Obituary
Arthur Keith Harrison was born on January 15, 1928 to William and Henrietta Harrison in the Wadena Hospital. His mother went to stay with friends in Wadena before the birth. The only means of transportation was by horse and sleigh so it was prudent to be close to the hospital when the time came, the homestead was about eighteen miles from Wadena, three or four hours away by team.
He grew up in the so called “Dirty Thirties” when crops were not always good and farm produce was worth next to nothing. The family raised chickens, geese, turkeys, cattle and had a huge garden. There was always plenty of good food on the table. They often gave produce away to more needy families.
Keith went to Rotnum School until grade eight. He travelled mainly on horseback alone as his siblings were older than he. Occasionally he would go on skis. Farming at the time involved hard physical labour. Keith always took pride in his physical strength. At fourteen or fifteen he was pitching bundles along side seasoned workers.
In the 1950’s Uranium City was the place to go to get a good job. The Fort Mac of today. Keith worked there a couple of winters driving a delivery truck.
The Harrison family was one of the last to give up farming with horses. Their first tractor was a Field Marshal. A bit later they added a Gleaner combine. Keith kept a small herd of black angus and a team to do chores. He sold the last cattle in 1986 and remarked that there had been cattle on the farm for 80 years. He was a capable welder and repaired anything and everything that could be fixed.
He especially enjoyed visiting when neighbours came to call. Keith and his brother, Leonard cleaned thousands of bushels of grain for neighbours and drank many more cups of coffee with them.
He also enjoyed anything that involved horses. He followed the pony chuckwagons where ever they went and helped hook and look after the teams. This interest led him to purchase harness making sewing machines so he could fix and work with leather.
Keith remained on the farm until he was persuaded to move to the Rose Valley Community Manor in August 2012. He still felt he shouldn’t be sitting around. “I should be doing some work”. In 2016 failing health meant he needed long term care. He spent a few months in Arborfield Nursing Home and moved to Kelvindell Lodge in March of 2017.
Keith Harrison passed away October 17, 2019 at Kelvindell Lodge, Kelvington, SK.
He was predeceased by his parents William and Henrietta Harrison; siblings Eva (Charles Irving), Ruth (Earl Shannon), Leonard, and Sylvia (Anton van Briennen); and niece Gael Macdougall.
He is survived by nephews Allen Irving (Carroll) and Brian Irving (Anne Marie); grand nieces and grand nephews Elizabeth, David, Neil, Dale, and Tim Irving, Sandra and Brenda Macdougall, Jeff Irving and Adrienne Reid. Greats and Great-greats total 23.
Read More
Events