December 31, 1944 - July 10, 2021
Michelle was born to Hans Achim Mohr and Gertrud Thiele, on December 31, 1944, in Posen, and passed away on July 10, 2021, in Guelph. Michelle grew up in the town of Schwerin, Germany, before her family had to relocate, again, just as the Berlin Wall was being built. She is survived by her sister, Jutta, and her brother, Reinhard. While living in Hamburg, she met Thomas Jakob with whom she travelled for almost a year in a VW van through southern Europe and even Morocco. After this trip, she decided to follow Thomas to faraway Colombia, S.A. where they got married and had their two children, Katrin (Alaves) and Philip (Jakob).
Colombia was not the last move for Michelle because in 1976 the small family emigrated to Canada. After living in Mississauga for one year, Michelle and Thomas found their dream home on a 12-acre property in the Nassagaweya township. On this cherished piece of land, they planted a huge garden, started an apple orchard, dug out a pond, built a small barn, raised angora rabbits and chickens and even constructed a tiny cabin deep in the woods. Years later, once the children grew up, Michelle moved to live on her own in Guelph. In this beautiful city, Michelle became an avid supporter of the downtown: she loved visiting the market; frequenting locally owned shops and restaurants; attending mass at St. George’s Church; as well as hanging out at the various festivals and special events.
Michelle was a physically active person: on pretty much every day, she either cycled, swam, strolled/hiked, canoed, played badminton, practiced karate, cross country skied, skated, or did yoga. In fact, on most days, she did a series of any number of these activities! Michelle continued to travel far and wide in her retirement: with bravura, and taking only one small backpack, she travelled to places like Thailand and Laos; Chile and the South Pole; Central America and the Caribbean; not to mention the various road trips that crisscrossed North America. Michelle was also an artist at heart: her talents included photography, spinning and weaving, as well as clay sculptures of the human figure.
Michelle was not a typical grandmother! For example, instead of coddling Niko and Nathalie, she took them on local “adventures” and, at times, taught them to jaywalk, hop fences, and sip beer or coffee whenever the mood was right! When she spent time with Gabriela and Sebastian, she showed them how to go for refreshing (cold) swims, how to play “real” frisbee and how to think “outside the box”. Yet, her delicious cakes –always baked from scratch and based on some kind of German instinct –were a necessary part of every birthday celebration. Throughout Michelle’s lifetime, her friends, neighbours and acquaintances got to know her as a lively, worldly, out-spoken, yet caring, person who loved a good rib-crushing hug. Unfortunately, like so many others, she was diagnosed with cancer and although she was determined to beat it down, on her own terms, her journey came to an end. She will be remembered, with love, for the “tour de force” that she was! (Portrait by Laurie McGaw)