Obituary of Katherine Sage

Katherine Sage (Schzeroka) died peacefully on Sunday, March 3, 2013 at Grand River Hospital at the age of 90. Born in Kamianets-Podilskyi, Ukraine in 1923 she lived with her father, Stephen, her mother, Helena, and sister, Nonna Schzeroka (Rybas). As a young girl, she survived the early loss of her father and the hardships of the Ukrainian famine. Still, she became a talented student with a special ability to recite long passages of Russian poetry, eventually attending university and becoming a schoolteacher. However, the war soon carried her, with her mother and sister, to a German work camp where she met and married Nicholas Sajzew, and had her first child. At the end of the war, Canada welcomed the young family and they eventually settled in Kitchener, changing the family name to Sage as seven more children arrived. Now known as George David Sage; Irene Elizabeth Sage; Michael Robert Sage; Lena Margaret Yost; Annie Monica Toman; Katherine Grace Sage; Stephen Nicholas Sage; and Julia Suzanne Sage, she will be deeply missed by them all. Her nephews Anatole and Alex, and Alex's children Cara, Christine and Peter, will also miss her love and warmth. As Katherine's family grew up, she joined the staff at Sunnyside as a nurse's aide and then Lutherwood and Saint Monica's House, where she was a calm, motherly support to troubled teenagers. She welcomed with great joy the chosen partners of her children and the arrival of her beloved grandchildren: Steven, Allison, Mark, Sam, Erik, Charlie, Simon, Lia, Alex, Larissa, Chris, and Laura, entertaining them with her endless capacity for Russian sayings and Pushkin's poetry, as well as her wonderful food, sketches, and paper boats. Predeceased by her grandson Nicholas Coulson. Katherine loved hearing about the lives of her children and grandchildren, and was the first call for all moments of great joy and sorrow. The birth of her great-grandchild Percival, and the news that another was on the way, was a special happy blessing to her life. She was a deep believer in love and family. She encouraged everyone to be strong and brave and joyful in life, and to keep an open, grateful and forgiving heart. With her unshakeable faith in God, she went calmly into her own state of grace, with family beside her. A gentle, powerful and loving presence, she will stay within the hearts of her family and friends for a long, long while. Many thanks to her friends, especially Gloria and Heike, and to everyone who helped in her care, recently and over the past many years. The funeral will be held on Thursday, March 7, 2013 at 2:00 p.m., at the Erb & Good Family Funeral Home, 171 King Street North in Waterloo. Everyone is welcome to a reception directly following the service in the Fireside Room of the funeral home. Condolences for the family and donations to Saint Monica House, a local provider of caring support for young, pregnant women, would be much appreciated and may be arranged through the funeral home at www.erbgood.com or 519-745-8445.