On the morning of December 16, 2011, Peter Heinrichs Hiebert, of Nanaimo, British Columbia quietly left us. His eldest son, Reg and niece Evangeline Harris were with him when he passed and those who knew him best were with him in spirit as they held him in their thoughts that morning. Peter lived a full and eventful life which began the 11th of November 1920. Peter was the second eldest son of Maria and Peter Hiebert and he grew up with sisters Katherine, Marie, Ann and Doris. Brothers Edward, John, Jacob, Andrew, David and William brought the total to eleven children growing up on the family farm located close to Niverville. When Peter was sixteen, a great tragedy occurred. During a summer thunder storm lightening struck his mother leaving the large family motherless. Peter and his older sisters helped their father, Peter with raising the younger children. Peter took this very seriously and to this day some of his younger siblings still see him as a "father figure". The necessity of working on the farm made it impossible for Peter to finish High School but because of his inquisitive mind and strong work ethics this was never a hindrance to him. Being a progressive thinker, he went ahead and purchased the first farm tractor, a Massey, in 1941. While servicing the valued tractor, brother Andrew who was only 12 at the time passed by. Peter called him over and gave him lessons on servicing the tractor. At a young age, life's lessons had turned Peter into a teacher and he was always available with patience should someone need help or advice with a project. Because of Peter's mechanical skills, as a young man, he was employed by Martel's garage in St. Pierre. It was there; thru his boss's daughter that he met Yolande Sicotte. Both girls were captivated by the tall young man with the bright blue eyes and it wasn't long before Peter and Yolande were dating. A year and a half later they married on the 30th of August 1947. In the following years, beginning in 1951 three sons were born to them - Reginald, Brian and Ronald. During the early years of their marriage, Peter worked for Beaver Bus Lines and this involvement and interest in the bus business eventually led Peter to become a shareholder in Northern Bus Lines Ltd. This meant a move to Northern Manitoba and the family settled into Flin Flon in the year 1969. At that time, Northern Bus Lines had operations in Lynn Lake and Snow Lake as well as Flin Flon. Eventually, NBL became fully owned by Peter and a “family business" with all three of Peter's sons becoming involved, with each of them contributing their talents. Peter worked hard long hours to ensure the success of NBL. Though he did retire from the business, he was never truly retired and continued with important decision making for the rest of his life. Northern Bus Lines was his main passion in life and, through the ups and downs within the business, he remained truly dedicated. Peter had other passions in his life as well. He had a strong affinity to his Mennonite roots and spent countless hours researching the genealogy of his family which went so far as taking part in DNA research. Along with other members in the family, historical books on the Hiebert family have been put together so we all may share and enjoy the stories of the struggles and triumphs of our pioneer forefathers. Twice Peter and Yolande made trips to Russia and on one of those trips they visited the village of Peter's grandparents. Present family was just as important to Peter and Yolande. After retiring to Nanaimo, British Columbia over thirty years ago, they would make yearly visits home to their boys, zig zagging their way across the Prairie Provinces in order to visit with relatives along the way. A drive home to Flin Flon would often take them a week or more but they made sure they saw everyone they could along their way. Peter is survived by his loving wife Yolande, three sons Reg (Debbie), Brian (Julia) and Ron. He was blessed with six granddaughters: Carmen (David), Amanda, Beverley and Crystal, Jenny and Nicky and one great granddaughter, Hannah, and two great grandsons Kaylan and Hayden. As well, he is survived by sisters Ann Dyck (John) and Doris Hildebrand and brothers Andrew Hiebert (Bettie) and Jacob Hiebert (Betty) and their families as well as family members of his deceased siblings. There are so many nieces and nephews that Peter shared a bond with and he always had fond thoughts of them. A remembrance service will take place on Thursday, December 29th at 2:00 p.m. at Birchwood Funeral Chapel in Steinbach. Following the service interment will take place at the Hiebert Heritage Cemetery in Niverville. Following the interment a luncheon will be held at the Niverville Heritage Centre in the Atrium. Friends and relatives are welcome to attend. A service for the "British Columbia family" has already been held in Parksville, BC. Donations in Peter's memory may be made to The Hiebert Heritage Cemetery Inc. or a charity of one's choice. In a conversation with Peter just six months ago he expressed the joyful memories he had of his life especially of his boyhood growing up on the farm. He said when he closed his eyes he could still smell the sweet, sweet smell of the fields in mid-summer from so long ago. His life went thru many different eras, each with its own special memory for him. It's hard to sum up over nine decades of a person's life in one short essay but the words from the song "I Did It My Way" have special meaning: "I've lived a life that's full I travelled each and every highway And more, much more than this I did it my way Regrets I've had a few But then again too few to mention I did what I had to do And saw it through without exemption I planned each chartered course Each careful step along the byway And more, much more than this I did it my way." Rest in Peace With Love from Your Family