It is with sadness that the family of Aida Junio Dyck of Steinbach, MB announces her passing on Wednesday, Oct. 15, 2008 at Riverview Health Centre in Winnipeg after a courageous battle with cancer. Just days earlier, Aida had spent part of the Thanksgiving weekend at our Buffalo Point cottage with members of the family and visited with some friends, as she had with so much enjoyment for many years. Grieving her passing are her husband Peter of 38 years, twin daughters Leilani Kagan (and cherished grandson Joshua Kagan) and Lisa Stiver (Dan), all of Winnipeg; sister Antonette of Torrance, Calif. and brothers Agapito and Arnold of the Philippines. She is also fondly remembered by brother-in-law Jake Dyck (Dianne), their children Tyler and Kassandra, and sisters-in-law Helene Dyck and Anne Janz and her children Leighton and Natasha, as well as her father-in-law, Jacob A. Dyck, all of Steinbach, extended family members and the innumerable friends she cultivated and cherished. She was predeceased by her parents, Antonio and Evelyna (Tibay) Junio of the Philippines and by brothers Andres, Alexander, Armando and Abraham, also of the Philippines. Aida, the eldest in her family, was born in Villadolid in Negros Occidental province, Philippines, where she was raised by her doting grandparents. She went on to study medicine and medical technology at the University of Santo Tomas in Manila, Asia’s oldest university. Seeking adventure, in 1964 she left her homeland for the United States, studying and working at hospitals in New Jersey and Michigan. A chance glance at a job application in a medical journal brought her to the laboratory at Bethesda Hospital in Steinbach in 1967, a point from where, she believed, she could work for a time and then return to the United States. Those plans soon changed. Late in 1969 she met Peter, her husband-to-be, a rookie reporter at The Carillon. They were married Oct. 30, 1970 in Steinbach. The couple’s twin daughters were born on Feb. 9, 1973 and Aida quickly threw herself into a new role while still pursuing her career at the hospital. She retired from the job six years later to devote herself full time to her family. She spent years and countless hours driving her daughters to and from Winnipeg for lessons, sometimes four and five times per week. Her efforts were rewarded over the years as her daughters matured and went on to further their education under her unwavering support and devotion. She was determined that they be well equipped to find their way in life. She was also quick to embrace her daughters’ life partners into the expanding family. The latest joy in her life arrived in 2000 when her grandson was born and she was again able to apply her maternal skills by spending all the time possible with Joshua, especially very early in his life when she resumed her near-daily trips to Winnipeg to care for him. She deeply believed a child cannot experience too much love. Health concerns emerged several years ago, culminating last October with a diagnosis of cancer. We thank all the friends who have supported Aida and our family over the last year, also Dr. Gary Harding and Cindy Pearce, RN, of CancerCare MB, for their extraordinary efforts and encouragement as they cared for Aida. We appreciate as well the nurses of the St. Boniface palliative care unit and Riverview Health Centre’s E-3 wing palliative care unit who cared for Aida and our family members as if they were their own. In lieu of flowers, donations may be made to charities of choice, particularly those devoted to children. A public celebration of Aida’s remarkable life will be held Thursday, Oct. 30 at 4:00 p.m. at Steinbach 55 Plus Centre, Chrysler Gate and Highway 12 south.