hdupuis@lethseniors.com

Martha Nance (née Carlson) was born and raised on the Milk River Ridge in the hamlet of Jefferson, Alberta. Jefferson no longer exists, but Martha recalls that it was a thriving little community. There were stores, churches, three elevators, teacherages, a garage, residential neighborhoods, and its own Owendale post office. Martha rode her bike while her friends rode their horses; she is not an “animal person.” Martha believes to this day that Jefferson’s schoolteachers sincerely cared about the children and helped them do well in life. Schools closed in Jefferson in 1960-61, and all the children were then bussed to Cardston for their formal education. Jefferson eventually disappeared due to transportation making a close place non-essential.
Martha defines herself as being part of the Baby Boomer generation. She was from a family of five children, and she was the youngest child. She says that as the youngest, she always knew she was “privileged” and never had to go without.
Martha’s father came from Sweden to Canada as a teenager, avoiding conscription into the Swedish army. He was sponsored by the Strom farm family of Burdett to emigrate but went back to Sweden before returning to Canada permanently with his brother and nephew.
Martha’s mother’s family came to Canada from Norway with one child, and they had five more children after settling in Canada. Martha’s mother was born in Saskatchewan. Martha’s Norwegian grandmother always remembered seeing the luxurious Titanic ship in Liverpool while they were setting off for Canada on a much lesser ship. Once in Canada, they took an “immigrant train” to Saskatchewan. Martha’s Norwegian grandfather never returned to Norway, but her grandmother was able to go back 50 years after arriving in Canada.
Martha’s parents met in Jefferson. Her parents did well in farming, and Martha says this gave her family a good life. She describes her parents as successfully working as a team to operate, maintain, and grow their farm. Martha learned many life lessons from her parents, with financial literacy being a very significant one. She understands the meaning of hard work and perseverance in keeping a family successfully afloat.
Martha first went to Sweden at age 12 with her family but says she is not much of a traveler. She recalls that what she experienced on her Swedish trip demonstrated the difference between rural Canada and urban European lifestyles. She does travel to see her daughters, who both reside in the mainland United States.
Martha graduated from Cardston High School, then moved in with her grandmother and attended Lethbridge Junior College, taking Business Administration. Martha met Dave Nance in Lethbridge. He was working for his father in farm machinery, then opened House of Books as the University of Lethbridge was being built. Martha and Dave married and had two girls. When the girls were 5 and 7 years old, the family moved to Pender Island (in the Vancouver Island channel); they operated the general store and post office. As parents, they became concerned about the negative teenage social circles, so Martha took the girls to live in Victoria to change their social networks to something more positive. Dave sold the general store and became “retired” at 47 years old. This required a big adjustment for them, and Dave had to adapt to new roles, including learning to cook and clean.
Martha recalls that she worked outside the home for about four years before their children were born. She describes herself as a “jack of all trades and master of none.” Martha says her most important role was as a wife and mother. She has always seen herself as more of a support person to others than a leader and is most comfortable in that role.
When both of their daughters were at the University of Victoria, Martha and her husband moved to Osoyoos, BC, for six to seven years. Then, in 1994, they moved to Lethbridge to be closer to her mother. Martha and her husband were married for over 51 years. She was widowed six years ago.
Martha enjoys gardening, and her lovely established yard is a testament to that. She likes to cook and bake, though she can resist many foods that tempt her—except for her 5 p.m. glass of red wine.
Martha considers herself a Tibetan Buddhist in her personal belief system and philosophy. She was introduced to this faith system via her daughter. Martha stated, “Being mindful would simplify our lives; mindfulness is the tool to have harmony and balance; we need compassion.” She says she is trying to follow a ‘Patient Path,’ accepting things as they are.
Martha, an LSCO member for about 20 years, still feels the organization’s Mission Statement rings true to her. She keeps active and volunteers in the kitchen and wherever she is needed. She also regularly volunteers for the Lethbridge Horticultural Society, especially at the flower gardens by the Henderson tennis courts.
