Obituary of Mary Amelia Bueckert

Mary Amelia Bueckert (nee Card) passed away at 6:45 a.m. on Monday, November 13, 2023, at the age of 83, at the Victoria General Hospital, Winnipeg, Manitoba.

She was born on December 9, 1939, to Thera Elizabeth and Delbert Frederic Card. Mary was an only child born and raised in Winnipeg, the daughter of a Fuller Brush salesman for western Canada. Her mother, Thera, was a nurse in Chicago, Illinois, before the couple came to Canada and started their family. The Card family were active members of the Bethany Baptist Church then on Portage Ave in Winnipeg.

Mary married Gordon Bueckert on December 5, 1981. Together they continued to make their lives in Winnipeg, being active and influential members of many community and church organizations travelling across the America’s for both pleasure and history. Together they hosted and sponsored many, many individuals from overseas who were travelling to Canada on a cultural or work exchange program through MCC or were studying in Canada. These young people were nurtured and cherished while living with Gord and Mary; spending many hours studying together with Mary and being introduced to the Canadian culture and God’s love for them uniquely. 

She was predeceased by both her parents and her parents-in-law. 

She leaves to mourn her husband and soulmate Gordon Bueckert, many friends that became chosen family as well as the nieces, nephews and great nieces and nephews and great-great nieces and nephews she was so proud of. 

If you had the privilege of knowing Mary, you knew what it was to be loved and valued by her. She had the ability to genuinely care for and cherish so many people, their life goals, their attributes, their birth, and anniversary dates and precisely how many days it would take Canada Post to deliver that card from her house to yours. 

Mary followed her mothers’ footsteps and became a nurse, graduating from The Winnipeg General Hospital School of Nursing in 1961. She was a practicing nurse in the Winnipeg General Hospital, now the Health Sciences Hospital, and very quickly was promoted to the nurse on the floor who trained the others. In 1969, she graduated from the University of Manitoba with her Bachelor of Nursing and became an integral part of continued training for nurses seeking their certification. However, she knew this was not to be the career she would remain in.  As policies changed, she realized her place in the world was to teach the fundamentals to aspiring nurses prior to them being on the floor. Nothing was more important to Mary than attention to detail, compassion and taking the time to provide both. As a working woman she returned to school part time. She continued nursing and training young nurses in the values she so treasured while working on her master’s degree in the evenings and weekend. In 1988, Mary received her Master of Education from the University of Winnipeg. Being able to teach and coach nursing was her passion and she did this for many years before slowing down and taking a role as a professor at the Steinbach Bible College where she retired in 2004.

Retirement was not a time to be idle. Mary always believed active involvement in her community was a valuable asset. She took active roles in many church functions and organizations, always playing an integral role in hosting events, keeping tidy minutes and having a memory that was relied upon. As a couple they travelled together on missions’ trip to Paraguay in 2005, helping with construction while there. In 2009, they took part in a "Mennonite Your Way" travel across North America ending up in Paraguay again for the World Mennonite Conference. Travel was not reserved for work only, they also travelled for pleasure and to show up for those who they loved dearest. Fredericton, Los Angeles, Disneyland were some of the stops mentioned although there will have been many more. Most recent years they spent travelling across Manitoba and Saskatchewan to play an ever-present role in their extended families lives.

Mary’s faith was who she was to the core. Her most recent marking in her Bible had her reading Colossians. A magnet on her fridge reads: Rooted and built up in Christ, overflowing with thankfulness, Colossians 2:7.

The viewing will take place Friday, November 17, 2023 from 6:00 p.m. to 8:00 p.m. with a devotional at 7:00 p.m. at St. Vital EMC, Winnipeg, MB.

The funeral service will be held on Saturday, November 18, 2023, at 11:00 a.m. at St. Vital EMC, Winnipeg, MB.