Verna Ruby McKee was born at home on the farm, four miles north of Star City, SK, on April 8, 1928. She was the fourth child of a family of fifteen, born to Wesley and Gladys McKee. She talked of their childhood memories playing ball (large family bonus), riding the snow van caboose to school and sleeping three in a bed. She took her schooling at the Campbellville rural school, and high school to grade twelve in Star City, staying at Grandpa’s to be able to complete it. Mom especially liked the Farm Girls group where they were taught how to knit, sew and crochet. Mom worked at the General Store in Star City for a year, then at the Star City paper office.

Mom met her husband-to-be, Norman, at a dance in Star City. They enjoyed going to lakes with her sister, Muriel, and husband Harold Sealey. They married on November 16, 1949, and lived on the Larsen homestead. They farmed, moving a couple times, before buying their home quarter fifteen miles south-east of Star City. They spent a couple of winters in Victoria, BC, and Mom worked in the kitchen of the Royal Jubilee Hospital.

Verna and Norman were blessed with three children: Larry Norman in 1951; Vern David in 1958; and Julie Ann Colleen in 1962. Mom went back to work as a waitress at the Tisdale Cafe in 1966 for seven years, helping the family to get new beds, running water and new cupboards. This tells you how hard it was to make a living at farming. Later in 1980 she went to work at Sasko Park Lodge, working in housekeeping and then in laundry; retiring in 1987 to continue working only on the farm. There was always work to be done and after working in town she would come home to help in the field. Mom always had a big garden and we had cattle, a few horses, pigs, chickens, turkeys, cats and dogs.

Mom faced numerous challenges over the years, like Dad’s vocal cord cancer surgery in 1997 and then his stroke seven years later in 2004. After Dad’s difficult eighteen months in LTC and passing in 2006, Mom was diagnosed with lung cancer and moved to Melfort. She had chemotherapy and a major surgery, then was cancer free from 2007 on; over sixteen years. While in Melfort she made new friends at the Melfort Senior’s Club. She had several more surgeries, procedures and challenges, having seen ten specialists and five general practitioner doctors over the years.

Mom moved into Parkland at the end of February, 2023, and got to enjoy ac]vi]es, church and music events. Mom always had a strong and independent nature. She had high standards and liked things done a certain way, which meant she could sometimes be bossy. She loved her family and kept up on all family news and birthdays with calendar reminders. She was talented in many ways: baking (making the best lefse around), canning, knitting, mending on an old treadle sewing machine and stitching and stuffing teddy bears for her kids and grandkids. Mom remained interested in farming up to her last days.

Verna is predeceased by: her husband Halvdan Nikolai (Norman) Larsen; parents Wesley and Gladys McKee; brothers Gerald McKee, Elmer McKee, Jim McKee; sisters Muriel Sealey, Delia Rowan, Marie Edworthy, Irene Clark, Gladys Mooney; sisters-in-law Doreen McKee, Sylvia McKee, Berle McKee, Laila Opseth, Nellie Sorboe, Stella Larsen; brothers-in-law Harold Sealey, Gordon Rowan, Earl Edworthy, Jack Clark, Mike Fidyk, Harry Mooney, Art Murphy, Bert Pederson, Lloyd Larsen, Sigurd Opseth, Nels Sorboe, Lester Larsen

She is survived by her three children: son Larry, grandson Leif Larsen; daughter-in-law Marlene; son Vern (Monica), grandson Ryan Larsen, great-grandson Hunter Orien Larsen, granddaughter Amber (Adam) George; daughter Julie (Brent) Trawin, grandsons Liam and Jett Trawin; sisters Norma Fidyk, Edith Pederson, Margaret (Bob) Vansteelandt; brothers Harvey (Barb) McKee, Lyle (Shirley) McKee, Richard McKee; sister-in-law Eleanor Larsen; as well as many nieces, nephews, cousins and friends.

Funeral Service

1:00 p.m.

Saturday, January 13, 2024

Barron’s Funeral Chapel

Tisdale, Saskatchewan

Donations may be made to

Parkland Place (Melfort) or the Canadian Cancer Society or the Heart and Stroke Foundation

as a token of remembrance