Reginald John Penner

Obituary

It is with immense sadness that we announce the passing of Reginald John Penner, age 67 years, of Steinbach, Manitoba. Reg passed away peacefully on Wednesday, March 29, 2023, at Bethesda Regional Health Centre, Steinbach, Manitoba, after being diagnosed with pancreatic cancer on February 18, 2023.

Reg is survived by his loving wife of 44 years, Ingrid (Dyck), his daughter, Kara and husband Tim Fehr and his granddaughters Kailyn and Hannah. Brothers Randy (Adele), Darrel (Cari); brother-in-law Rudy (Tanis), sister-in-law Angela; mother-in-law Margarete Dyck and her children Ron (Andrea), Nancy (Kevin) and many nieces and nephews.

Reg was pre-deceased by his parents Abe G. and Thelma Penner, sister Cheryl Lynnette Ferguson and her husband Jerome, Ingrid’s parents, Peter and Lilly Dyck, and brother-in-law Gordon Dyck.

Reg was born on August 10, 1955, in Steinbach to Abe G. and Thelma Penner. He had a great childhood. The three brothers were very rambunctious and the funny stories he told were endless. We will miss hearing them. Reg also loved to work! He started work at a young age piling lumber for the family business, assisting Uncle Cornie at Janzen Garage and building spec homes during his university years.

In 1976, he met Ingrid and their love for each other was instant. They were inseparable and a couple of years later they were married on July 7, 1978. Their greatest joy arrived May 16, 1987, when their daughter Kara was born. The family shared the same love of the outdoors, spending time at the lake, exploring in their motorhome. Reg and Ingrid also took time for each other and went on golfing holidays with friends or made new friends.

Reg started his career at Penner Farm Service in 1979 and led the business for over 40 years. When he started it was a small business with eight employees and with his leadership the business grew. He cared deeply for his employees and for his customers, of which many became good friends. It was important for him to treat his suppliers fairly and because of this he was blessed with long-time relationships.

Reg believed in giving back to the community. He was involved with the Steinbach Chamber of Commerce, the Steinbach Fly-In Golf Club, his church and he also sat on the board of the Steinbach Credit Union for 20 years.

Reg retired from the business in 2020. He realized at that time that his life had been unbalanced. He rededicated his life to God and spent his remaining years focused on his Faith, his Family and his Community. He joined Partners Worldwide and flew to Ghana to help business leaders and farmers grow their business. He also became involved with Steinbach Community Outreach’s building project of a low income apartment block. His last trip was with Leader Impact, where he shared his business principles and his faith story to business and community leaders in Ixtapa, Mexico. Reg loved being involved in his church and took the role of church chair very seriously. The time spent with his children and grandchildren was precious. These last three years we made so many wonderful memories at the cottage and travelling with our family.

While in Ixtapa, Reg started feeling ill. A few days after we arrived home, he went to get blood work and other tests done; he was diagnosed with metastatic cancer of the pancreas. Reg was at peace with his diagnosis. He never questioned “why me” but rather said, “why not me?” We are thankful that we didn’t see Reg suffer with pain.

We thank all the caring nurses, doctors and health care workers in the Bethesda Emergency Room, those on the second floor of Bethesda and our CancerCare team for their exceptional care. We also thank all those who joined us on our Caring Bridge site and prayed and encouraged us this past month.

The livestreamed funeral service will be held on Wednesday, April 5, 2023, at 1:30 p.m. at Steinbach Mennonite Church, 345 Loewen Blvd, Steinbach, MB.

This past year Reg was in the process of raising funds for The Bridge, an affordable housing project dedicated to providing low rent housing for people struggling to make ends meet in our community.

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