Mrs. Martha Braul

Martha Braul is remembered lovingly by her family after a long and rewarding life of 97 years. She was born Martha Schmidt on the 4th of July 1928 in Cereal, Alberta where her parents, John and Katherine (Regehr) Schmidt, farmed for a time. At a young age Martha moved with her family to a farm two miles south of Tofield which remains in the Schmidt family today and near which many relatives still live. While Martha's life was shaped by her roots in farm life and faith, at 21 she struck off on her own to live in Calgary, where she worked for a time in a cookie factory. In Calgary she met and married the love of her life, Peter Braul, in 1953. Together they embarked on a life of embracing new opportunities. They moved numerous times within Calgary following Pete's work in construction and real estate, and Martha worked to make each new house her own, a warm home for a growing family and a place for hospitality for friends and relatives. Their children Joyce (1954), Lawrence (1955), and Norma (1958) were shaped by their mom's warmth and humour. The young family suffered a traumatic car accident in 1961 that deeply affected all of them. Martha in particular went through years of surgeries showing strength and resilience. Martha and Peter did not lose their willingness to keep trying new places and new things, including moving to Rosemary to farm in 1975, and after that to Prince Albert, Saskatchewan in 1979 for two years of voluntary service working with young people. After Peter's first heart surgery in 1981, they shifted back to Calgary, then Rosemary in the 1990s, then Brooks in the 2000s. No matter where she lived, Martha's open door, creativity, and cooking enriched her family. Grandchildren received handmade outfits and toys, and everyone enjoyed ham and fried potatoes, plumi moos and rice, and Grandma's secret baked-potato sauce. Martha also put her skills to work outside the family, touching additional people as she worked in childcare and food service. Throughout her life Martha was a deeply faithful person, and she and Peter were long-time members of Foothills Mennonite Church in Calgary and Rosemary Mennonite Church. Martha passed away on May 25th, 2026, predeceased by Peter in 2010 and by her siblings John (Christine), Mary (Peter, George), George (Margaret), Neta, Katie (Henry), David (Mary), Ericka (George), and Lena (George) — her passing is the last of a generation of Tofield Schmidts. She is survived by her children Joyce (Rob Baerg), Lawrence (Pat Braul), and Norma (Brett Fairbairn); by 10 grandchildren; and by 19 great-grandchildren and counting. The family express deep appreciation to the staff at Sunrise Gardens in Brooks for caring for Martha in her later years. Martha surmounted COVID-19 and multiple health challenges, and despite failing hearing and eyesight she remained sharp and determined even in her final days. There will be a memorial and reception on July 29th, 2026, 2:00 p.m., at Thom’s Funeral Home in Duchess, Alberta.

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