Aimee Rose Ibbott nee Schumacher

February 12, 1921 – January 3, 2020

Aimee was born February 12, 1921 in Calgary, Alberta to George and Sophie Schumacher.  Her parents emigrated from Switzerland.  Her father was a pastry chef, employed at Banff Springs Hotel in the summer and the Palliser Hotel in Calgary in winter.  She was always fiercely proud of being Swiss and her Swiss German French Heritage shone through – values of hard work, duty and discipline, tempered with love, passion and joie de vivre.

In 1927, the family moved to Winnipeg (although she could never understand why anyone would leave the mountains).  Her father along with 4 of his brothers, operated Bowe’s Dairly Lunch on Main Street.  It was here, as a young woman, that she met Charles Ibbott.  Many couples claim to be a match made in heaven but this one truly was.  They married on July 24, 1942 and were devoted to each other until Dad’s passing in 1996.

Childhood Aimee was strong willed and adventurous.  She grew up on Kingston Row in St. Vital on the river (it was clean then). She spoke often of boating on the river, swimming and diving off the Elm Park Bridge (you had to bring up a handful of mud to prove you had hit bottom).  She also spoke of taking the dare to stick her tongue on the frozen field post.  (We all know how that ends!)

Life was not easy.  Six months prior to her wedding, she moved with her parents to Portage la Prairie as her father was not well.  In September 1942, her father passed away, leaving Sophie to raise young George. Aimee’s childhood values came to a forefront, with a strong sense of duty to assist her mother.  These are values that she imparted to her own children.

She was a great mom.  She raised her 3 sons; Charles, Richard and David; and her daughter Barbara, with great love.  If we got into trouble, she always said “Wait until your father comes home” but we knew who the real disciplinarian was.

Life was not all work and no play.  She loved to travel, especially if there were mountains.  She loved going to Vancouver to see family and the mountains.  She and Dad spent a month in Switzerland for their 50^th wedding anniversary (mountains). She especially loved to spend her time with her cousin Marguerite (known as “Sis”) in Canmore, Alberta (more mountains).

Aimee was heartbroken to lose Charlie in 1996. But she picked herself up and carried on.  At 75 she got her driver’s license so she could maintain her independence.  At 80 she sold the house and moved into a condo.  At 94 she took a river cruise down the Rhine with her daughter and son-in-law, from Basel to Amsterdam.  95 was celebrated with a big dinner party.  Unfortunately, at this point, her health and her body began to fail her and she was forced to accept care.  True to form, she worked hard to maintain her abilities as long as she could, but eventually her loss of mobility and her inability to speak overwhelmed her and she said “enough”.

We mourn the loss of a remarkable woman but we celebrate a remarkable life.  She always wanted to return to the mountains.  Some of her happiest times were spent in Canmore.  So she will get her wish, as we will have a Celebration of Life there in 2020, closing her circle of life, close to where it all began.