Obituary of Eveline Péloquin

It is with deep sadness that we announce the passing of our wonderful mother, grandmother, and great-grandmother, who passed peacefully on Monday, May 3, 2021 at St. Pierre-Jolys Repos with her children by her side. Eveline was a fighter and overcame many obstacles in her life with endurance and positivity. Through it all, she continued to find joy within her family and their successes.

Left to mourn her passing are her five children, Bernard, Nicole, Lynne (Danny), Luc (Pat), and Brigitte (Brad), 10 grandchildren and numerous great-grandchildren, her brother Norman Nault, sister-in-law Berthe Péloquin, brother-in-law Émile (Doreen) Péloquin and her friend Marie Neveux.

She was predeceased by her parents Léontine and Eugene Nault, her best friend and husband of 59 years Dénis Péloquin, her sisters Lorraine Levacque and Claudette Banville, her daughter Marie, her grandson Matthew Péloquin, and many other relatives and friends.

Mom grew up at, La Coulee des Nault’s, in La Rochelle, Manitoba. Mom was a strong advocate in education; she finished her “École Normale” and taught at schools in Saskatchewan and Manitoba for several years. She spent some years teaching hand in hand with her mother Léontine. At the age of 21, she married the love of her life, Dénis Péloquin. Mom and Dad took over the dairy farm and land with the help of Albert Péloquin. Mom stopped teaching to raise five children and help with various farm duties. She was not afraid of work and helped on the farm by driving tractors, maintaining a garden, and helping out during harvest season. Mom would invite many of the workers during harvest season to enjoy tasty home cooked meals, which included her canned goods, garden vegetables, and baked treats. She instilled in all of us, the love of cooking, canning, and the joy of growing our own vegetables.

In 1975, Mom and Dad finally decided to sell their business to enjoy retirement and gain some freedom. At this time, they decided to travel and ended up discovering their second home in Yuma, Arizona. They visited Yuma every winter for over 10 years and made many friends there over the years. Mom and Dad were very close and spent their time fishing, travelling, playing Backgammon, dominos, and other card games.

Mom always had a nurturing disposition. She had a calming presence which was warm and inviting. Friends, family members, and neighbours would stop in frequently for coffee, nieces and friends would spend summers on the farm, and workers would return and camp in the yard while passing through town. Mom always had a soft spot for her mother and father, in which she devoted all her time to take care of them. Mom instilled in all of us, empathy, and compassion.

Eveline also had a competitive nature. During her time in Arizona, she would enter shuffleboard tournaments and would come back every year with plaques and trophies that she had won over the winter. She raced snowmobiles as a young adult and loved to ride with their crew, “The Rat River Snowmobile Club”. She enjoyed her time with her many friends from St. Pierre.

She was also ahead of her time and would advocate for women, especially for her daughters. She would continually tell us to fight for what we wanted and to not let anyone take over our spirit. Mom encouraged us to get our own bank accounts, make our own decisions, be independent, and speak our mind (maybe we took that last one a little too far at times). She constantly told us that we could achieve anything if we set our mind to it and persevered.

Mom was a fighter and fought through many difficult times, the death of her daughter and grandson, the house fire that took everything, and the many surgeries she had over the years. Through it all, she persevered and never gave up, even when things looked dim. She always said, “everything happens for a reason”. With Dad by her side and her religious beliefs, she went with the strides and made the best out of difficult situations.

Mom, you will be sadly missed by those left behind. You were a true leader for your children and taught us so many values over the years. You were there to support us, even through the silly stuff we did, and there were many of them! You taught us compassion, empathy, and strong leadership. You are an inspiration to us all and we hope we can instill all of these qualities in our own children and grandchildren. It is now your time to live in peace, with no pain. Play cards and shuffleboard, sing with your sisters, joue à la Barouche, and continue to do your crossword puzzles to keep that mind sharp. We love you so much.

We would also like to express our love and gratitude to all the staff members at St. Pierre Jolys Repos. Thank you for your kindness and support during Eveline’s stay; you are all so amazing! A special thanks to Joelle and Jennifer at the Repos; you two have helped the family tremendously during these last 6 years and have given extra help, care, and compassion when needed.

Cremation has taken place and a celebration of life will be held on Monday, May 10^th, at 1:00 p.m. at Birchwood Funeral Chapel. Unfortunately, due to Covid, only the immediate family will be able to attend.