Myrna Lois Potton
December 3, 1938 - March 25, 2025
On March 25 th we lost a mom, a grandma, a sister, a friend; we lost our Paka. If you knew her and loved her, you lost your Paka too. Myrna Lois Potton (nee Criswell) passed away, leaving behind Michael (Natasha), Traci (Randy), and Nanci. Grandchildren Garrett and Dylan, Emma, Samantha, James and Peter, Elijah, Illya, Enoria and Dorian. She is survived by her sister Marian Haines, brother Roger (Butch) Criswell, and sister Connie Daigle. While some people knew her as Paka, others knew her as the ‘Tic-Tac lady’, or you may be one of the lucky ones who knew her as both.
My mom could make me laugh like no one else, like, stomach-ache laugh. She was so ridiculous. She had all the best sayings and comebacks; ‘up your nose’ then she would hold up her pinky, her ‘G’ version of the middle finger. We both talked a lot with out hands, and when we’d catch each other doing the most ridiculous motions, we would continue making fun of each other. My brother told me he called her once and we were laughing so hard that he said “I’ll just call back later” The things she did that embarrassed me when I was younger, I found hilarious and endearing as I grew older, like her fabulous little jig, and her ability to tell someone she just met in a grocery line about our family history in 3 minutes. Seriously, I wish I were joking.
She loved marshmallow Peeps, but had to let them turn rock hard before she ate them. She was the only person I know that could take one bite out of a chocolate bar and wrap the rest up for later. She collected rocks, every kind, ALL the time. She left so many rocks behind, and as much as I could not understand this collection, I can’t seem to throw them away. She collected teddy bears; she collected chairs for the bears to sit in. She collected chickens and feathers and Inukshuks. The list goes on and on.
She made friends with everyone, and I mean everyone. And she had an impact on those she met. Comments about my mom often describe her as a bright light, a firecracker, a beautiful soul, sassy, fierce, witty, and always friendly.
She gave so much of herself to others. She attended every Envirothon with my dad, always there to do what needed to be done (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Envirothon). Until my father passed in 2014, Envirothon took up most of their time, and that’s when they did most of their traveling.
I could tell you where she was born, lived, went to school, worked (I think the coolest was the Observatory on the top of Haleakala in Maui) but I’d rather share what she meant to the people in her life, the ones that knew her the best.
This is from Emma;
My Paka, I wear as many rings as I do because you wore rings on every finger. My favorite number is 3 because you taught me that everything odd was good. You loved the color brown but because I thought that was weird you assured me that your second favorite color was purple. Your home was full of stuffed bears because you felt bad for them if they were alone in a thrift store, and you had to rescue them. If you knew me or Sam, there’s a good chance you probably knew Paka and have your own memory of her (probably one that includes tic tacs). I can still hear you saying, “love you too, 3 4 5,” and I still see you standing on the driveway and waving to us as we pulled away. I have too many memories and also not enough. I can’t put into words how much of an impact you had on my life. The hangnail moon will forever belong to us I love you (a bushel and a peck)
This is from Sam;
We said our final goodbye to this firecracker yesterday Paka truly had the biggest attitude for being such a tiny lady. If you ever had the pleasure of meeting her, she’d end the conversation with a “glad you met me” and a smile.
She was the luckiest cribbage player I have ever met. And although she was the one to teach me how to play, she was adamant that I had cheated whenever I won a game. Her teddy bear collection was like no other, simply because she didn’t want them to be alone. I still have the bear she found sitting on a chest in a New York thrift store before we were born and can’t wait to be able to pass that down. Love you a bushel and a peck Paka. I hope you’ve got a pocket full of tic-tacs and an endless supply of puzzles and colouring books.
I could describe my mom with so many words, but I pick the one she always called me; My best friend. l miss her multiple calls every day (she seemed to always know the exact moment we sat down for supper). I miss her sense of humor, her laugh, her weird dark side, I miss all of the things that made her so unique.
Mom, you are my special angel.
If you have a story to share, I invite you to do so. At: (https://passages.winnipegfreepress.com/passage-details/id-330065/POTTON_MYRNA) We all remember her in different ways, and we would love to know what she meant to you.
Branch & Pyre Cremation Care