Elsie (Elsa) Duke (nee Hanelt) of Medicine Hat, Alberta, beloved wife of the late Gustav (Gus) Duke, passed away on June 21, 2023 at the age of 92 years.

Elsie was born in Marjanowka, Poland on February 27, 1931 to Adolph and Albertine Hanelt, (nee Braun) who were ethnic Germans living in Poland. She was the third eldest of nine children. As a child, she and her family were displaced by war, and made their way from Volhynia to Western Germany.

After the family settled in Bielefeld, Germany following the war, Elsie trained as a tailor. She immigrated to Canada in the winter of 1950-51 and met Gus, her loving husband and favourite dance partner. Gus and Elsie married on October 20, 1951 in Woodley, SK. They were blessed with two children: Ron and Bev. They farmed in the Lampman, SK area before moving to Weyburn, in 1956 to pursue new opportunities. Elsie worked at Weyburn’s Saskatchewan Mental Hospital for 17 years, and trained as a psychiatric nurse until suffering a serious workplace injury that left her temporarily partially paralyzed. In 1973, she and Gus moved to Medicine Hat where they both lived and worked until their passing.

Elsie loved to garden, play cribbage, go dancing at The Moose, knit, crochet and sew. Blessed with a green thumb, she could grow almost anything and was also an incredible cook. She could whip up a meal fit for a king from whatever was in the pantry and always had a place for guests at her table. Elsie also loved to travel and made several visits to Europe, the United States, and other parts of Canada, and enjoyed many impromptu road and bus trips, cruising the Caribbean with friends, and getting out to the mountains in the camper van with her grandchildren.

Elsie loved to bowl and was an accomplished bowler. Later in life she took up golfing and was extremely proud of her hole-in-one at the Paradise Valley Golf course on the 5th hole.

As a member of the Women of the Moose (WOM), Elsie was instrumental in making the WOM funeral luncheon fundraising program a success, providing support for community programming. Her dedication to volunteerism and contribution to the organization were acknowledged when she was awarded the WOM International Volunteer of the Year Award in 2010. After her retirement from Sears Canada in 1996, where she worked as the tailor, Elsie dedicated herself to her volunteer work, her family, and her garden.

Elsie was the very last of her immediate family and is survived by her daughter Beverley Duke Meller (Glenn), their children Ashley Meller and Daniel Meller (Melissa), her daughter-in law Wanda Duke (nee Siwy), her grandchildren Ronnie Duke (Jamie) and their daughter Olivia, Guy Duke (Gaylene) and their children Josh and Julia.

Elsie was predeceased by her husband Gus, her son Ronald, three infant sons, her parents Adolf and Albertine Hanelt, all of her siblings and their spouses – Irma Kallis (Rhinehart), Inge Dorn (Heinz), Erna Strothmann (Heinz), Marlis Seitz (John), Eric (Lorraine), her special friend Norman Gill, and two of her best friends, Daphne Keeler and Shirley Stewart.

Family and friends who wish to pay their respects may do so at the PATTISON FUNERAL HOME on Wednesday, July 5, 2023 from 6:00 p.m. to 8:00 p.m. and on Thursday one hour prior to the service. The funeral service will be held in the PATTISON FUNERAL HOME & CELEBRATION OF LIFE CENTRE on Thursday, July 6, 2023 at 11:00 a.m. with Rev. Dr. Shane P. Andrus officiating. Interment will follow in the Hillside Cemetery.

In lieu of flowers donations may be made to Saamis Immigration in support of the Ukrainian Refugees.

To leave a message of condolence you may visit www.pattisonfuneralhome.com.

• Date : 2023-06-21
• Location : Medicine Hat

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