Eston Communities in Bloom honours Texan donor
By Joan Janzen
joanjanzen@yahoo.com
How did Eston Communities in Bloom begin to receive five annual donations from an elderly gentleman living in Texas? Well, sometimes one good thing leads to another, and that’s exactly what happened when Patrick Wayne Brennen sent Val Mohan an email.
“He was emailing me at work looking for old school records from when he went to elementary school, and I was trying to help,” Val explained. “He attended school in Snipe Lake from 1947 - 1949 and was trying to find copies of his old school report cards. When he told me what year, I knew it was close to the year my aunt and sister had attended there. That’s how we started corresponding and discovered his mom, Alma Brennen, had taught my aunt and my sister.”
Along with his two brothers, Patrick lived in Eston, while his mother was a teacher at the Snipe Lake School House. His family had moved around a bit, and he wanted to maintain a connection with the community of Eston.
“My aunt’s parents also babysat Patrick’s brother. Small world, isn’t it?” Val commented. With the help of some of her family members, Val was able to find some school memorabilia and photos from the years Patrick had attended school at Snipe Lake.
“Patrick read up on Eston after our online correspondence began, and he discovered I was a member of Communities in Bloom (CiB). He had a very keen interest in gardening, and after reading up on Eston and CiB, he said he had a renewed interest in his former childhood home. He was impressed with the Eston CiB’s work and wanted to make a monetary donation in exchange for recognition, by way of a small plaque.”
The plaque reads “Texas smiles on Eston,” along with Patrick’s name, and is displayed in the park.
“Little did we know that this was just the first of additional four-yearly donations he would make to our CiB until the time of his passing on April 12, 2021,” Val said.
Patrick’s donations have been used to purchase plants and shrubs and a wrought iron chair. Patrick, an avid world traveller, had worked at several universities as a librarian before retiring and possessed a keen interest in history. During the past two years, he asked the CiB to pass along part of his annual donation to the Prairie West Historical Centre to be used in their gardens. Several weeks ago, they planted several shrubs in his honour.
Another CiB member, Shari Collinge, also struck up an online friendship with Patrick, corresponding about his love of history. Consequently, both Val and her husband, and Shari, met Patrick in person while on a short trip to Rockport, Texas one summer.
Patrick was unable to travel because of health concerns, and this spring, his niece notified Val of his passing in April of 2021. His friends in Eston will fondly remember him as a generous and kind supporter of their community.
