Eula Yvonne Preete (nee VanCamp) was born April 16, 1932 on her parents’ farm near Pathlow.  She was the second born child of Mary and Carroll VanCamp.  Eula and her brother Lyle went to school in the Shannonview district.  While living at home, Eula enjoyed going to local picnics in the summertime. She developed a love for softball and belonged to the local woman’s team.  It was at these picnics that Eula met Raymond Preete whom she later married on October 24, 1956.  This union was blessed with three children, Lois, Barbara and Elvin. 

When Ray and Eula were first married, Eula worked as a kitchen helper at Parkland Hospital.  In the spring of 1958, Ray and Eula moved onto the farm just outside of Melfort.  Farm life included many long and hard hours of work revolving around milking 10 cows by hand, gathering eggs from 600 chickens and growing a large enough garden to support her family plus many other relatives and community members.  Ray and Eula sold the milk, cream, and eggs to local families that would have the same standing order every week.  Many of you may remember that one wall of the kitchen held a large blackboard that kept a tally of the daily sales. It is impossible to calculate how many litres (quarts) of milk and cream and dozens of eggs that were sold to people in the community while Eula was on the farm.

Baking bread was one of Eula’s specialities.  Her cinnamon buns were pretty good too as I am sure her neighbours in Legion Place will attest.  Eula had a “green thumb” and could make just about anything grow and bloom.  She especially enjoyed flowers.  She grew sweetpeas in the garden, and gloxinias and Christmas cacti in the house.  She had a habit of sneaking “slips” off of plants that she saw in a garden or a greenhouse.  She would take those slips home and make them root in no time.

When Ray’s health began to decline in September 1994, the couple moved into town and lived at Diefenbaker Towers.  Life for Eula became much easier now that she had running water and no longer had to haul wood.  She liked to joke that she would flush the toilet just to enjoy the sound of running water!  Eula enjoyed living in Diefenbaker Towers and was active in the many activities that were held there.  Eula moved into Legion Place on Mother’s Day 2011 and was very active in the events that went on there are well.

On Eula’s 65^th birthday she was given a set of luggage and the travel bug bit her hard.  For Christmas the same year she was given a trip to Hawaii and never looked back!  On the plane ride home from Hawaii she asked Lois “Well, where are we going next?” Eula and Lois have travelled around most of Canada (not Newfoundland) and much of the United States.  She has cruised to Mexico, Costa Rica and been through the Panama Canal.  One of Eula’s wishes was to be able to take her family to Disneyworld which she did in 2001.  The most enjoyable trip that Eula had was seeing the Tournament of Roses Parade in Pasadena, California on New Year’s Day in 2007. She also enjoyed her trip to Vancouver in 2012 to see the week long firework competition held in English Bay.

Eula’s family was especially important to her.  She enjoyed family gatherings, meals together, and reminiscing.  She enjoyed playing cards and was especially good at playing

cribbage.  She and Ray would play cards every day and the wins and losses would be recorded on the blackboard.  The score was always very close!  She played cribbage with Lois right up until going into the hospital on October 7.  That win/loss record was very even.  Eula never had time to do any crafts when working on the farm and raising her family but she developed a love for latch hook rug making.  She hooked more than 50 rugs over the winters in Diefenbaker and Legion Place.  She also enjoyed making jigsaw puzzles and would spend hours looking for the right piece!

She had great pride in her family and their accomplishments and was particularly proud of her two grandchildren, Teejay and Ashley.  She was always interested in what they were doing and looked forward to their phone calls and visits.  They definitely had a special place in her heart!

Eula was predeceased by her parents, Mary and Carroll; her brother, Lyle; her daughter, Barbara (1980) and her husband Raymond (1998).  Left to celebrate her life are her daughter Lois, her son Elvin (Roxanne), her grandchildren Teejay (Elodie) and Ashley (Dusty) and many extended family members.

Eula did not want people to cry over her. She said she had lived a good life and had a long run. She made friends easily and even if she didn’t remember your name she was still happy when people she knew would stop and say hello.  In her last few days one of the emergency doctors told her he wished he had met her under different circumstances. She will be remembered for her sense of humour and her directness in most things.   Her passing has left a hole in a lot of people’s hearts.

Memorial Contributions in memory of Eula may be directed to a Charity of One's Choice