Wayne Franklin

Obituary

Wayne Franklin, age 64, of Ste. Anne, Manitoba, passed away suddenly on Wednesday, April 16, 2025, at Bethesda Regional Health Centre, Steinbach, MB.

He is survived by his wife of almost 40 years, Susan, their children Melyssa (Chris), Jesse (Paige), Samantha (Samuel) Ethan (Ry) Rebecca (Matthew), his granddaughter Maddie (Melyssa and Chris) and his siblings Sharon and Robert.

He was predeceased by his mother Annette, father Joseph and aunt Rosie.

Wayne was born and raised in Winnipeg on September 16, 1960, where he graduated from Elmwood High in 1978 and went on to study Telecommunications at Red River College. High school sweethearts, Wayne and Susan started dating in 1977, and moved to their acreage five years later. They were married on June 28, 1986, in the same backyard where they would later raise their five beloved children.

Above all else, Wayne was encouraging, providing support in a million different ways to his loved ones. He was also inventive, caring, a jokester, creative and resourceful. He was a hardworking professional, often working multiple jobs to support his family. He was known for his laugh and the way he’d jokingly create nicknames for everyone he was close with. Wayne enjoyed ice fishing, fixing cars and spending time with his family camping and doing road trips. He was never without his Tim’s iced mocha cappuccino (no whipped topping) and somehow always had just about any piece of equipment anyone needed with the skills to teach them. He loved to cook and especially liked to smoke meat and preserve anything from his garden for his family. Wayne also loved music and TV, often pulling loved ones into impromptu sing-alongs or playing a clip from a show or commercial he found entertaining during family dinner night. In high school Wayne had a CB Radio Handle as “EJ” and continued to collect radios and cameras into his adult years. He recorded everything from his children’s lives, earning the title of videographer and leaving a plethora of moments for his family to cherish forever.

Wayne was fiery and friendly with a big soft spot for rescuing animals. He had an even bigger soft spot for his granddaughter; going so far as to peel off the crust of buns or rinse sour candy because Maddie asked him to. He was also sentimental and kept every card and craft given to him in shelves and boxes in his bedroom where he would spend most of his time watching TV and looking things up online. He always made a big deal of family birthdays and would be in attendance for every show, game and event, getting as close as possible and if able, recording on his video camera. He lived his life for his family in all ways, a reminder of how much he loved them in every single thing he did.

Wayne’s family would like to extend heartfelt thanks and appreciation for the paramedics, RCMP and Bethesda hospital staff.

In accordance with Wayne’s wishes, his ashes will be scattered with close friends and family at a later date.

In lieu of flowers or donations and in honor of Wayne’s memory and devotion to his loved ones, his family would like to encourage everyone to share meaningful time with their nearest and dearest.

Gone way too soon and missed forever.

“Kick it up a notch”