Jake was born to recent immigrants from Russia. He accepted Jesus at an early age. Jake attended Mennonite Educational Institute, Abbotsford, B.C. He left home in his late teens to work for Emil Anderson Construction. Jake didn’t waver in his faith. He met Ann while visiting friends in Vancouver; after a year courtship, they married, honeymooning in Seattle, Wash. Jake worked on the Hope–Princeton Highway, the PGE railway in Prince George, B.C., and the highway from Lytton to Ashcroft, B.C. In Lillooet, B.C., he operated heavy equipment, working on the Seton dam. He worked 30 years for Vancouver Equipment. Not wanting to sit around in retirement, from ages 65–77, Jake volunteered at Stillwood Camp – the job he enjoyed most. He loved spending time with his grandchildren. Jake fought through kidney failure until succumbing to an infection.
