Ethel slipped away just after midnight October 31st 2025 surrounded by the love of her daughter Shelley and granddaughter Lillian.

She was the first born child of Sam and Annie Kolton and raised on the Kolton family farm along with her 10 brothers and sisters. 

Life was hard in those days but surrounded by the love of her family grew into a fiesty, independent young woman. She left home at a young age to live in Winnipeg going to Success College to become a stenographer and excelled at short hand and then went on to work in the office at the then prestigious Eaton's Department Store. Her beloved Auntie Mary invited her to come to Hamilton to live with her family and her brave and independent nature jumped at the chance of a new adventure. She promptly found a job at another prestigious firm at Westinghouse Electric and made many friends, played baseball, bowled and won many trophies and became a choir member at the United Church. As she settled into life in Hamilton, Uncle Cashmir brought home to visit this handsome American, Mark Minar, and so her love story began, getting married, moving to Detroit and starting to raise her own family. Ethel brought her dashing husband back to the farm to meet the family and we immediately loved this war decorated veteran who had earned a purple heart and bronze star, who had swept our sister off her feet.Then life settled into happily starting and raising a family. They opened their home to her brother Len when he moved to Toronto to start his own adventure and travelled across that Ambassador Bridge many times. They became very close. Then the worst of the worst happened and Mark was diagnosed with cancer. He passed away in December 1969. Leaving Ethel with two young daughters and expecting their third child, a son. Her strength and determination carried her through those difficult times and her brother Len was her rock but eventually she decided their little family needed to be closer to her bigger family in Manitoba and with the help of her brother Ken, she packed up the family and travelled across the country to Thief River Falls, Minnesota where she bought a home and raised her family and thus began the many trips back and forth across the border to the farm.

She was an exceptionally talented seamstress who could design and sew anything, she knitted and crocheted, she made beautiful mini Christmas trees out of crystals, stunning handmade doll dresses, flower arrangements; she could just look at something, perfect it and create it. She was so talented. Those of us lucky enough to have received any of her creations treasure them. As the kids got older she found a job at the Seven Clans Casino outside of town and she loved it as she made many friends and probably saw more Canadian friends and family there than she would have ever seen just coming to Manitoba. She finally retired in her 70's and settled in Newfolden which was a hop, skip and a jump from the farm. She travelled to Las Vegas for family reunions and weddings and to Vancouver to visit sisters Betty and Judy. She stayed in touch with Mark's family, making sure her children knew their Minar family, travelling to Denver and Florida to visit. Nothing was more important to her than family.When she was 87 she moved in with her daughter Shelley and her family in Ohio where Shelley now helped to look after her. Still fiesty, walking every day and enjoying watching her youngest granddaughter Lillian grow up and loved to go watch her skate.

Ethel is survived by her daughter Shelley (Patrick), her son Mark (Jacqueline), son-in-law Bryan and her so very loved grandchildren Austin, Lillian, Stephan (Angela), and Alexandra (Joshua). Her brothers Harry (Carol), Danny (Marilyn) Len, Ken and sisters Judy and Diane and sister-in-law Donni and many nieces, nephews, great and great great nieces and nephews. She was predeceased by her husband Mark, her daughter Sherri, her parents Sam and Annie Kolton, her siblings Randy, Betty, Adeline and Ernie, brother-in-law Albert, niece Heather, and nephews Darren and Mike as well as sister-in-laws, Ruth, Gladys and Julie.

Ethel had many challenges and hardships in her life but she still found great joy in raising her family, especially in her grandchildren and being so close to all of her Canadian family. Shelley and Mark would like to thank Dr. Malek Saffa, the staff at Kettering CancerCare, Dr. Eric Thuney, and her respite workers for their care and compassion looking after Ethel.They would also like to thank Newcomers Funeral Chapel in Ohio for their care of our mother and the care and compassion and generosity of Sobering Funeral Chapel in Beausejour.

Cremation has taken place and Ethel will come home to Mars Hills Cemetery along with her daughter Sherri in a private family gathering. Newcomer Funeral Chapel in care of arrangements in Kettering and Sobering Funeral Chapel in Beausejour.

Forever Loved ❤️ Forever Remembered

www.newcomerdayton.com/kettering-chapel

www.soberingfuneralchapel.com