Obituary of Rudolf "Rudy" Wolske

We celebrate the life of Rudolf "Rudy" Wolske - son, brother, husband, father, opa, friend. Rudy's was a life of sacrifice and service to his family - his wife of 54 years Elvira, his children Christina (John), Mike (Mary), Tanya, Peter (Jodi), and especially his beloved grandchildren Annika, Bruin, Dallin, Elise, Henry, Laura, Maeve, Claire, Zoey, and Austin.

Hard work defined Rudy's life. He taught each of his children the value of hard work, the importance of completing a task, and being proud of their work. At the age of 15 in July 1955, he came to Canada with his parents Heinrich and Natalia, his sister Lilli, and brothers Ulrich and Helmut from Germany to work as farm labourers and to join his older sister Hilde. He retired in 2005, after working almost 40 years with Boeing Toronto (formerly McDonnell-Douglas Canada) as a sheet metal mechanic building airplane wings. Rudy's real passion however was building houses. He built 6 magnificent homes for his family with one for each child he would often say. He took great pride in his homes, using his talents in gardening and landscaping to beautify each one. Rudy's other talent was fixing anything. A common phrase when something broke was to "call Opa!". He would see a problem, think it through, and then find a way to fix it.

Rudy was not a man of many words but showed his love through service to his family and others. He could always be counted on to help when needed, drive when required (with many airport runs, school drop-offs and pick-ups, and even a few times across the country), and opened his home for many people from all over the world who needed a place to stay.

In later years Rudy and Elvira travelled the world together by car, plane, ship, and train visiting Canada from coast to coast and especially enjoying visiting their son in British Columbia. They saw Alaska, cruised the Caribbean and toured Europe. Rudy especially loved visiting Germany with its old towns and castles. However, his favourite place to be was always home with his family. He enjoyed a good joke, eating his wife's food, watching his favourite TV shows, riding his bike, and reading the news. He loved to learn. He protected and provided for his family. He loved his garden and its beautiful plants and flowers. His influence and example will forever be felt by his family and will inspire generations.

A celebration of Rudy's life will be held on Tuesday, January 9, 2023, at Windsor Chapel Funeral Home (Banwell Chapel, 11677 Tecumseh Rd E, Windsor) with a visitation starting at 10 am, a funeral service at 11 am and a graveside ceremony to follow. A luncheon will be held at 1 pm at The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints

Thank you to all the nurses, doctors, and other healthcare professionals who cared for Rudy over the years both in the community and in the hospital. Thank you to Essex -Windsor EMS, Windsor Fire and Rescue Services, and Windsor Police Service who showed such kindness and professionalism on Dec 29, 2023.