Obituary for Zenta Olga Grinbergs
Zenta Olga Grinbergs
1919 - 2020
Zenta Olga Grinbergs, 100 years old of Kitchener transitioned peacefully in the quiet of the evening on May 2, 2020. It was the same day that she herd her daughter's voice over the phone for the last time.
Born in Moscow on May 25, 1919, she was the daughter of Andrejs and Anna ( Laipnieks) Plavina .
Zenta was born in Moscow just two years after the Russian Revolution (1917) was fully occupied in tearing apart the established order. Her father although born in Latvia had been taken in by extended family living in Moscow before the outbreak of WWI in 1914. After secondary school he had become a soldier in the Imperial Army, rose to officer rank, married his sweetheart Anna and tried to stay alive during that time. He avoided being shot in one round-up operation by jumping the back wall but was arrested later and subjected to much cruelty by the Communists. So Anna returned to Latvia with Zenta first and lived at Anna's parents' country property. There she worked as a teacher in a nearby country school. Soon afterwards her father was assumed to have escaped from Soviet Russia and joined them in Latvia.
By 1940 Latvia was again caught between Germany and the Soviet Union. The Baltic States ended up being occupied by the Red Empire. In June 1941, Zenta was already independent, having finished Teachers College with a first appointment to a country school not far from Valmiera. On June 14, 1941 she returned home for a visit only to find her entire family including her four siblings had been taken away by the Russians. That was the most scarring experience for her and remained that way for her until the end. Her father was never seen again.
By the time Zenta left for Canada from England by ship it was 1951. She had endured many hardships of WWII. She spoke of escaping from a bombed and burning ship when she was a red cross nurse, surviving typhoid fever and helping to clean POW's after the war at Bergen-Belsen concentration camp. She always mentioned that surprisingly she never really felt afraid during those times - that somehow she felt protected. She was newly married to Aleksandrs Grinbergs when she first stepped onto Canadian soil in St. John, New Brunswick. They made their way to Noranda, Quebec where Latvian friends were waiting to greet them. They started a family there before moving and settling in Kitchener, Ontario in 1963.
Zenta's focus became one of family - raising two children and working alongside of her husband while they adapted to a new country. She was an avid reader, a lover of nature so she loved her flower and vegetable gardens and really enjoyed her home. As a true Gemini, she often hosted old and new friends and relations all with the same zest. A regular flow of people coming and going along with intermittent travel when it allowed brought her great joy. She liked to explore her community and to discover something new.
She developed a knowledge base of healing herbs and teas and many varied aspects of health and healing so her reading room and gardens continued to grow. Books, flowers, coffee and goodies for guests inside or outdoors on her little back deck - always. Every Easter there was a stream of women and children coming to colour eggs. Downstairs in her basement on her giant worktable there was an array of fabrics ( that ran colour in those days) and threads and woven pattern pieces that everyone could choose in any order to create beautiful wraps around the dozen or two of eggs that people brought. After they all got boiled and cooled off there was the unveiling by each creator with oohs and aaaahs being heard by all onlookers for just about every egg - every year! Much fun was had by all. Eventually the kids grew up and the older women kept coming and coffee turned into wine but that's another story haha!
Zenta was also a true and committed friend to those who were ill. She spent many evenings after she worked sitting with those she knew who needed company or some help in other ways. She went about quietly doing this for several friends for countless hours and sometimes months never speaking about it much. She once said that all she wanted to be was a good person in this world. That's a flavour of Zenta.
Zenta is survived by her daughter Ruta (Rua) Grinbergs, Burnstown, Ontario; son Peter Grinbergs, Kitchener; granddaughter Sacha Adkins (Nick Williams), Toronto; great-grandson Alex. As far as we know her sister Mara Sinkevica (Plavina) and her brother Andris Plavina are still alive and living in Latvia.
Besides her parents Zenta was predeceased by her husband Aleksandrs Grinbergs; brothers Valdis and Zigurds Plavina; sister Inta Krumins (Plavina).
The family wishes to extend sincerest heartfelt thanks to ALL Caregivers at the longterm nursing home and the Nurses and Doctors and staff at both the home and hospital in her last few days.
