When Peter Ens of Langham lost his left hand in a farm accident back in 1947, he was determined not to let it prevent him from living a full and productive life.
Newly-married and only 27 years old at the time, Peter fortunately had the support of his family and community as he learned to adapt to farming with only one hand. His strong religious faith also helped.
Born September 14, 1920, Ens turns 100 this month. The resident of Spruce Manor Special Care Home in Dalmeny has mixed feelings about the celebration his extended family has planned for him.
“I don’t like being reminded that I’m getting older,” he said in an interview at the care home on Tuesday, September 1. “And I’m not crazy about being the centre of attention.
“But I’m glad to have loved ones near to help me celebrate.”
Peter said he’s lived “a happy life” and credits “good living, good old-fashioned Mennonite food and faith in God” for his longevity.
He grew up on a farm near Osler and went to work on a farm near Langham in his youth. He worked for seven years for a farmer who eventually became his father-in-law when he married the farmer’s daughter, Margaret, in 1946.
Peter and Margaret operated a mixed farm for a few years, when his left hand was tragically severed.
After the accident, the community of Langham and area chipped in and bought the young couple a tractor so they could continue farming. They also helped out in other ways. Years later, on Peter and Margaret’s 25th anniversary, the couple showed their appreciation for all the community had done by cooking and hosting a supper for 225 people.
Peter’s daughter, Rosalie Fehr of Dalmeny, said all of Peter and Margaret’s children were born after Peter lost his hand.
“We never knew any different,” she said. “To us, he was no different than any other dad.”
But the kids unconsciously picked up some rare, life-long skills by copying their father.
“Dad never used a prosthesis,” said Rosalie. “It was cumbersome and uncomfortable because it was made of hard plastic with a steel clamp.
“It wasn’t like the modern ones. So he found it too hard to use. He put it aside and used his arm. He did all his work with only one hand, and us kids learned to do things the same way.
“All my brothers know how to work with one hand; so when they left home, they were nailing and using wrenches just with one hand.”
Peter’s son, Orville Ens of Langham, said his father was capable of feats that people with two hands wouldn’t attempt.
“He could carry two five-gallons pails at the same time,” said Orville. “He’d grip one in his right hand, but the other pail he’d put the steel handle of the pail in the crook of his elbow and carry it that way.
“I’ve tried it, and I can tell you, it hurts. But his arm was so calloused from all those years of doing chores it didn’t bother him at all.”
Orville said his mother Margaret had a wheelbarrow which she considered her own, and didn’t like others using it. She figured Peter couldn’t use it because he only had one hand.
But as soon as Margaret had left the farm to go shopping in Saskatoon, Peter would use the wheelbarrow to do chores.
“He tied a piece of string from his elbow to the handle, and when Mom came home the next day there he was driving across the yard with a bale of hay in the wheelbarrow.”
At the age of 40, Peter switched from mixed farming to dairying. When Margaret passed away in 1989, Peter sold the farm and moved to Langham. He later remarried and spent many happy years with his second wife, Helen Pauls, before she passed away. Peter celebrated his 94th birthday in his own home in Langham in 2014 before moving to Bethany Manor in Saskatoon and later to the Langham Care Home and eventually to Spruce Manor.
He’s the oldest member of the congregation of the Langham Bible Church, which he’s attended for decades.
Rosalie said her father was looking forward to receiving a greeting from Queen Elizabeth II on his birthday, but the COVID-19 pandemic prevented that from happening.
She said the family is grateful to the essential care workers in every community for taking care of her father and all the elderly residents in the homes during a very trying time.
“We really appreciate all the care they’ve given him, especially during this COVID time when we couldn’t visit him for many months.”