NELLIE ARPENA BABAIAN

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NELLIE ARPENA BABAIAN Peacefully, on October, 7 2013, Nellie Arpena Babaian died at Grace Hospital. She was 85 years old. She is survived by her sister-in-law Millie Babaian, her nieces and nephews: Arpena (Stewart Shinnan, Anoosh, and Alexandra), Elizabeth (Chris Isaacs, Anthony, Miranda), Sharon (Bob Caldwell), Sheila, Aram (Karen Babaian, Raffi, Anahid), Zabel, and John, as well as her American family, Alex, Armen and Diane Babaian, and many loving friends. Nellie was predeceased by her parents Elias and Beatrice, brothers Edward, Albert, Garry and Hairapet, and her nephew Alec. Nellie lived a long and full life as a loving and dutiful daughter, a devoted sister, and a doting aunt. She also had a long and distinguished career as a nurse and a teacher. Nellie was born in 1927 in Port Arthur, Ontario and demonstrated right away that she was a force to be reckoned with. As an infant, she survived a serious fire in her family home and the painful plastic surgery that followed. She also fought to hold her own in a traditional male-oriented Armenian family where her wishes did not always count for much. Despite her parents' efforts to marry her off to "a nice Armenian boy", Nellie was determined to make a life for herself, and she took small clerical jobs until she decided that she wanted to be a nurse. She faced formidable obstacles in pursuing this goal but she persevered, and in 1963, she graduated from nursing school at Grace Hospital. It was clear from the day she started nursing that she had found her calling. No matter where she worked, she demonstrated not just professional skill but also great compassion. She later returned to university to get her degree and then took up the important work of teaching unit clerks and ward aids at the Health Sciences Centre. She was a natural teacher who knew that people learn best when they feel valued and supported. Her students flourished under her guidance, and many new immigrants to Canada owe their first jobs to Nellie's stellar teaching. Nellie retired from nursing in 1995 to take care of her elderly mother, and after her death, enjoyed a well-deserved and active retirement. She cherished her independence, living in her own home with her beloved cats until early 2012 and, since then, in Tuxedo Villa. She bravely adjusted to this new reality, made many new friends, learned everyone's back story, and established herself as The Nellie everyone knew and loved. Although her own strength was severely diminished, she was never bitter and empathized with those worse off than she was. Nellie's caring nature and generous spirit extended in every direction. She had many lifelong friends who cherished her and kept in touch regularly, and through the years she befriended virtually everyone with whom she came in contact -- from cat groomers to veterinarians to salespeople to restaurant staff to housekeepers and homecare workers. Nellie truly had a magnetic personality, and right up to her last day enjoyed chatting, joking and teasing. Within her family she played many roles, most often as care-giver and peacemaker, but to her nieces and nephews she was the Aunty who always knew just the right things to do for and with us. As children, we appreciated her fun-loving nature and sense of humour; she enjoyed hearing of our adventures and misadventures, never getting worked up or preachy. We chuckled over her obsessions, which included cats, jewellery, party dresses, shopping, and Christmas. We marvelled at her sense of adventure as she travelled the world solo. We admired her talents for sewing, photography, and crafting. We respected her professional accomplishments. In later years we admired her resilience and adaptability, and her refusal to bemoan her fate. She gave so much to the people she loved and she will be missed. Nellie would want to thank her dearest friend, Donna Klassen, who has been her confidante, her voice of reason, and her loving support ever since they were in nursing school together. On behalf of Nellie, we also extend our gratitude for the wonderful personal care she received in Tuxedo Villa and the exceptional medical care she was given at Grace Hospital. A service will be held at Thomson "In the Park" Funeral Home, 1291 McGillivray Blvd. on Saturday, October 12, 2013 at 10:00 a.m. Donations in memory of Nellie gratefully directed to The Parkinson Society of Manitoba, 7-414 Westmount Drive, Winnipeg, MB, R2J 1P2 or Quagga Stray Cat Rescue, 970 St. Mary's Rd., Winnipeg, MB R2M 3R8. THOMSON "IN THE PARK" 925-1120 Condolences may be sent to www.thomsoninthepark.com

As published in Winnipeg Free Press on Oct 12, 2013