Obituary of Daphne Lynne Meunier
Daphne Meunier, late of Estevan, SK passed away peacefully at home on Thursday, February 27, 2025 at the age of 72 years.
The Funeral Service will be held on Tuesday, March 25 at 11:00 a.m. from the Yorkton Memorial Gardens Family Centre.
CLICK HERE for Live Stream beginning at 10:45a.m.
The interment will follow in the Praireview Indoor Columbarium, Yorkton Memorial Gardens.
Daphne Lynne Groseth was born in Yorkton, Saskatchewan on February 1, 1953, the first child of Lawrence and Iris Groseth. Daphne grew up ‘on the hill’ in Dubuc, being a big sister to Rodney and granddaughter to Lula and Lawrence Groseth Sr, and Sandra and Norman Nicholson. Daphne attended school in Dubuc where she made lifelong friendships. Daphne fondly recalled childhood car trips with her grandmother Lula to visit relatives in Scobey, Montana.
In 1970, Daphne married John Hedstrom and together they raised three children, Joanne born in 1972, Brent born in 1974 and Reid (John Reid) born in 1980. Daphne encouraged her children to read and play outside. Daphne helped to coach softball in Dubuc and plan youth activities with the Dubuc Youth and Culture Committee.
Daphne paid close attention to politics, usually starting her day listening to CBC radio. As many will remember, in 1990 Daphne was one of two people from Dubuc who travelled to Ottawa to present to a federal government standing committee as part of the efforts to “Save the Dubuc Post Office” and stop the closure of rural post offices in Saskatchewan. While their efforts did not stop the closure of the Dubuc Post Office, they did delay the closure of post offices in other rural communities. Daphne was interested in the issues facing Canadians and critiquing the actions of government officials. Most recently she and Neil raised a glass to celebrate the retirement of a Canadian prime minister.
In 1982, Daphne moved to Regina, where she worked part time and attended the Reliance College of Business, completing her schooling in 1983. Daphne worked at Reed Stenhouse Insurance until she moved back to Dubuc in 1985, and in 1987, she opened her own insurance agency for Cooperators Insurance on main street in Dubuc. Daphne closed the insurance agency to accept employment with the Yorkton Credit Union in 1990. In the financial industry, Daphne continually pursued new training and new opportunities as the investment industry developed. In 2001, Daphne joined the North Valley Credit Union as an investment specialist, and in 2002 she moved to Estevan Credit Union where she became the Branch Compliance Manager for Spectra Financial Services. She stayed there until she retired in 2014 after 24 years in the financial services industry.
Daphne met Neil Meunier in 2001. Together Daphne and Neil embarked on many new adventures - becoming grandparents in 2004 when Alexis was born, getting married in 2005, moving to a new condo in 2014, visiting their time-share in Florida from 2010-2017, visiting family across Western Canada, retiring together, taking care of Daphne’s elderly parent, building recycled “Glass with Class’ sculptures and establishing their ‘happy place’ at their camper in Dubuc. Neil brought out the best in Daphne, being her best friend, the love of her life and her constant companion. Daphne’s children are grateful to Neil for his incredible support for Daphne as she faced health challenges in recent years.
Daphne was an avid reader and Scrabble player; she consumed mystery novels and British mystery tv-series like they were candy; being incredibly creative, Daphne made her own greeting cards and tried her hand at various visual arts. Daphne loved to be surrounded by colour and used her fashion choices to reflect this. Daphne loved cooking, especially in her slow cooker; she was a lifelong gardener and was delighted when Neil built her garden boxes in Dubuc - she was especially thankful for Susan and Leon Powell who provided technical support for the garden boxes. Daphne was fond of her cats: Kitty Boy and Lucky who predeceased her, and Goldie.
Daphne loved her family, especially her grandchildren. She was in love with and incredibly proud of Alexis, Ella, Anna, Clarke and Carver. She treasured the moments that she spent with them, always keeping a stash of toys, books and crafts on hand in case a grandchild stopped in. Daphne took hundreds of photos of her grandchildren and often created keepsakes with their images. Daphne had high expectations for her grandchildren: she wanted them all to seek higher education, to work hard at whatever they choose to do, to find someone to share an enduring love with and travel whenever they can.
Daphne leaves to mourn her husband of 20 years Neil Meunier, her daughter Joanne (Bruce) Wallace; sons Brent (Chandra) Hedstrom and Reid (Breanne) Hedstrom; grandchildren Alexis Wenzel, Clarke and Carver Hedstrom; stepchildren Shanna (Chris Sterling) Meunier, Scott Meunier and step grandchildren Ella and Anna Meunier; brother Rodney (June Haas) and nieces Liz and Lexa. Daphne will be missed by her many relatives and friends, but most especially by her great Aunt Gayla Brigley and her beloved cousin Marlon Hoffman.
If friends so desire, memorial donations may be made to the ALS Society of Saskatchewan at https://alssask.ca/en/home or the Canadian Heart & Stroke Foundation https://www.heartandstroke.ca/ or to your local food bank or animal rescue society.