Martha likes the outdoors, enjoying activities such as walking and kayaking in the summer. She enjoys most kinds of music, such as country, classical, and jazz. She also enjoys knitting and Wordle. She says she is reverting to her “youth of play” by enjoying activities like ladderball and card games. Martha believes it is important to smile and laugh and not get lost in negativity. “Don’t take yourself too seriously, or you will lose your ability to laugh at yourself.”
Martha lives by the rule: “If you don’t have anything nice to say about somebody, don’t say anything.” She is not a proponent of “sticks and stones may break your bones, but words will never hurt you,” as she says that “you can never take words back!”

Martha presents as a warm, friendly, and generous person, and I was pleased to learn this little bit more about her. She is a gift to the LSCO community!
Previous Member Spotlights can be found on our website at www.lethseniors.com/blog
If you are interested in being interviewed for a Member Spotlight please contact Hannah at hdupuis@lethseniors.com or 403-320-2222 ext. 302

Dorothy (nee: Brown) and William “Bill” Halma have been members of LSCO since about 2015. Dorothy can be found with the Knitters Group and William plays Crib and participates in Fit Ball.
Dorothy was born in Penticton, B.C. in 1945. She is the youngest of a family of 3 daughters. Her father was in the Canadian infantry in Normandy where he lost the use of a leg and became an amputee. Dorothy was raised in Banff, where she graduated in 1963 as part of Banff High School’s first graduating class. She then left at the age of 18 to attend secretarial school in Calgary while her parents remained in Banff. Dorothy has joyful childhood memories of Banff where ‘everybody knew everybody’. Over time, it would become a ‘tourist town’ with the town really “coming alive” from May to September.
William was born in the Netherlands in 1942, about a mile from the North Sea. He completed 6 years of formal education in the Netherlands before his family of 9 children came to Canada in 1954 for economic and security reasons. With Russia knocking on the doorstep of western Europe, William’s father believed that his children would have better prospects in Canada away from a communist system.
William’s mother went on to have three more children in Canada. William was placed in Grade 5 in Sunnyside School when the family arrived and he believes this school was a great introduction to Canada as many of his classmates were new Canadians. He learned a lot of English from comic books and Dick and Jane books. After moving to the Taber Area, William completed Grade 8 at Barnwell School when he was 16 before joining the Canadian Army in 1958 through the Soldier Apprentice Program. He was stationed for 2 years each at Shilo (Manitoba), Picton (Ontario), and with the Canadian Brigade in Hemer, Germany. In 1964, the ‘Honest John’ Nuclear Missile program was cancelled and William was offered a release or transfer to another unit. So, he returned to Lethbridge, then to Calgary to attend S.A.I.T in Land Surveying Technology (1964-65).
Growing up in Banff, Dorothy enjoyed sledding, outdoor skating, and walking across the ‘rink’ that was created over the Bow River in winter. In the summer, she climbed around Tunnel Mountain and rode bikes. She wanted to be a stewardess but did not meet the height requirements of the time and later discovered she doesn’t enjoy flying.
Willliam and Dorothy met in Calgary while he was a student at S.A.I.T and she was a clerk at the Calgary Police Service. They married in 1965 and moved to Edmonton where two of their sons would be born and Dorthy would make the transition to being a full-time homemaker. William worked in land surveying and decided to make it a career. They lived in an ideal setting for four years until William’s career took them to Grande Prairie so he could article as a land surveyor. It took 10 years of study and testing to finally achieve his Licensed Alberta Land Surveyor designation in 1979. Their third son was born in Grande Prairie.
William and Dorothy moved to Lethbridge in 1976. They started up Halma Surveys in 1979 and operated their small business of generally three employees. Dorothy was a homemaker and kept the office operating smoothly. William was proud of their timely service and their reasonable pricing and that in 30 years of operating there was never a WCB complaint against them. They sold the business in 2013 and William gave up his ALS commission in 2015.
Dorothy is best known for saying ”Are your feet clean?” This is a source of amusement, but it is also significant to her. William paraphrases a Bible quote “whatever you do, do it to the best of your ability, and your heart will feel glad.” William is active member of the Bethel Free Reformed Church in Monarch.
