Vic Giesbrecht
It is with great sadness that we announce the passing of Vic Giesbrecht at the age of 81 years. Vic passed away peacefully at Selkirk Regional Hospital on December 13, 2022. He will be lovingly remembered by his wife of 50 years, Tina Giesbrecht (Sunnyside); children Barry (Lucille), Mark (Kim), Jeremy (Kelly), his grandchildren Emmelia, Owen, Amaya, Jaden and Callen.
Vic was born in Winnipeg March 20, 1941 to his parents Peter & Alma (Siemens) Giesbrecht.
The family moved to the Wingham district where he would spend his childhood years on the farm. After leaving the Elm Creek school he had been attending he spent the next few years helping his dad on the farm. He loved the outdoors, enjoyed the farm life and was especially interested in equipment and machinery of any sort.
His first job was in Morden, MB, working for a Chrysler company, installing transmissions on vehicles; cars were another passion of his. When that job came to an end, he came to Winnipeg. Two of the companies he worked for were Derksen Plumbing & Bearing Supply. During this time he took a machinist course at the MIT, now called Red River College Polytech.
Vic had an entrepreneurial spirit and when he thought the time was right he launched out on his own. He rented a spot-on Burnett Avenue, installing hitches on people’s vehicles. This was during the 1960’s and would be the birthing of Rite-Way Machine & Welding that later became Rite-Way Industries. He had asked a friend to join him in this endeavour. They built it into a prosperous business, some of the highlights being the manufacturing of wood burning stoves and the purchase of the J.I.Dyck Division of Red River Chain; which was the manufacturer of various snow shovels and garden tools.
Vic left the company in 1989 but he wasn’t retiring. After that there were other pursuits, the final one being Bluegrass Enterprises, the manufacturer of components for manual carwashes which he was still actively involved in.
He had some health issues during the summer. On November 14th he collapsed and was rushed to the St. Boniface Hospital where he underwent emergency surgery. Other issues came to light and doctors did what they could. After 3 weeks he was transferred to the Selkirk Regional Hospital so he could be closer to the family. He passed away peacefully December 13, 2022.
The funeral service will be held on Thursday, December 22, 2022 at 12:00 P.M. (viewing at 11:30AM) at Springs Church - 725 Lagimodiere Blvd. Winnipeg, MB. Interment at Sunnyside Cemetery at 3PM following the service and lunch.
Donations may be made to The Salvation Army Winnipeg or Union Gospel Mission.