Mrs. Pudas
Emma Ida Elizabeth "Betty" Pudas (25 December 1916 - 20 February 2007) was a retail saleswoman for Timothy Eaton Company and housewife who spent most of her life in Thunder Bay, Ontario.
In 1963, she lived at 196 South High Street in Port Arthur with her husband Albert, who was employed as an "Office Supervisor".
From at least the 1980s until about 2004, she lived at 83 Hill Street South, just four houses south of Michael Currie, who would visit as a boy.
Mrs. Pudas was known throughout the neighbourhood as “Harry’s grandma” (Harry Chapman was in [my daughter] Arleigh’s class). She always had candy for kids who stopped by to visit.
— Nancy Greenwald, email to Michael Currie, 23 November 2019
From 2004 until her death, she lived at the Dementia Care Unit, LPH, St. Joseph's Care Group.
Text of her obituary
Emma Ida Elizabeth (Betty) Pudas, loving and beloved mother of Jim Pudas and Jane Chapman, passed away peacefully on Tuesday morning, February 20th 2007.
Born in Duluth, Minnesota on Christmas Day in 1916, she was the daughter of Maynard Switzer & Ida Krook Switzer, and granddaughter of pioneer Port Arthur residents James & Ida Switzer. Following the death of her parents in Newberry, Michigan in 1918 during the influenza epidemic, she journeyed to Port Arthur and was raised by her grandparents as their daughter.
She attended Cornwall Public School and the Port Arthur Collegiate Institute. As a child and young woman, Betty was an accomplished pianist. Music, particularly piano music, was a tremendous source of pleasure for her throughout her life. She had worked in the retail industry for many years, first with Marshall-Wells, then Chapples Stores Ltd., and finally for almost 30 years with the T.Eaton Co., retiring from the Men's Wear department in the early 1980s.
A lifelong and involved member of Trinity United Church, Betty's main interests were her family, home, church, music, and the Eastern Star. A Past Worthy Matron of Amity Chapter No. 210, OES, she received her life membership in the Order of the Eastern Star in May of 1977. She greatly enjoyed the English language, playing word games, and the beauty of Mother Nature's trees and the night sky.
Married to J. Albert Pudas (Puddy) in 1943, she was predeceased by him in 1976. Betty (Mom, Nana, Nana Betty) will be forever remembered and missed by her children Jim and Jane, son-in-law Harry Chapman, grandchildren Allane (Randy) Danchuk, Melissa Pudas, Kathryn Johnson (Keith Jacobson), Harry Chapman, and David (Pat) Logan. Surviving great-grandchildren are Turner & Carter Johnson, Adam & Connor Danchuk, Christopher Logan, and Austin Reinsalu. Other relatives also survive, including dear cousin Emma (Chummy) Warr. Besides her husband Puddy, her parents & grandparents, Betty was predeceased by her aunts & uncle, Emma Switzer, Eleanor Richmond, and leRoy Switzer all of whom loved and regarded Betty as their sister. She was also predeceased by her step-daughter Allane Logan, grandson Douglas Logan, daughter-in-law Sharon (Sherry) Pudas, sister Eleanor Ellis (in Michigan), and treasured life-long friend June Colquhoun.
Betty's family expresses sincere gratitude to Dr. George Morrison and the loving and compassionate staff of the Dementia Care Unit, LPH, St. Joseph's Care Group, where Betty lived and was cared for with love, respect, and dignity during the last 4 years of her life.
A service of remembrance will be held on Friday, February 23rd 2007 at 11:00 AM in Trinity United Church conducted by Rev. Randy Boyd. Should friends desire, memorial donations to the Alzheimer Society of Thunder Bay, St. Joseph's Care Group, or the charity of one's choice would be appreciated. Arrangements entrusted to the Sargent & Son Funeral Directors, 21 N. Court Street. On-line condolences may be made at www.sargentandson.com
Peacefully, sleep comes to a dear, beloved heart. Quietly, we understand the time has come to part. Tenderly, the love shines on - a never ending light. Gratefully, we feel its warmth and say, "Sweet dreams, good-night".
Relation to Michael Currie
Currie knew her as "Mrs. Pudas", a kind lady who lived four houses down Hill Street South from Michael Currie while he was growing up. She hated cats but would often play music on the piano. Michael would have long conversations with her at the door. He knew her as a very young boy, and then again when he became a paperboy in May 1992 he started interacting with her again. He lost touch with her after he stopped being a paperboy in 1996, and never saw her again.
Sources
[1] Year: 1963, Ancestry.com. Canada, Voters Lists, 1935-1980 [database on-line]. Provo, UT, USA: Ancestry.com Operations, Inc., 2012. Original data: Voters Lists, Federal Elections, 1935–1980. R1003-6-3-E (RG113-B). Library and Archives Canada, Ottawa, Ontario, Canada.