Obituary of Ursula Schnull
Passed away, according to her wishes, peacefully in her home, in Waterloo on Thursday December 6th, 2018, at 91 years of age. Predeceased by her beloved husband Karl. Loving mother of Thomas (Liz) and Martina (Chris). Wonderful Oma to Lucas and Michaela Schnull and Sabrina and Kirsten Boyer. Survived by her sister Ruth, in Germany.
Ulla was born in Boeblingen, a town in the south of Germany, close to Stuttgart. She was the youngest of 3 girls and grew up in a beautiful home on a hill, overlooking the town with its tile roofs and church steeples. She began her working life as a pediatric nurse and accepted a job in a home for children with respiratory illnesses, on a tiny island in the North Sea. It was there that she met Karl. They married in 1954 and immigrated to Canada in 1955, settling in Kitchener where Ulla’s oldest sister lived with her husband.
Ulla was fortunate to find work at Mutual Life and equally fortunate to be placed in a department with other German-speaking newcomers, which made her transition much easier. Two of those coworkers went on to become her life-long best friends. When their first child came along, Ulla left Mutual Life and became a stay-at-home mother. Soon afterwards, Karl was offered a job as a welding instructor at George Brown College in Toronto so they happily moved their family to Mississauga and bought a home in a new subdivision. Ulla poured her energy into landscaping their huge yard, complete with a massive rock garden. She and Karl eventually looked for a vacation property and found the ideal spot on an island near Parry Sound, where they built a beautiful cottage with the help of many family members and friends. Ulla enjoyed the summers there, swimming twice daily in the clear waters of Georgian Bay and creating extensive walkways through the woods. When Karl retired, they moved back to Kitchener. Although they had travelled throughout their lives, they got serious about it in retirement, completing 30 trips together, including road trips across Canada and the United States, group tours to Europe, and cruises to the Panama Canal, the Maritimes, the Mediterranean, Alaska and Scandinavia.
Ulla had a sharp mind. An avid reader, she was firm in her convictions and not shy about sharing her thoughts. She was the backbone of the family and kept all of us organized. Ulla was also immensely talented. In addition to her gardening abilities, she was an accomplished seamstress, who always had a sewing or quilting project on the go. She was an incredible cook and baker – we will miss her Dampfnudeln, her Linsensuppe and her pies. Ulla was also a prolific writer – she corresponded regularly with many friends and relatives overseas, and over the course of their retirement, Ulla spent every winter writing her memoirs. They were published in 2015 as a 700 page hardcover masterpiece. She was a great Mom, who instilled in her kids the value of education and a strong work ethic. And she was a wonderful Oma, who always had a craft, a book and a piece of cake or chocolate ready for her grandchildren.
At Ulla’s request, there will be no formal funeral service. In lieu of flowers, donations to the Canadian Cancer Society would be appreciated by the family and may be arranged by the Erb & Good Family Funeral Home, 171 King St. S., Waterloo, at 519-745-8445 or www.erbgood.com.
