Deka residents will remember the very large, very ugly electric candle that was dearly loved by Mildred Jenewein, mother of Rita Nordquist and Danny Jenewein.
When Mildred passed away 20
years ago, neither
Rita nor her sister-in-law Joice Jenewein could bring themselves to throw it away, even though they intensely disliked the non-functioning “thing.”
So, over the ensuing years, each sister devised bizarre ways of returning the candle to the other
In 1996, Joice received the candle hidden inside a dying plant, and said she’d taken the plant to the dump without ever discovering the candle. A horrified Rita dragged Joice to the dump to look for it, to no avail. Rita was heartbroken and never quite got over the loss.
So, you can imagine Rita’s shock when, in 1998, she returned home to find a miniature outhouse complete with the resurrected candle parked mid-living room.
To avenge two years of heartbreak, Rita stayed the course. It was not until Easter 2002 that Joice arrived home to find a lighthouse flashing brightly on her deck.
The last we heard of the candle was December 2004, when it again appeared in Rita’s living room disguised as a beautiful garden fairy complete with talking frog.
Rita long since gave up trying to turn the frog into a prince, and set about dreaming up the candle’s next role.
Fast forward to December 2010 when the Jeneweins celebrated their
50th wedding anniversary with the Nordquists in Kelowna. On New Year’s Eve, as they all partied at the casino, the Jeneweins’ wedding anniversary was announced and they were invited to come up for a gift.
Yes, what they received was indeed the candle, disguised as a happy well-fed penguin.
