Throughout her 111 years, Annie Dobush faced hardship but always made the best of things | Canada Voices

Annie Dobush: Determined. Resilient. Mother. Centenarian. Born Sept. 14, 1914, near Fish Creek, Sask.; died Sept. 28, 2025, in Neepawa, Man., of natural causes; aged 111.

Annie Oleksin lived in a time and place where there were few options for an orphaned girl. Life for her would be hard. She was one of eight children born to Athanasius and Michalina Olexijow (her father’s name was shortened to Tanasko Oleksin on documents). They were Ukrainian immigrants who had come to homestead in the early 1900s.

It wasn’t long before tragedy struck, with the November, 1918, return of soldiers who had been away fighting in the First World War. Unwittingly many brought home the Spanish Flu virus that had been circulating among troops in Europe during the final months of the war. The epidemic spread rapidly, with the deadly toll rising dramatically that November. (In the end, Saskatchewan had more than 5,000 fatalities.)

That month, the family’s neighbours helped with the threshing, but Tanasko and Michalina died of the flu within a few days of each other. By the time their bodies were prepared for burial, one of Annie’s older brothers also became sick and died. Annie, just four years old, and her remaining six siblings, the youngest still a baby and the oldest just 13, were now alone. They were put into an orphanage and scattered when placed with other families. Forty years later the siblings were able to reconnect when they located each other living in Western Canada.

Annie was adopted by a Ukrainian family in the Mountain Road area of Manitoba. There she was raised in times of hardship without much nurturing or emotional support. She attended school until the age of 14, but recalled that she was teased and bullied because she was adopted. Birthdays and special occasions were never celebrated, and joy and laughter were unfamiliar to her. She built a wall around herself for protection.

After leaving school she worked for various families in the area, she looked after children and helped with household chores and gardening.

In 1941, at the age of 27, she met Michael Dobush while playing ball with neighbours. After a short courtship, they married that September and moved to a farm near Polonia, Man. In May, 1943, their son Walter was born. Married life was challenging for Annie. Her husband was controlling and times were difficult. She talked about cutting up her wedding dress to make everyday clothes. The family lived a simple life, with the farm supporting their basic needs. They left only to pick up supplies and attend church. Annie enjoyed decorating eggs with her son at Easter but Christmas was always her favourite season. Then, she would burn candles on Christmas Eve and prepare the meatless dishes rooted in Ukrainian Orthodox Church tradition.

Annie and Mike left the farm in 1976 and moved to Neepawa, Man. She sewed out of necessity and they enjoyed their garden and their church. After her husband died in 1998, Annie moved to an apartment and then into assisted living. At the age of 104 she moved to Country Meadows care facility, where she enjoyed visits from her son, grandchildren and great-grandchildren. The staff enjoyed interacting with this sweet but determined centenarian, their words of remembrance after her passing attesting to Annie’s kindness.

Annie was courageous and faced extraordinary hardship and heartbreak throughout her life. She was a very resilient woman who didn’t share many details with her family; she just made the best of it. Annie was Manitoba’s oldest citizen when she died at 111 years of age.

Eugene Oleksin is Annie Dobush’s nephew.

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