Johann Osterling
February 16, 1928 – May 10, 2016

It is with profound sadness that we announce the passing of Johann Osterling, our beloved husband, father, and opa (grandfather). He passed away peacefully surrounded by family on Tuesday May 10, 2016 at the age of 88. Johann was born on February 16, 1928 in Mastort, Banat, Yugoslavia. He left Yugoslavia with his family in 1946 and lived in Austria until 1954 when Johann, along with his mother and brothers immigrated to Taber, Alberta to work in the sugar beet farms. His father, Anton Osterling predeceased him in 1947. Then in 1955 he moved to Calgary where he has resided since.

Johann was a man of very little words, but a huge heart that would make up for the few words. After moving to Canada, Johann soon became part of the German-Austrian-Canadian community and worked in construction for many years. Johann built a wonderful life for his family and made countless friends along the way. His passions were for his family, more specifically his grandchildren, friends, helping out in the church, and singing in the choir. Johann loved to build things, birdhouses, duck windmills. He even helped out with building many school projects for his grandchildren; the only problem was it usually took 2-4 people to carry into the school. Things that Johann built were solid and strong, just like the relationships he forged with family, friends and acquaintances. Johann had a kind heart and always made time to help others. He was a devoted family man and was highly respected among his peers and everyone that knew him.

As mentioned Johann was a hard worker. You could find him doing something almost every day. Until six months ago, you could still find him working in his yard or riding his stationary bike. After any kind of work you could find him enjoying a double double coffee with a sweet of some sort. He was always excited to see what treats his grandchildren would bring him. He especially shared his sweet tooth with his granddaughter Cassidy; they frequently share ice cream of some sort, Oreos, chocolate Timbits, or wagon wheels. And if those were a miss you could always find him with a mint in his mouth. His watch never left his wrist, as being 1 hour early for everything was very important to him. He paced if the rest of the family wasn’t ready to go. He carried all his keys on one ring and they were always in his pocket and near the end it was hard to borrow them as he was afraid that you would lose them. His wallet was never too far from his keys and it was important to always have $25 usually $20 for the church collection and $5 for just in case.

His wife Maria was his constant and his life. Right till his last breath he was still trying to help her and be there for her. She was always first in his mind even though the dementia took other memories from him. The love he had for Maria was true love. Johann was the best husband, father, father-in law and opa that anyone could hope for. His sense of humor will be missed by all of us.

Johann is survived by his loving wife, Maria; his children Mike (Sharon) and Anton (Dora); his grandchildren Elyse (Kyle Schaub), Kristin, Adam, Cassidy, and Danya. He is survived by his brother, Franz (Martha) Osterling and his sister-in-law Anne Wasch, as well as numerous nieces and nephews. He was predeceased by his mother Anne, brother Michael, nephew Johann, as well as his in-laws, Barbara and Vincent Wasch, and brother-in law Frank Wasch.

We would like to thank Dr. Ulrich Lauf, for caring for dad over the past 17 year, Dr. Robyn Banerjee and his staff at the Tom Baker Cancer clinic, and Dr. Ken Alanen and Dr. Mike Kalisiak and the staff at Derm.ca. A special thanks to the staff at Chartwell Eau Claire Care Residence, especially the staff on the 8th floor who have cared for him since November 6, 2015.

A viewing will take place at Choice Memorial Cremation & Funeral Service (105-4715 13th Street NE) on Monday, May 16, 2016 from 7:00 pm - 8:00 pm. Relatives and friends are invited to the Funeral Mass which will be celebrated at St. Boniface German Catholic Church (1923 Broadview Road NW) on Tuesday, May 17, 2016 at 11:00 am. Graveside service to follow at Queen’s Park Cemetery. In lieu of flowers, donations if desired may be made to The Alzheimer Society of Calgary (201, 222-58th Avenue SW Calgary, AB T2H 2S3, Telephone: (403)290-0110, www.alzheimercalgary.ca). To view and share photos, condolences and stories of Johann, please visit www.choicememorial.com. Arrangements entrusted to the care of Choice Memorial Cremation & Funeral Services (403) 277-7343.