William like to keep a garden of vegetables and enjoys fresh veggies immensely, though he does describe himself as a ‘meat and potatoes man’. Dorothy says her comfort foods different types of salads, in-season veggies and chocolate.
Dorothy likes the music of Jim Reeves, Patsy Cline, Charlie Pride, Danny O’Donnell. William prefers light opera and can tolerate Elvis. William is a lifetime member of the Lethbridge Men’s Christian Choir. Dorothy enjoys jigsaw, crossword puzzles and reading.
William enjoys his little personally homemade “cabin” near Police Lake. This is his regular getaway and they both appreciate it, as they worked so closely together for so many years, they are happy to have this bit of independent time. Like Dorthy says “houpel op” which translates to “get lost for a while”. They feel they have drifted into their retirement and seem to enjoy its simplicity.
William and Dorothy are pleased that all three sons and their families live and work in Lethbridge. They have four grandchildren, all in Lethbridge between the ages of 16-19.
Dorothy and William were a pleasure to meet and get to know. Although a couple with differing backgrounds and interests, they seem to share a sense of humour, enjoy each other and their retirement, and their 59 year marriage.
Many Congratulations!

Darlene Dahl was born the middle child of her family. She was born in Winnipeg, but her two siblings were born in Bassano and Edmonton. She describes her childhood as turbulent and challenging because the family moved around a lot. Darlene says she learned basic homemaking skills at a young age as she was “Mom’s little helper.” She developed a love of music because they usually sang while they worked together. She left home at age 14 and married at age 16. She got a high school Honours Business Diploma by age 17 and began working as a clerk-typist, residing around Westlock and Athabasca.
Darlene gave birth to her first son at age 19, then her second son at age 21 in Westlock. Her first son was born with a congenital heart defect and underwent open heart surgery at two days old; he also suffered a cardiac arrest at one month old resulting in mild cerebral palsy and epilepsy. Darlene became his health care aide and advocate with guidance from various health care professionals. She left her marriage with her sons and moved to Nakusp, BC to be near family, and then Calgary for better access to health care. She upgraded her technology skills and worked as an Accounts Payable Invoice Analyst, while parenting her two sons. Stress and a serious health scare had her moving to Grande Prairie and family. Only one year later, her special needs son passed away at age nine and her world turned upside down.
In an attempt to find a new purpose, Darlene spent one and a half years at Grande Prairie College and commuted back and forth to Fairview College for two years, to obtain an Animal Health Technologist Diploma. She then married her second husband and moved to his farm near Pickardville, AB. A broad variety of employment followed: auction mart cattle runner; assistant dairy herdsman; oil rig cook; housekeeping aide, cook, and inventory-order clerk in seniors’ facilities; and a personal care aide to a Multiple Sclerosis patient. She took classes and became a Registered Massage Therapist and a Level 2 Reiki practitioner in 2005.
After 13 years of this demanding lifestyle, she moved on from her second marriage, and relocated to Calgary where she focused on her massage therapy career.
Darlene came to Lethbridge in 2010 and was feeling grateful, optimistic, and excited. Her second son lived in Lethbridge, she was building a successful massage clientele, and she met a man she describes as ”the love of her life.” In December 2011, she and her partner were in a motor vehicle accident in which she broke her neck and he broke his collarbone. They supported each other as he mended and she learned to walk again and regain the use of her hands. Darlene says she had a miraculous recovery and was back home in less than three months. Unfortunately, Darlene’s partner collapsed and passed away suddenly in 2013. Once again, her world was turned upside down.
Darlene joined LSCO in 2016. She is a regular weekly volunteer at Winners Bingo and she is involved in the LSCO Foot Clinics. Darlene is an active member in the LSCO Karaoke Group.
Darlene has a variety of interests and hobbies: e.g. arts & crafts, stitchery, card games, puzzles, board games, painting and sketching, and tv shows. She is a good cook and prefers her own cooking, but she does enjoy chocolate.
Darlene is proud to be a mother. She says her children shaped her as much a she shaped them. She is also proud of being in a negotiating team that managed to secure a CUPE pension plan for a group of workers that looked after seniors in Westlock, Alberta.
