Lois passed away peacefully on April 30, 2024 in her home in Medicine Hat at the age of 83, with family by her side. She is survived by loving daughter Denise Kutaj (Ed), granddaughters Jessica and Karissa of Swift Current; son David DeMaere (Karen) of Leduc, granddaughter Meghan and grandson Connor of Calgary; grandson Kevin DeMaere (Jeannie) of Gull Lake, children Jaxon, Karson, and Taylor of Vulcan; grandson Craig DeMaere (Amber) of Calgary children Ocean, Roman, Memphis, Cali, and Oakley; granddaughter Lisa DeMaere of Medicine Hat children Nash and Harlee; sister Karen Day of Medicine Hat, special nephews Ed, Rod, Jason DeMaere and families, and many relatives and friends. Lois was predeceased by her husband Chuck in 2009, her son Darren in 2015, her parents Edwin and Laura Day, and her brother Dann Day.

Lois was born on April 9, 1941, in Medicine Hat. A year later, her father Edwin joined the Canadian Air Force and went for training in Brandon, MB. He was then posted to the American-Canadian airbase in Fort Nelson, BC. Mother Laura and Lois joined him and lived there until 1947. On the base, the servicemen doted on the bubbly, little blond-haired Lois and often gave her chocolate. The family settled in Medicine Hat, where Lois attended school at Earl Kitchener School, Connaught School and graduated from Medicine Hat High School in 1959. Her jobs included dental receptionist and clerk at City Hall.

Lois married Chuck DeMaere on September 17, 1960, and the family began to grow! Darren was born in 1961, Denise in 1964, and David in 1968. In 1962, they formed a road construction company called 3D Earthmoving and began working in the Medicine Hat area. In 1972, the family and business relocated to the acreage north of Gull Lake, where Chuck and Lois resided until August 2001, when they retired in Medicine Hat.

The years in Gull Lake were busy as Lois raised the children, looked after the acreage, and did all the accounting for the growing business while remaining active in the community. Lois loved children, and when Darren moved back to the acreage, she took on the co-parenting role to raise Kevin, Craig, and Lisa. She was very proud of her family of six!

Throughout her life, Lois remained an active Girl Guide leader and taught Guides and Sparks. Lois recently received an award for 55 years of commitment to Guiding.

Lois was an excellent seamstress, and her machine could be heard humming late into the night, sewing clothing for the family, bridesmaid and figure skating dresses, costumes for Halloween, curling, Kinettes, Octoberfest, etc.  Lois loved curling and had so much fun with her friends at bonspiels in Gull Lake and surrounding towns. Lois was a fabulous cook, and her homemade meals, bread and chiffon birthday cakes were made with love. Pots of soup, chili, lasagna, pies, and squares were donated to the school, curling rink, and local fundraisers. She was a member of UCW and Kinettes for many years. She was an avid hockey and football mom/grandma and spent many hours at the rink, lacing skates, driving players to tournaments and attending Lions football games.

After retiring to Medicine Hat in 2001, most of the next years were spent looking after Chuck as his dementia worsened until he went to Good Sam’s. Even there, she was at his side daily, helping with his care and volunteering until his passing in 2009. Her home in Medicine Hat was the family gathering spot, and there was rarely a weekend that didn’t involve family, friends, food, and fun! Lois loved to travel and over the years and visited every province in Canada, went to Hawaii, the Cook Islands, Costa Rica, Mexico, Las Vegas, and Disneyland four times with each family.  The longest trip was a six-month motorhome down the East coast of the USA, south to Florida, across to Arizona and back home.

People were drawn to Lois’s friendly smile and open personality. She visited with people of all ages everywhere she went. She was the family matriarch and rock and will be forever missed and cherished.

The celebration of Life will be held at Saamis Memorial Chapel, # 1 Dunmore Road SE, Medicine Hat AB on Monday, May 6 at 2:00 p.m. followed by lunch in the Creekside Centre. In Lieu of flowers, donations can be made to Girl Guides of Canada Girl Guides of Canada,
Unit 100 – 180 Duncan Mill Road, Toronto, ON M3B 1Z6 or any charity of your choice. Condolences may be sent to condolences@saamis.com subject heading Lois DeMaere.

• Date : 2024-04-30
• Location : Medicine Hat,AB.

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