Eulogy as Read by Trisha Klassen and Anita Hiebert (Melanie's Sisters-in-Law) at Melanie's Celebration of Life, August 28th, 2015
MELANIE SHANNON PENNER (nee KLASSEN) - March 23, 1976 - August 21, 2015
Our hearts
are broken to announce the passing of our beloved Melanie Penner, wonderful
wife, loving mother, treasured daughter and sister and loyal friend. Melanie is lovingly remembered by her husband,
Darryl, her two beautiful daughters, Kira and Teagan, her parents Dennis and
Marion Klassen, her brother and sister-in-law Jeffrey and Trisha Klassen and
their son, Otto. She has joined her brother, Jason in Heaven. She
is also dearly missed by Darryl’s parents, David and Hilda Penner, his sisters,
Anita and Ramona, and Anita’s daughter, Kai.
Melanie
grew up in Roseisle, Manitoba and attended school in Roseisle and Miami.
Melanie accepted Christ as her saviour at a young age. She attended
Roseisle EMC and was baptized into that church as a teenager. Melanie put
her faith into action when she worked as a camp counsellor at Turtle Mountain
Bible Camp. This would also change her
life in other ways, as it would be where she met her future husband, Darryl.
She moved to Winnipeg to attend the University of Winnipeg and to be
closer to Darryl. They made Whyte Ridge
Baptist church their home, where they both became actively involved in
Ministry. Melanie married Darryl in 1997
and shortly thereafter she graduated with her Bachelor of Education in 1998.
She worked as an early years teacher at various schools around Winnipeg,
the most recent being Phoenix School in Headingly. Although Melanie loved the children she
interacted with in the classroom her desire to impact children took on new
meaning when Melanie gave birth to two daughters, Kira in 2003 and Teagan in
2005.
Melanie
was a loving and caring wife and mother. Together with her husband,
Darryl she poured into the lives of their two beautiful daughters. Despite her own busy schedule, she managed her
household’s sports, social, school and church schedules with the skill of an
air traffic controller.
She
encouraged every interest her girls had, whether they be athletic or artistic.
Melanie would spend many hours every week attending or preparing for
dance, piano, basketball, track or any number of other activities.
Spending time with her family was a priority for her. It didn’t
matter if it were playing games, walking the dog, riding bike, or playing in
the yard, Melanie knew the importance of time with her family. Melanie’s
family enjoyed many vacations and camping trips together. The entire family shared a love for travelling
and the outdoors, which included things, like water sports, hiking, and beach
time.
Melanie
was a great cook. Despite being busy with all her health concerns, she
was able to develop a talent for making healthy and great tasting food for
herself and her family. She loved her garden and found peace in the
beauty of nature. Melanie loved to read,
you could often find her immersed in a good book.
Melanie
was a passionate early years teacher who touched thousands of young lives with
her innovative and nurturing take to learning. Melanie had a special
approach to the well-known Daily 5 program that was published and circulated
for teachers across the province to learn and use in their classrooms.
Many teachers came to her classroom to observe her unique approach.
She also had additional training in the Roots of Empathy program.
This program teaches young children to care for and appreciate others
through interactions with a baby and mother that visit the class. It was
so fitting for Melanie to be tasked with training future generations on how to
care for others. Her dedication to this program continued even through
her illness as she committed to voluntarily lead monthly visits so that another
class of children could benefit from it. In recognition of Melanie’s
admirable achievements in early years education her colleagues nominated her
for a YW-YMCA Woman of Distinction award in 2012.
Melanie
was a true friend. Her honesty, loyalty, and boldness meant that knowing
her was to be impacted by her. Her relationships were never superficial.
She never approached anyone with kindness just to be polite. Her
kindness was always genuine and from the heart. Her love for others is
what made Mel such an attractive friend. This was never more evident than
when Mel needed her community. The response from her work, church,
neighbourhood and sports friends was nothing short of overwhelming. The
size and depth of response to Melanie when she was in need is a testament to
her investment in others. From the
hundreds of people that purchased tickets and attended the fundraising social
to the many people that brought meals and helped transport the girls to their
activities - Melanie and her family have been extremely thankful for the
outpouring of support.
