VICTOR ALEXANDER DIRKS

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VICTOR ALEXANDER DIRKS August 11, 1921 - December 8, 2011 After a brief illness Victor Alexander Dirks of Kingsville, Ontario passed away on December 8, 2011 in Windsor at 90 years of age. Victor was born in Waldheim, a Mennonite village in eastern Ukraine. He immigrated to Canada with his parents in 1924. The family settled in Arnaud, Manitoba where Victor received his early education, and later in Winnipeg where Victor attended Daniel McIntyre High School. He received his B.Sc. (Agriculture) and M.Sc. (Agriculture) at the University of Manitoba. Following that he completed his Ph.D. at the University of Minnesota in plant genetics. He was a teaching professor at the South Dakota State University and the University of Minnesota. In 1972, he moved to Ontario where he worked as a scientist at the Harrow Research Station, Department of Agriculture until his retirement. Victor was predeceased by his wives, Frances Schifflet (1978) and Margaret Barton (2006), his parents Alexander and Agnes Dirks, brothers Neil and Henry and sister Irene. He is survived by his stepson and caregiver Norman Barton (Susan), brother John (Fay), sisters Elizabeth, Rosemarie (Arnold Thiessen), and Marguerite (Rudolph Dyke), sister-in-law Betty Dirks and many nieces and nephews. The family all joyously celebrated his 90th year with him on September 25. Victor was an intellectual with wide ranging interests, including science, history, politics, religion and sports. He was a person of faith and a member of Harrow Mennonite Church for near 40 years. Victor was a prolific writer of letters to family and many friends, and of poems written for every family and celebratory event. We will miss his Christmas poem greatly this year. The family thanks Norman and the staff at Leamington Memorial Hospital and Hotel-Dieu Grace Hospital in Windsor for their excellent clinical and compassionate care. A memorial service will be held January 6, 2011 at 1:00 p.m. at Friend's Funeral Service, 2146 Main St., Winnipeg, Manitoba. In lieu of flowers, memorial donations may be made to Harrow Mennonite Church, the Mennonite Central Committee or a charity of one's choice.

As published in Winnipeg Free Press on Jan 03, 2012