Friesen, Erna (1932-2021)
Erna Susie (Suderman) Friesen: teacher, lawyer, and administrator; born 8 January 1932 in Wawanesa, Manitoba, Canada, to John Peter Suderman (15 March 1906, Alexanderthal, Molotschna Mennonite Settlement, South Russia – 23 July 1978, Abbotsford, British Columbia, Canada) and Helena (Wedel) Suderman (15 June 1903, Dolinsk, Neu-Samara, Russia – 3 October 1984, Abbotsford, British Columbia). Erna was the second oldest of 10 children. On 18 April 1960, Erna married John D. Friesen, son of Dietrich Jacob Friesen (1882-1955) and Anna P. (Unger) Friesen (1893-1992). They had four children: Ingrid, Carolyn, John, and Ken. Erna died 7 June 2021 while living at Tapestry, a home for the elderly on the University of British Columbia (UBC) campus in Vancouver, British Columbia.
At the age of nine, Erna’s family moved to Clearbrook (now Abbotsford), British Columbia, where Erna spent her childhood years, learning the lessons that came with a farm life – hard work and getting things done. Following graduation from Mennonite Educational Institute in 1950, Erna attended Provincial Normal School in Vancouver to obtain her teaching certification. While employed as a teacher, she pursued her Bachelor of Arts Degree at UBC, which she completed in 1958. It was at UBC where she met John Friesen, whom she married in 1960. Her next years were filled with raising her four children.
Erna and John, after two years of teaching high school in Vancouver and becoming school counsellors, moved to Edmonton where John pursued a doctoral degree in counselling psychology while Erna became a stay at home mom. In 1967, they returned to Vancouver where John began his employment as Professor of Counselling Psychology at the University of British Columbia.
In the 1970s, Friesen began pursuing a Law degree, finding the world of ideas and analytical thought "absolutely stimulating." Together with a partner, she founded her own law firm, Friesen and Epp, with a focus on family law. Erna and John developed several construction projects, including their cherished Whistler ski cabin, which provided the family with many years of happy memories.
Following retirement from her law career, Erna devoted time and energy to service in the church, to charity, and to many boards and committees. Erna and John attended the Fraserview MB Church, the Killarney Park MB Church, and later was instrumental, together with several others, in establishing the Point Grey Inter-Mennonite Fellowship, whose mission was to work with university students at UBC and beyond.
Erna and John, together with others, established the Menno Simons Center near UBC in 1986. Erna was a board member of Regent College (including a term as chair), Menno Simons Centre, Mennonite Central Committee BC, the Mennonite Faith and Learning Society, and Canadian Mennonite University, Winnipeg. Together with John, Erna was instrumental in establishing the Peace Studies program at University of the Fraser Valley and at Conrad Grebel seminary in Cuba.
Erna was a force of nature, a trailblazer, and a woman of many talents, intelligence, and personal beauty. Possessing a lifelong interest in the arts, Erna became an accomplished landscape oil painter, and she enjoyed exploring new concepts through reading and attending lectures. She suffered much in her last years, but remained optimistic to the end. She was a "woman of vision and action," and seen as a role model by her children, grandchildren, and many others in the community.
| Author(s) | Dave Loewen |
|---|---|
| Date Published | May 2023 |
Cite This Article
MLA style
Loewen, Dave. "Friesen, Erna (1932-2021)." Global Anabaptist Mennonite Encyclopedia Online. May 2023. Web. 23 Apr 2024. https://gameo.org/index.php?title=Friesen,_Erna_(1932-2021)&oldid=175561.
APA style
Loewen, Dave. (May 2023). Friesen, Erna (1932-2021). Global Anabaptist Mennonite Encyclopedia Online. Retrieved 23 April 2024, from https://gameo.org/index.php?title=Friesen,_Erna_(1932-2021)&oldid=175561.
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