Patricia May (Stoughton) Hrychuk

Patsy, simply the best.
She was better than all the rest.

Patricia May Hrychuk (Stoughton)
June 28th, 1949 - May 1st, 2021

Patricia (Pat/Patsy) was born and raised in Gilbert Plains, MB. She was the second oldest of the Stoughton siblings and definitely the smartest of the bunch (she had the honour roll photos to prove it). In her early years, she could be found getting into trouble with her sister, Karen and their friends. Mom played many sports growing up and was quite the athlete. Many family memories were made at Mel’s Drive-Inn and the family cabin at Dauphin Lake. 

It was in Gilbert Plains where she met the love of her life, Fred. Mom and Dad were highschool sweethearts and they eventually wed on November 22nd, 1969. Mom and Dad went on many adventures together and had many friends. While we were looking through old photos of Mom’s, we noticed loads of party pictures with the same crew from Grandview… you know who you are. 
Mom loved Dad fearlessly and gave him more chances than he probably deserved but their deep love for each other kept bringing them back to each other. Their love brought the “Fab Five” into this world: first Roxanne in 1976, then Chad in 1979, Branden in 1984, Tamara in 1987 and finally, the little miracle, Morgan, in 1991. Mom and Dad eventually separated but that didn’t stop them from co-parenting successfully. Dad would visit the house daily. It drove Mom nuts when she would come home and find the furniture moved around because Dad decided we needed a change. 
In our early years, Mom stayed home to raise us kids, as well as a few others in the neighbourhood. Growing up, the Hrychuk house was always full. There were always children coming and going and you could always find a hockey or baseball game happening in front of the house. Her home was always open and she was everyone’s second mom. 
Mom worked and she worked hard and tirelessly. She did everything and anything she had to do to give us kids a good life. We never felt like we missed out on anything and that was because of her. When Dad died in 2003, she took on both roles of parents and rocked it. She taught us to be hardworking, decent human beings. 
Throughout a few different career choices, Mom got to work side by side with her kids and it was a blast. We saw first-hand how hard Mom worked. We were in awe of her and always will be. 
Mom’s choice of work was bartending which led her to managing the Grandview Legion. It was there where she left her mark on the community. She loved her job and she enjoyed socializing with all of the community. Some of our best family memories are at the Grandview Legion… her 60th Birthday Party, her mortgage burning party, and her Retirement Party. It was at the Legion where you could find Pat and all of her children behind the bar. 
Mom was not one to coddle her children. She let us learn from our mistakes and find our own way in life. We appreciated her toughness. While she was tough, she was also our biggest cheerleader. She wanted nothing but the best for her kids. 
When we were teenagers, Mom would wait up for us and once we were all home, we would sit on the couch in the living room and visit. It would be two in the morning and she would crawl out of bed just to chat with us and hear about our night. Mom would want all the details of the party we were just at… she knew everything that went on around town. She allowed us to be open and honest and that is why we had such a great relationship with each other. 
Mom never complained. Her life was hard and she just kept trucking. Mom suffered from severe arthritis (Arthur, as she called it) for a big part of her life. It was debilitating and cruel but she powered through… for years. It may have slowed her down but it never stopped her from having fun. 
After Mom retired from the Legion, her life consisted of: hourly Facebook chats with her kids, watching curling and golf on TV, family get-togethers, reading, playing cards, daily chats/visits with her sister, Gaylene and much more. We are going to miss Mom’s comments on all of our Facebook photos and posts. Whenever one of us kids posted something on Facebook, Mom was the first to comment! Mom was never one to shy away from her opinion… especially after a glass of wine. We gave Mom a nickname that will stay between us kids.   
Summers were Mom’s favorite time of year. Arthur slowed down in the summer which gave mom the chance to have some fun. Out came the wine and the card playing. Whether it was at the Lake with her siblings, in the garage with the GP crew, at the Legion, at the campground or with her family, Mom knew how to have fun. She lived for the big family gatherings like the Stoughton Olympics and the Mel-Flo Golf Tournament, where everyone could be together. 
Mom was competitive, a true Stoughton. The lady didn’t like to lose! Whether it was bowling and curling (in her younger years), crib, 500, joker joker or any other game, she did not like to lose. Mom would find creative ways (cheating, if you will) to win… the fly-swatting competition of 1991 is still being talked about. And look out, if she beat you, she didn’t let you forget it! 
Mom was THE biggest curling fan. During the winter months, you could find her curled up on the couch with a curling game on. If you didn’t know what time a game was on, you could just ask her and she would know. One of our favourite memories of Mom is when we took her to Regina to cheer on Jeff Stoughton at the Men’s World’s Curling Championships. We got to watch him win gold and it was a trip that we will never forget.

Mom will never be forgotten. Stories of Patsy will be shared forever. Whether it’s at the Lake, around a card table or every time we pour a glass of wine, we will think of her and smile. 
Patricia is survived by her five children: Roxanne (Gord), Chad, Branden (Ali), Tamara (Michael), Morgan (Derrick) and her grandchildren who she adored so much: Zach, Aidan, Emmy, Liam, Dax, Hudson, Blakely, Chloe and Rowan. 

She is also survived by her siblings, who she had so many good times with: Karen (Merv), Blaine (Cindy), Gerald (Joni), Gaylene, Sherry (Al) and numerous nieces, nephews and friends. 
Mom will be meeting her Mom and Dad in heaven and there will be many card games going down. 

A celebration of life will be held this Summer, where we can celebrate the amazing person that Mom was. 
In lieu of flowers, donations can be made to the Grandview Legion.  

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