Darlene’s favourite quotes/advice are: “If at first you don’t succeed, try, try again” and “To have tried and failed is better than to never have tried at all.” Darlene has often been told to write a book about her life’s journey, but she says she needs a ‘ghostwriter’ to help her do so.
Darlene can be found at the LSCO dining room from time to time. She loves to meet new people and is quite willing to share a table and have a chat.

This posthumous Spotlight was not able to be completed before John’s illness took over. John’s sister, Ruth, provided some additional information to complete this article. Please read about this extraordinary Member/Volunteer, who you likely saw at LSCO, but did not know.
John Unrau hailed from Coaldale, raised by German-speaking Russian Mennonite parents who married in 1944. His parents were not allowed to practice their faith in Russia, causing them to move to Canada in the 1920s but kept their roots by speaking Russian in their home until John and Ruth’s public schooling transitioned their household language to English.
Growing up secluded on a farm near Coaldale, only venturing off for school and church, John and his sister Ruth shared a tight bond, spending their days cycling, playing, and studying together. Despite Ruth’s attempts to convince him otherwise, John modestly dismissed his intellect, though Ruth emphasizes John’s common sense and numerous competencies that she does not have.
Tragedy struck early with their mother’s passing when John was 18, followed by their father’s remarriage, which both siblings embraced wholeheartedly. John graduated from Kate Andrews High School in the mid-1960s and delved into music briefly, mastering a few piano pieces before moving on.
His academic journey led him through science courses at Lethbridge Junior College and culminated in a Diploma in Chemical Technology (Biochemistry) from SAIT in 1968. His professional career bloomed at the Lethbridge Research Station, where he dedicated 29 years to soil technology before retiring in 1997.
Post-retirement, John found joy and camaraderie at Green Haven Nurseries and the Mennonite Central Committee Thrift Shop, developing lasting friendships. Despite facing multiple brain surgeries starting in 2006, John maintained a matter-of-fact attitude about it, never allowing adversity to overshadow his positive attitude.
While not a frequent traveler, John cherished his visits to Hawaii and Washington, D.C., particularly relishing his time at the Smithsonian. Described as a homebody, John poured his energies into various hobbies like gardening, stained glass, petit point, woodworking, and writing, showcasing a multifaceted talent. His skills were of a such a high quality, there was an exhibition of many of his petit point pictures at LSCO in 2011 (See Below)

His love for classical music permeated his home and workshop, where he indulged in refurbishing wood to install wainscotting in his home (as an example) and creating stained glass pieces used to decorate his house and others.
John was also known for his loveable features like wearing shorts all year round, reading dictionaries for obscure words, baking his renowned Christmas cakes, biking to work for years and recycling before it became the thing to do. He loved “old things” and living life “plain and simple.”
John’s playful nature also shone through his occasional pranks. He once auctioned off his sister’s ‘long lost coffee mug’ at a Christmas party and it cost her $62 to get it back. John liked cheese, peanut butter, and dill pickles, but especially loved hot sauces. A little hot sauce in anything could do no wrong, in John’s estimation.
Despite being rather shy, John forged deep friendships, especially with women from diverse backgrounds, embodying kindness, humility, and empathy. These traits made him an excellent volunteer at the Lethbridge Soup Kitchen, as he was non judgemental and able to identify with marginalized people.
His commitment to community service earned him accolades like Lethbridge Senior of Distinction Award in 2014; a certificate from Canadian Blood Services for donating 200 times; and an Honorary Life Membership at LSCO for his thousands of hours of service. His loyalty as a volunteer to this organization was legendary as he could be found dishwashing regularly and would be called upon ‘last minute’ to fill-in for many years. He will be remembered as a kind, gentle, and caring man.
John passed away at St. Michael’s Palliative Care Unit on January 31, 2024. To borrow from his special friend Anne, “Walk softly in the world, help others, be true to yourself & others, and keep a bottle of hot sauce with you whenever you eat out!” He is lovingly missed by his LSCO colleagues and friends.