April 3, 1937 - March 18, 2024
In Loving Memory ~
Maria, affectionately known as Bonus to her Swiss family & friends, was born April 3rd 1937 in Andwil, Switzerland. She passed peacefully on March 18th, 2024 with family and in the gentle care of Wind River Hospice in Whitehorse, Yukon.
Maria was the 5th of 6 children born to dairy farmers Othmar and Martha Ledergerber. Already passed in Switzerland are her parents and older siblings Albert (Emma) and Martha (Bruno). She is survived by her younger sister Pia, older brothers Beat (Jyl) and Othmar, as well as her daughter Heidi (Rick), granddaughter Krystal (Brett), grandson Cody (Freija) and beloved dog Gypsy.
In 1964 Maria left Switzerland and joined her brother Beat in Beaver Creek, Yukon. She arrived on February 17th and as she put it "I thought I'd come to the end of the earth". But in the North, she found her place and through hard work and perseverance cultivated a life and home for herself and her daughter Heidi.
In 1978, she and Heidi moved to Dawson City so Heidi could attend high school. There she stayed, tough as tundra and fiercely independent, chopping her own firewood and tending her wood cook stove at 86 years old.
Maria was a woman of the wilderness, trekking through the Ogilvie mountains and ski-camping along winter's frozen waterways. She was not one to simply pass through and enjoy the views though; she engaged with the natural world on a deeper level than most. Maria loved to witness the marvels around her: a lady's slipper, a downy woodpecker, a diamond willow the right size for a walking stick, blueberries.... Through her journeys - and voracious reading - she came to know the trees, birds, flowers and berries of her home. She passionately advocated for species whose voices are so rarely heard and the trails she so dearly loved.
Maria's love for the living world extended to her garden where she nurtured a bountiful harvest of vegetables and stunning array of flowers. All watered by hand from rain barrels - tap water is too cold and too chlorinated. The vibrant garden she created and shared each year can only be described as a work of art.
Many thanks to the numerous people who cared for Maria on her cancer journey, the staff at the Dawson Medical Clinic, BC Cancer, Yukon's Cancer Care team, Whitehorse General Hospital, Home Care, Wind River Hospice, and Doctors Sherrard, Coholan and Kmet.
We so appreciate your expertise, gentleness and compassion as you cared for Maria.
Thank you and hugs to Maria's friends and neighbours for their love and support. Your visits, prayers, cards, phone calls, goodies, airport rides, and welcoming home stays in Vancouver meant so much to her and her family.
A graveside service and gathering will be held in Dawson, the afternoon of Sunday May 19th, 2024.