Gary Iwanchysko

It is with grieving hearts in sharing the passing of our beloved husband, father, son and brother, relative and friend, Gary Iwanchysko on Saturday, May 10 at the age of 52 years.

Gary was born to parents Dan and Lori Iwanchysko on May 25, 1972 and grew up on the farm in Rorketon. He enjoyed playing hockey in his younger years and graduated at Rorketon Collegiate in 1990. He pursued further education at Hertzing Career College in Winnipeg and was able to find employment at a variety of jobs for a short period of time before coming back home to help out with duties on the farm. He became employed with Manitoba Hydro as a Power Maintenance Electrician in 1992. He worked across Manitoba, from Brandon and Winnipeg, to the generating stations in the north. He became very good at his job and took on every problem as a challenge that he could solve. In 1996 he was at a position at the Brandon Generating Station, where he would come home every weekend to one of his passions, farming.
In February 1997 at a Rorketon ladies bonspiel dance he met his true love Pam where he asked her to marry him on the spot. The trips home became more frequent as there were more dates and events to attend together. He was able to bid a job with hydro in Dauphin and bought a house there in 1997. In the fall of 1997 he proposed, and they were married the following year on September 5, 1998.
Gary was known to all his friends as G.I. He was kind, giving and most importantly a friend to all. He would not have skipped beat in lending a helping hand to anyone. He enjoyed socializing with all and always provided some sort of entertainment much to the dismay of Pam. His attitude towards life was carefree and he enjoyed life for all it had to offer. Many stories with his cousin Jim Bob and friends and classmates getting into trouble are yet to be discovered and shared. He was carefree yet compassionate and just had the best outlook in life.
His dream of becoming a father to his son Alex happened on March 29, 2001. His biggest accomplishments were his kids and everyone knew it. He spent so much time in their upbringing, reading books before bed became a daily ritual and daily conversations about life were the norm, while Pam tended to all the other duties he didn’t care about. Gary spent hours in their rooms every night making strong connections with all three of them. The family was rounded out with his beloved girls, Oksana born on October 20, 2002 and Talia on August 9, 2005. Every one of them well over 9 lbs at birth and Pam always joked about changing out the bull.
They started raising their family, in building a new home and livestock facilities, in Rorketon, with intentions of taking over the family farm. Gary worked all day at hydro and came home to work even harder in the evenings. His passion was undeniably farming and keeping the family legacy alive. They did a lot of curling together in the community and made strong connections with friends there. Unfortunately, Gary was transferred up north to Thompson in 2006 and they were forced to sell and Pam and the kids moved to Dauphin, while Gary worked up north. Gary was able to bid a permanent job in Dauphin and then they secured their current acreage outside of town and settled into another new home and shop that Gary built from scratch. Gary acquired many new skills including plumbing, cement work, stuccoing to brick laying, all from books and You Tube videos. He was not scared to take on any new task.
Life was busy with hockey, piano, 4-H, Ukrainian dancing and many hours of volunteering everywhere in town for the kid’s activities. Gary coached hockey, and he worked long hours making sure the family was provided for. Hockey tournaments were a priority and family vacations and camping trips were many. He took on secondary jobs such as parging houses and grass cutting contracts with the City and RM of Dauphin. He was certainly proud of his fleet of lawnmowers, upgrading a new mower every year.
Gary’s ultimate dream was to ensure his kids knew he loved them and provided for them in any way he knew how. This was well received with Alex who followed in his footsteps taking on the same role as a power maintenance electrician with Manitoba Hydro. He was a man of few words but he didn’t have to say anything to show his pride in his kids. He was so proud of his girls with their multiple scholarships and choices in their post secondary education. Oksana being accepted into veterinary school and Talia in electrical engineering at the U of S. There were many recent daily chats with Talia on problem solving via Facetime.
Gary was the most caring, forgiving, patient, kind and compassionate individual, and loved Pam with all his heart. They both enjoyed their friendships with many people in Rorketon, Dauphin and all of the extended family. They loved playing cards with the neighbors and travelling. They conquered many trips including travelling first to Ukraine and then across Canada including Churchill by train, the Black Hills, Disneyland, Las Vegas, Disneyworld, Texas, Nashville and most recently cruises to Alaska and Hawaii. He was a dedicated son to his parents and his sister Judi, always accommodating and helping out wherever he could.
Gary is survived by his wife of 27 years, Pam, his children Alexander (Jennifer Yaschyshyn), Oksana and Talia. His parents Dan and Lorraine Iwanchysko, his sister Judi and her husband Peter and their daughter Victoria. His in-laws Ken and Nadia Yakielashek and his sister-in-law Naomi and husband Kurt Koshowski and their children Toni and Raylyn as well as his nieces Mariah and Naiyah and nephew Joshua Yakielashek. As well as many cousins, relatives and friends. Gary was pre-deceased by his brother-in-law Dean Yakielashek.

A Funeral Service was held for Gary on Saturday, May 24, 2025 at 10:00 am from the St. Viator's Roman Catholic Church in Dauphin with Rev. Father Brent Kuzyk officiating.  

Interment followed in the Riverside Cemetery - Dauphin.

Should friends so desire, donations in memory of Gary may be made to Manitoba Farmer Wellness Program 7 Kingswood Crescent La Salle, MB R0G 0A1 or to the Moose Bay Cemetery or St. John's Cemetery in Rorketon.  

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