Obituaries

HAROLD WILLIAM WEISENSEL

Harold William Weisensel entered the spirit world on Fri. Oct. 25th, he was 99 years old. He was predeceased by his beloved wife Mathilde in 2013, his stepsons Cyril Dufault in 2008, Armand in 2023 and his stepdaughter Claire in 2022.

Born at home on a farm in rural Saskatchewan in 1925 near the hamlet of Bremen, he and his seven brothers suffered the loss of their mom Gertrude at a very young age. Their dad Thomas (Andrew) Weisensel later bought a farm in rural Manitoba not far from Dauphin, remarried and had another son, Ron. Harold and his brothers were hard workers and good with machinery, and soon found jobs off the farm. Harold worked up North, went to Sudbury at age 17 to work in the mine there with some brothers and friends (including Ray Hoffman and Wilf Green) and eventually started his own business as a water diviner and driller.

Harold met Mathilde Dufault (neé Miron) at the Legion in Ste. Rose du Lac where Mathilde, (widowed by the passing of her husband Ovila Dufault) lived with her 8 children. Harold would come from Dauphin to Ste. Rose to visit his brother Herb. Harold and Mathilde courted for a time until he asked her to marry him. She replied that she had to talk to her children. The next time he visited the Dufault home, he was greeted by the eldest sister Eveline who spilled the beans by congratulating him on the engagement. That was when he met all the kids (eldest twins Donald and Claude, Eveline, Gérald, Emile, Armand, Cyril and Claire). Harold and Mathilde were married on April 11th, 1964. After they were married Harold commuted from Ste Rose to Dauphin every day, but that eventually became too much so the family moved to Dauphin where Harold worked as a heavy-duty mechanic with the Caterpillar dealership, Powell Equipment. Once Harold had worked on clients’ machinery, they usually requested him by name for all future calls.

The couple had one son, Neil, born in 1965. After Neil was born, Mathilde asked Harold if he wanted to try for another, but together they decided 9 kids in total were enough. In 1975 the family moved to Winnipeg where Harold had been awarded a promotion with Powell Equipment. He was to lead and manage the new Scheduled Oil Sampling (SOS) Lab. Oil samples were taken from the engines of Caterpillar heavy equipment and analyzed with an infrared spectrophotometer to determine minute particles of different metals present which would indicate wear on different engine components. With this information, regular maintenance could improve the lifespan of the engine, depending on the different metals present. Despite the fact that he only had the opportunity to complete a Grade 10 education, Harold travelled to the US for training and ran this lab for 10 years. He retired at age 60 in 1985, meaning he enjoyed retirement for almost longer than his working career – 40 years.

Harold had many interests, hobbies and pursuits. He loved making homemade beans, sauerkraut, jelly from the crabapple tree, fashioned a mixer from his drill to mix bread, and barbecued at many memorable family gatherings. His loved helping people. A consummate handyman, he could repair practically anything as he had journeyman papers in carpentry, electrical and HVAC. At his home in Winnipeg, when he needed a bigger garage, he laid a cement pad beside the existing structure, cut the garage in half, moved it over the new pad, and built between the halves to create a double garage. He was often at the homes of his step-kids and nieces and nephews, armed with a variety of tools to fix whatever needed fixing. He also loved camping and fishing, and many idyllic summers were passed at Manipogo Beach on the north basin of Lake Manitoba north of Ste. Rose. The whole family would gather and make a circle with all the assorted tents and trailers. Harold would make pancakes for everyone in the morning. He bought a succession of boats, ending up with a tri-hull 17-foot boat with a 70 hp Evinrude engine, and he learned to ski at age 50 (as soon as youngest son Neil was able to drive it, at age 10). With the youngest three (Neil, Claire and Cyril) Harold and Mathilde also went on epic summer camping trips, visiting Canada coast-to-coast.

In 2009 Harold and Mathilde sold the family home at 17 Fletcher Crescent and moved to Riverwood Square in Winnipeg. After Mathilde passed in 2013 Harold continued on at Riverwood Square, after became the unofficial handyman of the building, helping out whenever he could, but always declining payment. Manager Linda Sherrin set him up with meal vouchers for life, so many happy family meals were enjoyed together there.

We are still very close as a family as we mourn Harold, and also the fact that he was the last of his seven brothers – it feels like a changing of the guard. He is lovingly remembered by his stepchildren Claude, Donald, Eveline, Gerald and Emile, his son Neil and many grand- and great-grandchildren. Harold’s last words, spoken so often in his life, were: “I’m so lucky to be a part of such a wonderful family”.

A funeral mass will be held at St. Vital Roman Catholic Church, 1629 Pembina Hwy. on Friday November 8th at 10:30 am. Reception to follow at Riverwood Square, 1778 Pembina Hwy. He will be laid to rest beside his cherished Mathilde at the St. Vital Parish Cemetery at 826 Crescent Drive.

A very special thank you to Linda Sherrin and the devoted staff at Riverwood Square Retirement Living for the wonderful care afforded to Harold. The family will be eternally grateful for your loving kindness.