Alice Mary Heiland ( Lahoda – Koop )

1921 -2008

Passed away as the sun was coming up on July 24, 2008 surrounded with

love, laughter, music, children, grandchildren, and great-grandchildren.

Born during a massive snowstorm January 23, 1921 in the family farmhouse

near Dundurn Saskatchewan, Alice was the only daughter of Casper

and Teresa Lahoda.

Raised during the depression years with her older brother Stan and

younger brothers Paul and George, she learned the importance of life’s

simpler things; hearty food, laughter, music and most importantly; family.

Wed to childhood sweetheart Paul Koop on January 4, 1943, she soon

gave birth to the fifi rst of fifi ve children.

Alice and Paul made their way to British Columbia and over the course of

the following thirty-two years the growing family was raised in many small

towns of the Interior fifi nally settling in Richmond in the late 1950’s where

Alice lived until 1979. Pioneer spirit still intact, she packed up, and now as

a single mom moved to Cherryville BC eventually settling in Vernon where

she met and

married her second husband Adam.

Alice was an extremely generous, gregarious person who loved to dance,

try her luck at the casino, garden, play fast-ball, bake raisin bread, play

cards, do crosswords and enjoy friends and family. Biologically a mother to

fifi ve, she was simply “Mom” to countless other friends and acquaintances;

no matter how long you’d been gone or how many you showed up with,

her home was always your home complete with a clean bed and a home

cooked meal. She will be greatly missed but will live on in every flfl ower we

smell, child we hold, and dance step we take.

Thanks Mom.

Alice is survived by her fifi ve children, Diane, Polly, Greg, Sharon and Grant,

her brother George, eleven grandchildren and nine great-grandchildren

with one on the way. The family would also like to express the utmost

gratitude to the staff at the Polson Extended Care Unit, Dr.Mandreck, and

that little pig valve.

Arrangements in the care of Personal Alternative Funeral Services,

Armstrong 250 546-7237.