Josie Kizlyk, beloved mother, grandmother, sister and the wife of the late Bill Kizlyk, went home to heaven on June 10, 2019, in Wynyard Saskatchewan. She was born and raised in the High Tor District where she attended school until grade 6 in a one room school house. The area did not offer school beyond her highest grade obtained and so years later, in 1988, when the province required her to continue her education to remain a Special Care Aid she met this challenge with the same enthusiasm as most things in her life and excelled in her studies. She enjoyed her early life with her brothers and sisters on the family farm. As was the same for many of her generation, they worked hard with daily chores and did what was needed to be done to make life on the farm bearable. Josie preferred small town life to that of the country, and she preferred city life compared to small town living. When she was old enough, she got her first job in Kelvington, Saskatchewan at the café before heading east with her brother Mike to explore Winnipeg, Manitoba. In Winnipeg, Josie worked at The Bay lunch counter and at the Manitoba Telephone Company. When she visited one of her children who was working in Winnipeg decades later, she provided a tour of The Bay, and other parts of Winnipeg she enjoyed, It wasn’t long before family in Saskatchewan called her back and that brought about a move to Regina to begin her career in healthcare, caring for others at the Regina General Hospital. As a Care Aid, she soon made many friends with other young women her age. And she would tell stories of living in a one room apartment close to the hospital, with only a hot plate and a small ice box. While at the General, it became known she could speak Ukrainian and quickly she became a translator between patients and medical staff. She was very proud to be able to communicate in more than one language. She met and married her husband Bill and in 43 years of marriage together they loved three children and two grandchildren. They lived in Regina and when Bill became a Teacher, Josie returned to small town living. They moved to Naicam and then settled in the Kandahar and Wynyard area for the remainder of their lives together. Josie continued her work in the nursing home and hospital in Wynyard. She curled at the curling club, but as her children’s needs grew she did less community activities and concentrated on her family. Although one activity that was totally hers was the Wednesday ceramic classes at Johnsons, laughing with friends and getting a few ceramic pieces complete which many of her art pieces are still enjoyed by her children. Summer time was camping season while the kids were young and that meant camping trips to Fishing Lake for swimming lessons and family fun at Green Water Lake. It was the perfect location to combine her and Bill’s family together for great times. Friends would make their way from Wynyard or surrounding areas to join in the fun that would move into the Winter months were the goal was to gather with friends, laugh and enjoy life as life unfolded. Josie was a vibrant lover of life. Where there was joy, singing and dancing, she was in the middle in all her glory. Mom and Dad had many close friends in Wynyard. Family lived farther away. When Bill passed in 2004, Josie made the decision to move closer to one of her children and made the decision to move back to Regina, SK. When she did move it wasn’t long before friends from her early days in Regina were called and friendships continued almost as though 40 years had not happened anywhere but in Regina. As the group of good friends in Regina would travel to the states on shopping trips, river boat excursions, Rough Rider game day potlucks and some of the gang even enjoyed living in the same condominium complex for a short but fun period of time. Returning to dances a St. Basil’s church and sharing stories of people she knew there decades before, and especially enjoyed being recognized by a few doctors from back in the day at the General Hospital. As her needs became different so did where she lived. She enjoyed living in many places in Regina, finally moving to The Renaissance were the daily routine was going for meals, activities in the afternoon, socials in the evenings and farmers market in the summertime in Victoria Park. There was a reflection and a longing to be back in Wynyard with close friends and back to the memories of kids growing up, friends and good times and a sense of community from her church. At the end of her life, Josie returned to Wynyard as a resident of the Wynyard Nursing Home where she worked for 38 years. She was cared for by a few nurses that she had worked with during her career and played bingo with a few past colleagues. This was very special to her. Josie was a vibrant lover of life. Where there was joy, singing and dancing, she was in the middle in all her glory. She loved her friends and her brothers and sisters meant the world to her. She was an avid reader and didn’t have an interest in sports in her early years (and would never think to play on a team) but as she got older and the world got faster she turned to watching the Blue Jays, the Saskatchewan Rough Riders, Gainer the gopher and her beloved Curling. She was a fighter for the underdog. She was a person that provided a place for those who could not care for themselves. She loved communing with young people, and she just kept finding vibrant people who loved life and when it was time for all things to slow down, she returned to where it all began the work life, her family life, and the small tight knit community life. Her children express profound gratitude for the care, respect and honoring shown to Josie in the last months of her life. The visits from friends and relatives was so appreciated. It will never be forgotten the stories you shared. Remember her fondly by her life mantra “Love One Another”. Josie leaves to mourn her two sons and daughters–in-laws, Brent (Melanie) Kizlyk of Lloydminster, Alberta and Wray (Maureen) Kizlyk of Abbottsford, BC and her daughter, Regan Kizlyk of Regina, Saskatchewan. Her memory will be cherished by her grandchildren, Jessalynn and Qoral Mae, her sister, Mary (Bernard) Hayunga and her brother, Jerry (Sharon) Siwak as well as many nieces and nephews who fondly remember her as the “Fun Aunt”. She is predeceased by her parents, Roman and Justine Siwak, her sister Annie and (John) Winnicki, her brother, Mike and (Eileen) Siwak and her brother-in-law, Bernard Hayunga. Memorial donations in memory of Josie may be made to Golden Acres Nursing Home Auxiliary, Wynyard, SK.