Emma Aurora Bolger

On July 1, 2019 at the age of 61, our Blessed Lord took unto Himself my lovely bride, when she passed away while under care of the Victoria General Hospital. She was born Aurora Luana Rekrut on August 25th 1957 and raised in Winnipeg, Manitoba. Fiercely proud of her heritage she legally changed her name to Emma to honour her great-grandmother but has always been known as Aurora to family and friends. She is predeceased by her European parents, Mr. and Mrs. Franciszek and Adele Rekrut. He was a Polish Second World War soldier who first survived, at the outset of the war, imprisonment in Vorkuta, a Siberian Russian Gulag labour camp lying just 100km north of the Arctic circle, and then joined the conflict representing Poland in II Corps under British General Anders to fight in 11 battles of the Italian Campaign, to include the Battle for Monte Cassino.

He met and married Adele, his Italian war bride, shortly after the war on June 13, 1946. Both Aurora’s parents were Roman Catholics and her mother especially loved the Blessed Virgin Mary and Jesus and was a member of the Marian movement throughout her life. Her maiden name, Giacomini, was also renowned in Italy as her ancestry included a prominent Arts and Antique dealer who significantly contributed to Italian culture.

Aurora adored her parents, adopting fully their love of God and, when only a child, would follow her father everywhere he went while he worked and, as he was a third generation beekeeper, while he tended to his many honeybee hives. She loved her mother no less as she on countless occasions would journey to St. Catharines, Ont. at her own expense simply because she needed to help her mother in her garden or with grounds maintenance and housekeeping tasks. Aurora constantly sent flowers and gift packages to her parents never missing a Birthday or Anniversary celebration. Aurora honored and ministered to her parents throughout her whole life and was in fact the only one of her siblings to obtain the Heavenly Blessing of being beside each of them the very moment they passed away.
As a consequence of her loving and close connection with her parents, Aurora exemplified the very best of their character, morality, ethics, and beliefs with everyone she knew and met. As a result she was most always happy, respectful, courteous, loving and generous to a fault, but she could also be extremely brave, courageous, and iron-willed when facing injustice and her motto, taught to her by her father, was “never give up”.

At 34 years of age, my precious Little Mermaid, who always loved the sea, was seeking escape from the cold climes of Manitoba winters when, in 1991, she ventured to Halifax, NS where she anticipated the promise of a new position in retail jewellery sales at Birks Jewellers. Before this, and on the evening she arrived she meandered to a local popular night spot named Lawrence of Oreganos and there met me, a brand new sailor serving in the Canadian Forces Navy and stationed at Stadacona. With her lovely long hair I could not resist introducing myself, and it was, as they say, love at first sight. We talked throughout the night entirely unaware of the passage of time and met again the following day. After this, and to my extreme joy, she and I decided to start our life together, and despite the fact that I was serving on HMCS Terra Nova and was shipping out in two weeks, she selflessly packed up all her possessions in Winnipeg and moved to Halifax, herself alone securing our first home together at 2304 Brunswick St.. Our early years in Nova Scotia with myself being constantly on exercise at sea were particularly hard for her and, although that first job did not pan out she, through sheer will and determination soon found another, and despite the hardship and loneliness imposed upon her by my career, she not only persevered but thrived and created for us a loving home, even managing to write a constant flow of forever cherished love letters to me while I was away.

In the spring of 1995 I changed my Home Port Division to the West Coast and we moved to Victoria, BC. On June 21,1997 while I was on leave from exercises aboard HMCS Huron we married in Oahu, Hawaii, a place she absolutely loved ever since she visited there with her parents when much younger. Throughout our life and even in times of trouble, she was always joyful and happy, and her love for me was bottomless as she unceasingly supported everything I ever tried to do and truly catered to my every whim. She accomplished most everything she ever tried and achieved through sheer determination a Graduate Gemmologist certification entirely through distance education and on a limited income, a fact for which she was extremely and rightfully proud. She was an exceedingly positive, generous and caring person who always reached out to help anyone less fortunate and was willing to fight for any just cause. She was also pure gentleness and loved the sea, sparkling jewellery, honeybees and nature, collectibles, and most of all her parents and family and friends. A loving Aunt to Sarah, Desmond, Michael (Lydia),  Brooke, Christopher, Leah, Emma, Jenny, Krista and Justin and Great-aunt to Abby and Drayden she will also be dearly missed by her siblings and most especially by friends: Marlene(Wally), Tony, Ahmed, Edward, Pat and Lisa, Anne, Ellen, Jane, Kathy, Gary and Lynn and many more.

Aurora suffered great physical pain throughout her life, but her love of God, of life, and her strength and beauty both within and without always shone forth and everyone who ever met her was captivated and enriched by her genuineness, lovely smile, personality and presence.

A Funeral Mass will be celebrated on Saturday July 20th at Our Lady Star of the Sea military Chapel, 595 Galiano Crescent at 1:30pm. I wish to express a heartfelt personal thank you to all the ICU, support, and Medivac staff at both the Greater Vancouver and Victoria General Hospitals for the attention they gave to Aurora during her time there as your compassion, professionalism, and excellence exceeded by far the standard duty of care In lieu of flowers please donate to these or a medical research charity of your choice.

No longer bound by worldly cares, worry, and pain you are free, my forever love, to soar heavenward on Eagles wings and have your just reward. You will join God, the Saints and the Martyrs, and re-unite with your most beloved parents and all of those whom you loved and who have passed on before you.

Though I will always love and yearn for you I know that you have not abandoned me, for whenever I am suddenly and silently urged to look up and see an eagle, your favorite seagull family, a butterfly, a honey bee, a beautiful flower or a tree…. I will know you are with me. Whenever I am fearful, discouraged, sad or lonely either while alone or anywhere else I may be and suddenly receive unexpected encouragement through a phone call, letter or message…. I will know you are with me. In quiet times whenever I reflect upon the love we shared and ache with longing but am suddenly inexplicably filled with peace …. I will know you are with me.

Your “Blondie” will miss you and forever hold and cherish the memory of you and your lovely face, softer than rose petals, and sparkling eyes in his heart and mind until we, God willing, meet again.

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