James Hourie

Peacefully, with family at his side, James Rennie Hourie passed away Tuesday, March 12, 2019 at the Portage District General Hospital at the age of 84 years.

Left to cherish his memory are his children Colin (Angie) Hourie of High Bluff, Karen (Ted) Ellefson of Calgary; grandchildren Anne, Tom & Aaron Hourie and Emily, Lindsay , Jillian & Lisa Ellefson; great-grandson Eddie Rojas-Hourie; siblings Evelyn Smith of Portage la Prairie and Fay Lavallee of Hudson Hope BC and numerous nieces, nephews and friends.

James (Jim) Hourie has gone to be with his beloved wife Audrey.  He spent the past year mourning the loss of her presence in his life and missed her with every breath he took.  He found solace in reading and writing poetry, listening to music and surrounding himself with pictures of happy times with his sweetheart.  Jim was a true renaissance man:  he loved to read, do crosswords, garden, play baseball, bird watch, hunt, curl, dance, swim, fish, and farm.  He was working on writing his memoirs; stories of times past.  He enjoyed telling his grandchildren tales of his youth and taking them to the museum to show them the house he grew up in. Jim was very proud of his family heritage and the fact that he was steward of the land that was “the oldest same family owned farm in Manitoba”.  The Farm of the Century designation in 1970 and that of “Best Rural Grounds” in 2002 were two awards that he treasured.  Jim had a green thumb and could coax almost any flower or vegetable to produce in copious quantities.  His wood business stocked many of the wood stoves in the area with cords of wood that he harvested from deadfall in the bush. There wasn’t a native Manitoba plant, animal or bird that he could not identify.  Jim was happiest out on the land or on the dance floor twirling Audrey to the strains of an old time waltz.  His quiet strength and sense of humor will be missed by his family and friends.

As per Jim’s wishes there will be no formal funeral service, a private family gathering will take place at a later date.

As expressions of sympathy, if friends so wish, donations may be made in Jim’s memory to the High Bluff Cemetery Association, Po Box 1508, Portage la Prairie, MB R1N 3P1.

A tree will be planted in memory and cared for by McKenzies Portage Funeral Chapel.  204-857-4021 www.mckenziesportagefuneralchapel.com