1919 - 2020
Zenta Olga Grinbergs, 100 years old of Kitchener transitioned peacefully in the quiet of the evening on May 2, 2020. It was the same day that she herd her daughter's voice over the phone for the last time.
Born in Moscow on May 25, 1919, she was the daughter of Andrejs and Anna ( Laipnieks) Plavina .
Zenta was born in Moscow just two years after the Russian Revolution (1917) was fully occupied in tearing apart the established order. Her father although born in Latvia had been taken in by extended family living in Moscow before the outbreak of WWI in 1914. After secondary school he had become a soldier in the Imperial Army, rose to officer rank, married his sweetheart Anna and tried to stay alive during that time. He avoided being shot in one round-up operation by jumping the back wall but was arrested later and subjected to much cruelty by the Communists. So Anna returned to Latvia with Zenta first and lived at Anna's parents' country property. There she worked as a teacher in a nearby country school. Soon afterwards her father was assumed to have escaped from Soviet Russia and joined them in Latvia.
By 1940 Latvia was again caught between Germany and the Soviet Union. The Baltic States ended up being occupied by the Red Empire. In June 1941, Zenta was already independent, having finished Teachers College with a first appointment to a country school not far from Valmiera. On June 14, 1941 she returned home for a visit only to find her entire family including her four siblings had been taken away by the Russians. That was the most scarring experience for her and remained that way for her until the end. Her father was never seen again.
By the time Zenta left for Canada from England by ship it was 1951. She had endured many hardships of WWII. She spoke of escaping from a bombed and burning ship when she was a red cross nurse, surviving typhoid fever and helping to clean POW's after the war at Bergen-Belsen concentration camp. She always mentioned that surprisingly she never really felt afraid during those times - that somehow she felt protected. She was newly married to Aleksandrs Grinbergs when she first stepped onto Canadian soil in St. John, New Brunswick. They made their way to Noranda, Quebec where Latvian friends were waiting to greet them. They started a family there before moving and settling in Kitchener, Ontario in 1963.
Zenta's focus became one of family - raising two children and working alongside of her husband while they adapted to a new country. She was an avid reader, a lover of nature so she loved her flower and vegetable gardens and really enjoyed her home. As a true Gemini, she often hosted old and new friends and relations all with the same zest. A regular flow of people coming and going along with intermittent travel when it allowed brought her great joy. She liked to explore her community and to discover something new.
She developed a knowledge base of healing herbs and teas and many varied aspects of health and healing so her reading room and gardens continued to grow. Books, flowers, coffee and goodies for guests inside or outdoors on her little back deck - always. Every Easter there was a stream of women and children coming to colour eggs. Downstairs in her basement on her giant worktable there was an array of fabrics ( that ran colour in those days) and threads and woven pattern pieces that everyone could choose in any order to create beautiful wraps around the dozen or two of eggs that people brought. After they all got boiled and cooled off there was the unveiling by each creator with oohs and aaaahs being heard by all onlookers for just about every egg - every year! Much fun was had by all. Eventually the kids grew up and the older women kept coming and coffee turned into wine but that's another story haha!
Zenta was also a true and committed friend to those who were ill. She spent many evenings after she worked sitting with those she knew who needed company or some help in other ways. She went about quietly doing this for several friends for countless hours and sometimes months never speaking about it much. She once said that all she wanted to be was a good person in this world. That's a flavour of Zenta.
Zenta is survived by her daughter Ruta (Rua) Grinbergs, Burnstown, Ontario; son Peter Grinbergs, Kitchener; granddaughter Sacha Adkins (Nick Williams), Toronto; great-grandson Alex. As far as we know her sister Mara Sinkevica (Plavina) and her brother Andris Plavina are still alive and living in Latvia.
Besides her parents Zenta was predeceased by her husband Aleksandrs Grinbergs; brothers Valdis and Zigurds Plavina; sister Inta Krumins (Plavina).
The family wishes to extend sincerest heartfelt thanks to ALL Caregivers at the longterm nursing home and the Nurses and Doctors and staff at both the home and hospital in her last few days.