Anton + Maria Korošec
Wedding: November 4th, 1967 at Our Lady of Lourdes Slovenian church
Anton was born on October 10, 1945, in the village Nedelica, in the Prekmurje region of Slovenija. Maria was born on March 18, 1948 in the same village. The two of them grew up around each other, as Anton was friends with Maria’s older brother Jože. They married on November 4th, 1967 at Our Lady of Lourdes Slovenian church. Together they have three children, Vera, Irene, and Brian.
After the Second World War, Yugoslavia became a communist country. Communism provided free education, which allowed Anton to receive his machinist certification. Wanting to explore the big world, Anton illegally travelled through Germany, sleeping in fields and working illegally in factories. One night while sleeping in a railway station, Anton narrowly avoided deportation from local police by locking himself overnight in the women's restroom. From there, he was able to visit the Canadian consulate in western Germany, where he was able to apply for papers to immigrate to Canada.
Anton came to Canada in July of 1966, and settled in Winnipeg, where he was welcomed by his older brother Ignac and his wife Marija. Upon his arrival, Anton was introduced to the Slovenian community by his brother, and immediately joined the Slovenian Men’s Club and Our Lady of Lourdes church. With help from the Slovenian community, Anton was able to find a job at Standard Manufacturers Services, working as a machinist. After twelve years, he began working at CNR (Canadian National Railway) as a machinist and heavy duty mechanic, where he remained for twenty-eight years until his retirement in 2005.
Maria came to Canada in September of 1967 after receiving a letter from Anton in the mail, asking her to join him in this land of opportunity, get married, and raise a family. So at the age of nineteen, Maria left her family and travelled to this new country, all alone and not speaking the language. Upon coming to Winnipeg and being welcomed into the Slovenian community, Maria joined the Women's Auxiliary, and later a member of the CWL. Maria was a seamstress for many years upon her arrival, then worked for Creamette Pasta, and later retired after working at the River East personal Care Home.
Anton recalls the socials he would help organize as a member of the church council. One of these socials took place in February of 1968, where around 170 tickets were sold. The church hall only fit around 140 people. While Anton and the other men would prep the hall and go shopping for food and alcohol, Maria, who was pregnant at the time, spent all day on her feet cooking with the other women. They would work all day on Friday to make sure everything was ready for the party on Saturday. Sunday mornings after mass, they would stay behind to count all the money from the night before, making sure everything was counted properly and lined up with the books. Back then it was pretty common to put a roast in the oven before leaving for church, so that it would be ready to eat when you got home. Upon returning home they found their kitchen filled with smoke. Turns out they spent a little longer than normal counting the money, and the pork they had left in the oven had completely dried out and smoked up the entire kitchen. They spent three days cleaning the drapes until the smell of smoke was gone.
Nowadays, Anton spends most of his time in Birds Hill Park, swimming, hiking and biking in the summer, and cross-country skiing in the Winter. Maria enjoys having the family over for her famous home-cooked dinners and fresh baked cookies and pastries, while everyone drinks Anton’s home-made wine and schnapps. Anton and Marija attend church, and afterwards, join the other parishioners in the hall to have coffee and celebrate birthdays with family and friends.
February 2025
