Rudolf "Rudy" Chowanetz

It is with great sadness that we announce the passing of Rudolf Chowanetz of Calgary, Alberta, on Monday, April 18, 2023, at the age of 86. Rudy was born in Saitz, Czechoslovakia on June 6, 1936., to parents, Johann and Annemarie Chowanetz. 

He was a loving husband, father, grandfather, great-grandfather, great-great-grandfather, and friend.

Rudy is predeceased by his loving wife Rosa Chowanetz (nee Bender) of 40 years. He is survived by his four children, Harold (Melanie), Silvia (Patrick predeceased), Angela, and James. Though their relationship wasn't permanent, Rudy and his former spouse, Sonia Lovering (predeceased), who had Harold and Silvia, together remained friends throughout many years. 

He is also survived by eleven grandchildren, Lee-Ann, Sean (Alyssa), Celeina, Tyler, Natasha, Thomas, Marcus (Alyssa), Lucas, Davis, Nicholas, and Andreas-James; nine great-grandchildren, Autumn (Robert), Evyn, Halle (Avery), Teigan, Dominic, Parker, Paxton, Joey, Juliette; and one great-great-grandchild Weston. 

Dad was very much a family man, proud of all his children and the home he had built. He always enjoyed being surrounded by loved ones at family BBQs, get-togethers, birthdays, special occasions, and family vacations. Prior to retiring, he proudly owned his own business.

Germany is where Rudy spent his younger years before his family was sponsored to settle in South America, Chile. We cherished listening to Dad's stories of his teenage and young adult life growing up in La Serena. His parents and siblings later left Chile and went back to Germany. Rudy however stayed behind to make a life for himself. He made his living as a truck driver often carrying iron ore, wine, assorted fruits/vegetables and driving back and forth from Santiago to La Serena or up North. He often went on these trips with his lifelong friend, Stephen.

Rudy left Chile and moved back to Germany for a short time. There, he drove a steam engine train and settled into a career as a bus driver for a few years before immigrating to Canada in 1967. 

In Canada, he built houses for multiple years until he started working as a machinist, eventually starting his own business. Rudy was very detail-oriented, precise skills, and was a man of many talents. He was able to tackle everything from building his own house to fixing broken toys to tending to our bumps and scraps as children. He was an amazing, hard-working man, working two jobs at times, which enabled him to provide a better life for us kids.  

In his retirement, he enjoyed reading the newspaper and staying up to date on current events, as well as keeping sharp with word searches. He also enjoyed collecting coins and loved to watch a nice movie. He was a fan of wrestling and hockey and loved the outdoors, nature, and animals—especially his dog Rex.  

We loved our dad dearly and he will be deeply missed. We will cherish our memories of him always. He was our rock, our foundation, and will be in our hearts forevermore. 

Funeral Liturgy for Rudy will be held at Evan J. Strong Funeral Services North (3625 - 12th Street NE) on Monday, May 1, 2023, at 12:00 p.m. Graveside service to follow at Queen’s Park Cemetery  (3219 - 4th Street NW). 

In lieu of flowers, donations can be made to The Alberta Cancer Foundation at www.albertacancer.ca or Animal Rescue Foundation (ARF) at arf.ab.ca.