 6 you get Egg rolls” but with 7 you get chaos, noise, many lunches, torn clothes, skinned knees, broken bones, burned fingers, crashed cars, loud motorcycles, runny noses, cards with macaroni glued on, bouquets of dandy lions, sleepless nights with sick kids, but you also get tremendous joy, happiness and love. I have vivid memories of Mom at the sink doing dishes, and Dad coming in and snuggling up behind her with a hug, and resting his chin on her shoulder and whispering in her ear, as they gazed out the window. Simple admiration and devotion.

Mom was busy to say the very least, with kids in boy scouts, volleyball, baseball, basketball, 4H and skating. She wore out a few station wagons constantly ferrying kids to and fro. I'd be remiss in not mentioning, she did garden a bit. I say that tongue in cheek, as I can atest to pulling weeds in what seemed like 40 acres of peas, potatoes and corn, a huge garden by any standards. In the midst of all this busyness, Mom and Dad would take time to relax to go square dancing with friends. We have photos of them attired in their fancy matching outfits that she had created.

As if that didn't fill Mom's days enough, she became a 4H leader, then president of home and school, many years in the Cantal CWL and Alida housing board, 28 years on the Alida rink auxillary, 25 years senior citizens auxillary, hours spent helping create the first Alida history books. She recieved a national award in 1988 called the Heart of Gold, for reporting and writing the Alida news for the Redvers, Carnduff and Oxbow weekly papers, for many years. Mom was also honoured with the Queens Diamond Jubilee medal in 2012 for her community volunteering. Nominated by her favorite local politician “Danny”

Oh yes and I failed to mention that she also drove school bus for many years, while juggling all those other positions. First as a contract driver with a VW bus, progressed to a little Ford van, and then onto station wagons, until she graduated to driving an Oxbow school division bus, for almost 20 years. Many of her little passengers benefited from her baking treats over the years.

Since we are on driving, her skills included, the fastest ever trip to Redvers with John to the hospital after a tractor fire. As my Dad would often say, she would “put it on the big wheel”. Another trademark action, was her outstretched arm when braking to secure the passenger before seat belts. Even when she was in the passenger seat she was ever vigilant keeping Dad from “resting his eyes” a term I still use. In later years, as a passenger herself she would often squeeze the door handle into submission and suck in a breath of air, every time someone didn't slow down at yield sign, or when I went thru a yellow light.

Mom only had one little “bump” all those years. The little bump as she called it, resulted in her having to go to the garage in Alida asking someone to pry the door open so she could get out, she was very embarassed. So one bump in all the miles she made in 70 years is a very good driving record.

Home life involved card games, whist and rummy were her favorites, but the grand kids remember Grandma teaching them how to play 31 and as Amy said knocking on 30 is a must. Card parties with Alex, Julia, Aunty Vic, Stephanie, and Gregor were not to be interupted with petty excuses, like bloody noses or skinned knees. The card game pot, was fought over as if it was the crown jewels, with Aunty Vic especially intent on winning, Mom not so much. Later when she lived at the Alameda Lodge, she learned how to play Canasta, a game which has more rules than a lawyers handbook, and doesn't seem like much fun to me. Mom adapted and learned all those rules even if she didn't have the satisfaction of calling rummy and have everyone groaning.

Bingo was another passion for Mom. She had a bunch of car pool bingo buddies, that travelled from town to town in search of blackout jackpots. She played so many cards at one time, it seemed to cover the whole table. She went down the row of cards like a data entry clerk after too much coffee, stamping the dabber with precision accuracy, never missing a number; as Kelsey said “clickety click 66”.

My Mom was an artist as a cake decorator. We have albums full of photos of her many wedding cake creations , multi tiered cakes with fountians or stairs circling the layers with fancy icing roses and florets and filigrees as dainty as a snowflake. Some were as much as 3 feet tall. She created literally 100's of cakes for weddings, birthday, baptisms, first communions over the many years.

Since we are on the topic of food, my Mom was the greatest cook of all, her butter tarts, and dainties were more coveted than gold. Donovan remembers a sea of donuts on the table, waiting to be cooked for our bellies. Mom could feed a family in record time, with all 4 gas burners blazing, heat coming out of the corner of the kitchen like a nuclear reactor. Dished up onto the table only to disappear to the gaping mouths of us kids who always seemed to be hungry. Cabbage rolls, pies of all flavors, mashed potatoes so smoothe, swimming in her mouth watering gravy, creamed corn or peas, a layered hamburger casserole that I have tried to recreate but can't, and the most amazing potato salad ever, which Melanie has now perfected. Not until we ate at other homes, did we realize how good we had it. On many occasions I remember a single older farmer, who conveniently showed up at supper time. We had a very short lane to the house, but Mom made sure we always had another plate on the table by the time he came through the door.

Mom had a quick tongue and a keen wit, often with her sister Rita, they would feed off each other, and soon be giggling like a pair of school girls. Rita being her favorite sister, being much alike in looks and in actions, although Rita had her beat, with quicker come backs. For years and years, Sunday mornings for Mom were punctuated by a “Hi Mugsy, how you doing” phone call from her little brother David, who was physically far away, but always close to his sister's heart.

Mom was a get it done person, not procrastinating, but being “on the ball” as she would say. In the years before she moved off the farm, one of her favorite sayings was “suck it up buttercup” referring to life and the things that happen, but we still have to go on. As time progressed she went from a go do it attitude to a more complacent attitude. She made the choice on her own to move to Alameda Lodge, then to the Bow ValleyVilla, then Gainsborough LTC, and her final stop at Galloway LTC.

And then her mantra changed to “It is what it is”. She had done so much for so long, and been such a strong assertive woman, she was just getting tired. She was ok with what the next turn in lifes road was going to be. I recently asked Mom, about any regrets. She said she had none and would change nothing. She also added if she did she certainly would not write them down. We gathered as a family planning this tribute to Mom, if we encountered a problem or a glitch in the plan, at least one of us would say......It is what it is...and then we would all laugh and then we would cry.

Mom you served many, you loved many and you made a difference in this world. Mom you have made the last turn and when we look back at your life, we can say with confidence, as it says in the Bible.

“ Well done my Good and Faithful servant ”

Written by son, Dennis Gervais

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