Educator, editor, municipal official.
Born at Keld on 3 February 1919, eldest child of Michael Presunka (?-1962) and Mary Koshowski (?-1948), he attended Wilford School, Tanner School, and Dauphin Collegiate. He took teacher training at the Central Normal School in 1940 and taught at Henderson School (1941-1943), Crystal City School (1943-1946), Plum Coulee School (1946-1947, Principal), and Glenboro School. Later, he attended Brandon University (BA and BEd) and the University of Manitoba (MEd, 1975) and returned to teaching at Carberry Collegiate (1967-1982), after which he retired.
On 8 November 1946, he married Edith Myrtle Wheeler (c1928-2011) on 8 November 1946. The couple had two children and resided at Plum Coulee before moving to Glenboro where he purchased the Western Prairie Gazette from Francis C. Beech and operated the newspaper from 1949 to 1967, eventually renaming it the Glenboro Gazette. He was the first Manager Treasurer of the Glenboro Credit Union, school trustee of the Glenboro School Board, and served as a Municipal Councillor for the Village of Glenboro (1961-?), President of the Carberry Chamber of Commerce (1960-1965), and President of the Glenboro Kiwanis Club (1964-1965). He was also active in the No. 285 (5) Highway Association, and the Masons (D.D.G.M., 1983-1984). In recognition of his community service, he was awarded the Manitoba Golden Boy Award in 1963. His pastimes include playing bridge, lathe-work, writing, and the family’s Pelican Lake cottage.
Following a long battle with cancer, he died at the Glenboro Hospital on 30 December 1985 and was buried in the Glenboro Cemetery.
“Presunka - Wheeler,” Winnipeg Tribune, 22 November 1946, page 9.
“Road break-ups affect highway program,” Winnipeg Free Press, 30 June 1960, page 10.
“Cities, towns, and villages,” Winnipeg Free Press, 21 October 1961, page 6.
Obituary [Michael Presunka], Winnipeg Free Press, 2 August 1962, page 29.
“Southwest news briefs [Glenboro],” Brandon Sun, 24 October 1962, page 11.
“Glenboro Kiwanis elect Presunka,” Brandon Sun, 5 February 1964, page 14.
“Wawanesa girl wins Rose Bowl,” Brandon Sun, 8 May 1965, page 3.
Obituary, Winnipeg Free Press, 3 January 1986, page 27.
Brandon Estate File PR86-02-00064, Franklin Stuart Presunka, Archives of Manitoba.
Obituary [Edith Presunka], Winnipeg Free Press, 3 March 2011, page 27.
This page was prepared by Nathan Kramer.
Page revised: 29 November 2022
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