Betty Giesbrecht and her husband Harold moved to Niverville from Vermillion Bay, Ontario in 1951. Though born and raised in the Rosenfeld area, close to Altona, they had moved to Ontario due to Harold’s work in the forestry industry. Betty had attended the Manitoba Teachers College in the late 1940s and taught school in Rosenfeld before her marriage to Harold in 1948.
Their move to Niverville led them to discover a community in which to raise a family, develop their business interests, and ultimately retire. Betty taught kindergarten. Harold assumed a sales position at Enns Garage, which was a John Deere and General Motors dealership.
Their first home in Niverville was a suite above Enns Garage, located across Main Street from the Niverville Credit Union. After a few more moves, they built a new home on the northeast corner of Second Avenue South and First Street South.
That’s where my early memories of Harold and Betty begin.
In 1959, Betty was asked to assist the Niverville postmaster, Nick Dyck, with his duties after his wife fell ill. At the time, the post office was located in a house directly behind the current Chicken Chef. Betty soon assumed all the responsibilities of postmaster and her and Harold’s home became the new site of the post office. Betty set up shop in their attached garage, where the post office remained until 1969, when a group of businesspeople called the Niverville Promoters constructed a new building on Main Street, where the post office still stands to this day. Betty served as the postmaster until January 10, 1989.
At the same time that Betty became postmaster, she also became Niverville’s correspondent for The Carillon, a regional newspaper based in Steinbach, along with Anne Krahn. This was volunteer position involved writing a host of interesting stories on a weekly basis. For 31 years, Betty faithfully compiled the news and told the Niverville story.
Betty was actively involved in the local Woman’s Institute, taught 4H, and was a leader in the Explorers and Canada Girls in Training (CGIT), all of which were part of her lifelong commitment to the United Church. She also served on the executive of the Niverville Chamber of Commerce, was secretary treasurer of the Niverville Community Club, and planned bonspiels at the Niverville Curling Club for some 20 years. In addition, Betty served as a clinic registrar for Niverville Blood Donor Clinic for many years.
In the early days of the Niverville Fire Department, her phone received the first call to any
fire. Later, she was upgraded to a red phone, which specifically indicated a fire when it rang. When she received a call, she immediately began calling the chain of volunteer firefighters to notify them of the emergency.
As a lifelong member of the Postmasters Heritage Club, she was passionate about her charitable work of knitting for the less fortunate.
Betty’s love of sport was focused on baseball. She played from an early age until after the birth of her children. She loved going to games and watching her children play as well.
Betty and Harold retired together in a condo on Fifth Avenue until her passing on December 29, 2014. She was predeceased by Harold on January 23, 2013.
We so often talk today about the question of significance, about making an impact on the world. Betty was not unlike many in her generation who struggled through challenging times but ended up leaving behind a strong legacy.
The people whose stories I have written about in this column over the last year and a half never really thought their stories needed to, or would be, told—but their stories and contributions are vitally important for us to read today. For those who actually make a difference, it’s never about vanity or credit. They leave a legacy because they genuinely care as much for others as they do for themselves.
Betty was the mother to Ross and Carmen Giesbrecht and Lois and Harley Hunt. She left four grandchildren—Lesley, Robyn, Spencer, and Stacey—as well as eight great-grandchildren.
