Gertrude Machan (sitting far right), 98, had a wonderful Mother’s Day on May 14 as she got to spend it with four generations of her family, including 18-month-old great-great-granddaughter Emme. Also on hand for the special celebration were her daughter Marlene (second from right), granddaughter Rhonda (centre) and great-granddaughter Ashleigh (Emme’s mother). (Contributed photo)
Gertrude Machan always looks forward to Mother’s Day, but it was extra special this year as she got to spend some special time with her first great-great grandchild.
It was the first time she has had the opportunity to spend a couple of days with five generations of her extended family.
Accompanying the 18-month-old Emme for a Mother’s Day visit to Osoyoos were Machan’s daughter Marlene, granddaughter Rhonda and great-grandaughter Ashleigh.
“It’s very rare to have five generations in any family, so it was a very special day for me,” said Gertrude, 98, who moved to Osoyoos from Calgary with her husband Ken back in 1981.
Machan has lived for the past three years at the Sunshine Ridge Retirement Residence and this is where members of her family paid a visit on Mother’s Day.
“My daughter, granddaughter and great granddaughter have come to visit me on Mother’s Day for the past several years, but to be able to bring the baby in the family up this time was fantastic,” she said. “We all went for dinner together and spent two full days together and it was great.
“The little one stole the show. It was supposed to be Mother’s Day, but she stole the show. They are so incredibly cute at that age and we all just laughed and laughed all weekend.”
Machan’s first husband was a pastor in northern B.C. and she and her husband operated a mission boat in the Powell River and Kitimat area for many years.
After he died, she met Ken Machan in Calgary, where he worked for the Canadian Pacific Railway.
They retired in Osoyoos in 1981 and she has lived here ever since – Ken Machan passed away two years ago.
She has 15 grandchildren and 23 great-grandchildren and was thrilled to have lived long enough to meet her first great-great-grandchild.
“I’ve had such a happy life … the Lord has blessed me,” she said. “I got to spend my life with two wonderful husbands and so many can’t find one.”
Machan said she’s already looking forward to seeing young Emme again on Mother’s Day of 2018 next May.
Machan wrote a book about her early life called Frontier Footsteps, that she self-published in 1980 and has distributed to family members ever since.
It’s never a problem getting members of her family to visit her on Mother’s Day as they look forward to visiting Osoyoos because the weather is usually very nice this time of year, said Gertrude.
She still enjoys relatively good health and hopes these family reunions continue for many more years, she said.
KEITH LACEY
Osoyoos Times