Melanie
was a gifted writer. Over the last two years, her blog gave the world a
glimpse of her courage, struggle, and faith. She never held back and at
times it was gut-wrenching, but it was an amazing insight into Melanie’s life
as she taught us all what it really means to lean on Christ. Even early in Mel’s writing she knew she
wanted to have an impact. We found some
of her writing from her grade 12 year and it is evident that even then God was
preparing her heart for a journey. These
were some of her words:
“From this
day on I shall not stand placid, but I shall conquer great battles, make myself
known in the nation. I will visit places
I have never been, and bless each person I meet. I will bring good to all, and in return will
be rewarded. My name will go down in
history, and after death, memories of me shall last. Memories of success, memories of respect,
memories of bringing good to all. Oh, as
my ambition rises, I want to cure the world of illness, set free any captive,
and provide for the needy. I now have
new hopes that when I abandon this world I shall leave behind pleasant
memories.”
Little did
she know at that time the truth these words would hold.
Melanie
was a fervent servant of Christ Jesus, and the strength of her faith was truly
inspirational. It seemed no matter what
challenges their family faced, her faith and trust in God would only be
bolstered by these events. She believed
that a walk with Christ extended beyond the church walls and was an active
leader in their local Love Winnipeg outreach projects. Connecting the church with a Daycare, the
local police and fire departments, and being part of the Parent Advisory
counsel at the girls’ school were all things that she knew would show the love
of Jesus to the community around her. Because
of her gift of discernment she was chosen by her church, Whyte Ridge Baptist,
to go to Bolivia in August of 2013 to help chose a new mission endeavour for
their congregation. Melanie’s faith
impacted so many people, even until her last days her faith in Jesus Christ was
present and evident.
Melanie
was diagnosed with cervical cancer in October 2013 despite regular screening
and follow up with various health care professionals. Melanie underwent chemotherapy and radiation
therapy from December 2013 to January 2014. In the midst of Melanie’s
stressful therapy, Darryl also struggled with health issues. He required
surgery for a benign mass behind his right eye. Thankfully, Darryl’s
surgery was complication free and his recovery was quicker than expected.
During
this time Melanie started a blog, documenting her cancer journey. Mel had
a unique gift to turn her struggle into encouragement and enlightenment for us
all. She also used this gift to do numerous public speaking engagements
over the course of her illness.
Unfortunately,
Melanie’s cancer persisted. Her doctors attempted one last curative
surgery in June 2014, but during the operation it was discovered that her
cancer had spread to her lymph nodes. It was felt that the surgery was no
longer curative given the extent of the disease, and was aborted. Melanie
was informed that there were no further conventional medical therapies.
Melanie decided to increase her natural treatments and made radical
changes to her diet. With this intense regimen, Melanie enjoyed many
months of relatively good health. In this time, Melanie was able to enjoy
trips to both the Dominican Republic and Memphis with family and friends.
The family also welcomed the addition of their dog Jett. He was a comfort to the entire family and was
a constant companion for Melanie as she wrestled through her journey.
In June of
this year it was discovered that Melanie’s cancer had spread to multiple
places, including her spine, causing multiple fractured vertebrae and a
significant increase in pain. Her level
of function declined over the next two months, as did her appetite and her
ability to cope at home. In this time however, she was able to organize a
40th birthday party for Darryl and attend a party in her honour at the home of
Sandra Nickel, where numerous friends honoured her and showed her their love. At
that party she received the beautiful painting you see on the back of your
program, inscribed with the words of her friends as they saw her.
Melanie
was admitted to Riverview Health Centre July 30th, 2015. Her health
continued to decline over the next three weeks, but she was lovingly cared for
by the Riverview palliative staff and was always surrounded by her family.
During this admission, Darryl and Melanie were able to celebrate their
eighteenth wedding anniversary. On August 21st, with all of her family
near by, Melanie entered the arms of her loving Saviour. Although our hearts are filled with such great
sadness, we take comfort knowing that she has received complete healing. She no longer struggles with sickness and is
filled with complete peace. Today she is standing in the amazing
presence of God.
The following are the pages of the program from her service:
Below is the bookmark presented to guests as a gift and keepsake:
March 23rd – normally a very special day in our
household. A day I have celebrated with Mel for the last 22 years. March 23rd
is Mel’s birthday. Today I remember many of those celebrations.
