Agatha Driedger Dick, born 1918 in Schönfeld, Brasol
My parents were Ältester Nicholai N. Driedger, born 1893, and Tina Dueck, born 1897, both in Schönfeld. By the time I came into the world, life in Schönfeld, along with many other Mennonite villages, had changed drastically. Every family feared for their lives because of the Machnov raids. I had colic when I was a baby, and when one of the bandits heard me crying during a raid, he gave Mother peppermint drops for me.
In September of 1919, before my first birthday, our family, along with many others, fled to Neukirch, Molotschna. Here we rented a house. I remember sitting in my high chair and eating supper in the Kleinestube (small room) there in 1921. I wanted to eat the egg I saw on the table, but Grandmother Dueck put it away. It was for Grandfather, who was ill.
My grandfathers had both died before we left Russia: Grandfather Driedger in 1906 and Grandfather Dueck, a Schönfeld Church Pastor, died in 1922, in Neukirch. Our family, which consisted of my parents, my Mother’s mother, sister Kathe and myself, came to Canada in 1924. We spent the first summer with the Henry Baumann family on their dairy farm in Waterloo, Ontario. My brother Henry, born later that same year, was named after Mr. Baumann. We kept in touch with the family for many years.
In January of 1925 we moved to Newton Siding, Manitoba where six families had purchased a 1,000 acre farm. Here I started school; my teacher was Miss Law. Brother Jake was born in Newton Siding in 1927. In late fall of that year, our family came to Pelee Island on one of the last boats of the season. We lived on Middle Island at Mrs. McGinnis’, then moved to Reeve Noah Garno’s place where brother Ernie was born. My father got work with the township. I attended the Middle Island School where Mr. Pegg was teacher; approximately half of the 30 students there were Mennonite. Church services were first held in Mr. Pegg’s church, then on Parson Road in Konrad’s living room.
In the fall of 1930, our family moved to the mainland. During the first winter we lived in a house not far from the Inman School which Kathe and I attended. Miss Blair was the teacher. In spring of 1931 we moved to a small farm on concession 2, near Ruthven. The house had no hydro, no running water, and no telephone. Mom and Dad, five children, and grandmother Dueck lived in this two bedroom house. The kitchen stove and a small stove in the living room provided heat in the winter months.
Kathe and I went to school in Ruthven and in the spring of 1931, I graduated from there. Henry and Jacob also started school in Ruthven. Mr. Hunter was the teacher in the senior room and Miss Malott in the junior room. Mr. Hunter wanted me to go to high school, but this was not possible. The high school was in Kingsville and there were no school busses at that time. There also wasn’t money to buy the school books.
During my first winter home from school, I started work in the Rock City tobacco factory on Ivan Street in Leamington. The tobacco factories were open only in the winter months. In the summer both Kathe and I worked at various jobs on nearby farms.
Dad was busy every evening preparing sermons and other church-related work. This meant that we children needed to be as quiet as possible.
John Dick, son of Abram and Margaret Dueck, and I were married in 1940 at the Oak Street Mennonite Church; Uncle Jacob Driedger officiated. It was wartime and German-speaking people were viewed with suspicion. My Dad went to the town police ahead of time to explain that a wedding would be taking place in our church and that several cars would be coming to his home for the reception. Henry Krueger’s choir sang Gott grüsse Dich at the service. The guests came to our house and parked their cars behind the barn. The adults ate in my parent’s house; the young people ate in the small house on our yard. A car dealer on Elliot Street had offered a Willis car to John saying that it used little gas and he should take it on the honeymoon. As a result, we went to Niagara Falls in the Willis.
Our first home was on concession 7 and 18-19 side road where Jake and Agatha Neufeld later lived. When our son John was born we moved to concession 8 to the farm which was later purchased by John Rahm from Pelee Island. Peter and Marie Epp were the next owners. My mother-in-law Margaret lived with us.
While our home at the corner of Highway 77 and concession 6 was being built, we lived near the lake in a brick house, not far from Sherman’s warehouse. By 1949, when we moved into our new home, we already had three children. Our youngest two were born while we lived there.
My husband John went into the produce business and I became his book keeper. We built a shed on our property with lumber John got from North Bay. Here farmers brought their produce: field tomatoes, cabbage, lettuce, celery, melons, etc. to be shipped mainly by truck to destinations around Ontario and Quebec. While I took care of the business at home and worked in the office daily, our son John helped his dad pick up produce from the farms. We stayed in this business for over ten years. In the meantime, Wheatley Elevators, our second business receiving wheat, soybeans and corn, was already up and operating. Eventually we gave up the produce business; I worked in the office at Wheatley Elevators until my retirement.
During their growing up years, our three sons helped in the family business in the summer months. When two had graduated from high school, and a third got his engineering papers from the University of Windsor, all three worked there full time and eventually took over the business.
John and I moved to Pickwick Drive in 1990. Here we celebrated our Golden Anniversary. We were married 58 years when John died in 1998. I moved into the Mennonite Home’s retirement residence in June of 2008.
Today I have five children, 13 grandchildren and seven great grandchildren.
