Energetic educator dies at 82

BY WENDY BIRD

Eva Kendel may have been in the golden years of her life, but no one expected the  dynamic retiree to die quite so soon.

"She was very active and if anything she didn't slow down after her retirement. She might have even sped up," said Jacqueline Kendel, her daughter.

"She's travelled the world. She's been to five continents and was planning some more trips.

She was extremely energetic, organized, committed, and dedicated - you name it."

Eva, also known as Eve to some, died at the age of 82, after a short but fierce battle with ALS, a disease that gradually degenerates the nerve cells in the brain and spinal cord that control voluntary movement.

"Her illness was not expected. She was driving until May," her daughter said. "The disease overtook her very quickly. She had a very atypical presentation of ALS."

Her quick demise was probably a blessing in disguise. She was a lady who was always in forward motion, one who did not sit on her laurels for long.

Eva was born in 1924, one of four daughters, to a French Canadian family in Manitoba. She graduated from high school at the age of 15. She was a provincial poet laureate and taught in a one-room school house in rural Manitoba, where some of the students were actually older than she was. She began her career as an educator at 16.

"After she taught a few years in Manitoba, she met her husband, who was from Saskatchewan, while he was travelling the western provinces on his way to find a job," Kendel recalled.

"They met, dated and got married in Quebec, where he went to work in the mines."

After hearing Inco was hiring in Sudbury, Rudolph and Eva moved to the area in 1948.

"They slept in the car until they got his first cheque, even though my mom was pregnant at the time," she said with a laugh.

With money finally coming in, Eva and her husband found a place to live where they brought up seven children, two of whom were developmentally delayed.

But even with a herd of children to care for, and two as special-needs, Eva persevered in her teaching career.

"After her first daughter was born, she began looking for teaching work," Kendall said. "She taught for the Catholic school board at a school in Minnow Lake, and later became the principal there."

In the 1960s, Eva became the director of library services with the school board, a position she held until she retired in 1989. She was fluently bilingual.

By the time she retired, she and her husband were living on a farm in Val Caron, where Rudolph could pursue  his dream of raising horses.

"My father was a farm boy. They lived in the Valley until his death in 2000," Kendel said.

But within two years, Eva moved to the city's South End, a little closer to the action she liked so much.

She became active in her retirement, working with several organizations, including the Retired Teachers of Ontario and the Retired Women's Teachers of Ontario, where she was the past president.

She was also an active member of Families Assisting the Developmentally Disabled and she was president of the Starbury tenants' association. She was also president of Renaissance, a seniors' group that has about 150 members.

Eva enjoyed music a great deal. She was a member of the Strumming Belles and was an organist at Holy Redeemer Church for many years.

In 2000, the former educator received a provincial volunteer award.

"She led by example," said community activist Gerry Lougheed Jr., who has often crossed paths with Eva during his charitable work.

"When she said something would be done, it was done. She was always very passionate about what she did. She gave voice to a lot of very important causes, and by doing that she empowered other people.

"She had a remarkable ability to bring people together and was able to build bridges to people who normally didn't have access in our community. And that in itself is a tremendous gift.

"She was just a very remarkable lady. Any time you were in her presence you just felt better. She just inspired you. She was a great asset and cornerstone to our community."

Eva is survived by her children, Marguerite, Susan, Michael, Kim, Monica and Jacqueline, and grandchildren Colleen, Rebecca, Elizabeth and Simon.

Funeral arrangements are being handled by Jackson and Barnard Funeral Home, 233 Larch St. A funeral mass will be held at Holy Redeemer Church, Bancroft Rd., Thursday, Aug. 23 at 10 am. Donations to the ALS Society or Heart and Stroke Fund would be appreciated. Prayers will be held at 3 pm Wednesday. Friends may call at the funeral home from 2 to 4 pm and from 7 to 9 pm Wednesday.