Margaret Gladys Stefanson (McMartin)
June 5, 1928 – August 16, 2026
It is with great sadness that we announce the passing of Margaret Gladys Stefanson (McMartin), much-loved Mom, Grandma, Great Grandma, Great-Great-Grandma, sister, aunt, cousin, and friend.
Margaret died peacefully on Sunday, August 16, 2026, at her home at Luther Special Care in Saskatoon. Many family members had the honour of keeping her company in her final hours.
Margaret was born on June 5, 1928, to Jay and Lauga (Helgason) McMartin on their farm near Bankend, Saskatchewan. She spent most of her early life in the Bankend area, except for a short visit with an aunt in Yorkton. On August 28, 1948, Margaret married Svein Debs Stefanson. They raised 3 children, farmed, and worked together until Svein’s passing on August 20, 2002.
Margaret could and would do anything to care for her family. She grew a large garden and canned, pickled, and froze vegetables and fruit to feed the family through the winter. Later, Margaret and Svein milked “beautiful” Holstein cows and sold cream to the Co-op Creamery in Foam Lake. Margaret carefully saved “cream cheques” for big purchases, like her Harvest Green Miss Canada fridge and stove. After selling the cows, Margaret joined her husband to work at the Bankend Co-op, where they worked together until retirement. In retirement, they farmed with their son Rick. Margaret continued to grow vegetables and create a park-like yard with trees, vines, shrubs, and many varieties of perennial and annual flowers.
Family was the heart of Margaret’s life. She made her home a gathering place for generations of the Stefanson and McMartin families, as well as many of the neighbourhood teenagers. As their family grew to include eleven grandchildren, they built an addition to make more room for all the noisy, fun-filled gatherings. Margaret and Svein always made time for their family and loved nothing more than being surrounded by all their grandkids and great-grandkids. In her last year of life, Margaret was overjoyed to hold her first great-great-grandchild, Roselle.
Margaret was a wonderful cook. Her homemade bread and buns were a family favourite, as were Rickety Uncle, daffer cake, ginger molasses cookies, and, of course, her vínarterta. But her pies, featuring her legendary pie crust, were the crowning touch at special-occasion meals. There was always a wide selection to choose from. At dessert, Mom’s question was, “What will you have for your FIRST piece of pie: apple, chocolate, lemon, Saskatoon berry, rhubarb…?”
Margaret was an artist with a sewing machine and a crochet hook. She created clothing, patchwork quilts, pillows, and afghans for her loved ones. She hated to waste anything, using fabric scraps for quilts and computer bags, and yarn remnants to crochet colourful scarves, which she donated to homeless shelters.
Her craftiness extended beyond sewing and cooking; she was also a wiz at carpentry and upholstery, using her skills to build and refinish furniture. Margaret also played guitar and taught Barry and Rick. She loved listening to music by artists such as Abba and Valdy.
Eventually, Margaret moved to a condo in Saskatoon, where she was close to her sister Myrna, her niece Jackie, and other family members. She enjoyed shopping, having coffee at Tim’s and meals at Boston Pizza and Smitty’s with Myrna and Jackie. Between shopping trips, Margaret kept up with current events and watched Coronation Street on CBC. She crocheted, baked, played Scrabble on her computer and later, on her iPad. She did crosswords and built dozens of jigsaw puzzles. She loved playing tile rummy and other games with her grandchildren, and sometimes she even let them win.
At 85 years of age, Margaret took her first-ever plane trip to Toronto to visit Torin and Teri. She visited the CN Tower, Casa Loma, Ripley’s Aquarium, Toronto Island, Niagara Falls, and the CBC, and she rode the subway, streetcar, UP Express, and ferry. Watching the Blue Jays play at Rogers Centre was the highlight of each trip to Toronto.
In the fall of 2022, Margaret’s declining health necessitated moving to the Luther Special Care Home. Margaret’s gentle, quiet manner earned her new friends among the residents and staff. Margaret continued doing word search puzzles, jigsaw puzzles, and crocheting. She was always happiest visiting with her family. She loved it when family would take her on outings to the farmer’s market, the mall, skating competitions, the Western Development Museum, and Kinsmen Park to ride the Ferris wheel, or just for a drive in the country.
Margaret is predeceased by her husband, Svein; granddaughter, Julie Rae; great-grandson, Israel; parents, Jay and Lauga; brothers, Wilson and Marvin; parents-in-law, Gudjon and Gerda; sisters-in-law, Hilda, Libby, Sylvia, and Shirley; and brothers-in-law, Merle, Kutur, Eric, Eugene, Pete, and Don. She is survived by her children: Barry (Gloria), Brenda, and Rick (Jan); her grandchildren: Torin (Teri), Erik, Dana (Kyle), Sarah, Shanda (Stephen), Amy (Jake), Wilson (Sawndra), Maggie, Levi, and Matthew (Victoria); and her great-grandchildren: Jozie (Levi), Thor, Raea, Kaybree (Kyle), Odinn, Jade, Fyodor, Loki, Skye, Anastasya, Vanir, Ilya, Atticus, Pranas, Frances, Katherine, Sophia, and Benjamin; and great-great-granddaughter, Roselle. Margaret is also survived by her sister, Myrna; sisters-in-law, Dianne and Carol; and numerous nieces, nephews, cousins, and friends.
Our family is grateful to the staff at Luther Special Care Home for the kind, loving care Mom received, and to her new friends, Nettie and Audrey, who shared a table with her and enjoyed bingo together. We thank Stefan and Katrina at Dalmeny Funeral Home for their gentle care and considerate service.
Margaret will rest beside her husband at the Icelandic Holar Cemetery in the RM of Emerald.
In lieu of flowers, please make a donation to Parkinson research (Parkinson Canada www.parkinson.ca) or the Icelandic Holar Cemetery fund (C/O the RM of Emerald, Box 160, Wishart, SK S0A 4R0) in Margaret’s name.
Arrangements entrusted to Dalmeny Funeral Home 306-254-2022.
