It is with great sadness that we announce the passing of our dear Father, Husband and Opa. At the age of 87, Karl Poland passed away on October 2, 2025. 

Karl C. E. Poland

Born in Augsburg, Germany to Erna and Karl Poland on March 28, 1938 he joined his two older brothers, Rudy and Helmut, and was later joined by his younger sister, Heidi.

His family survived the horrors of World War 2, and the poverty that followed in Germany during the years that followed the war’s end. Karl often accompanied his mother to the opera, as she was blind and was allowed a chaperone. His love of music blossomed there and carried on throughout his life. He also learned to ballroom dance with his sister in their teens. In his youth, he joined the Boy Scouts and made many lifelong friends. Together with his troop, he toured by bike to many European countries, as far north as the Netherlands and down south to Switzerland and Italy. They spent many evenings around camp singing songs and creating their own music.

Karl pursued a craftsman’s career in woodworking under a Master he deeply respected. He married young and divorced young. Upon his divorce, he joined the merchant marines as a junior carpenter to reinvent himself and change his perspective. After 1 year of service, he returned home and pursued new journeys. Back in his home city, he met Monika Meley, who had returned to Germany to discover her roots after immigrating to Canada when she was 5 years old.

They started a journey at that time that neither of them knew would span more than half a century. They were married on his birthday in 1972.

After a couple of years Monika longed for Canada and soon returned with her new husband, Karl, back to Edmonton, Alberta. There they settled. Karl working as a cabinet maker and Monika pursuing secondary education.  In 1976, they welcomed their firstborn, a daughter named Jasmine and subsequently welcomed a son named Cliff 2 years later. Karl’s children were the light of his life. 

Karl worked for others and then finally for himself operating, Karl Poland Woodworking for close to 30  years. Throughout that time, he had both his son and daughter work with him in his shop and on various work sites, teaching them both his strong work ethic and hands-on skills. He also developed many strong friendships through his work. He loved working for himself, which also came with challenges as a sole proprietor but was supported by his loving wife during this time. His own strong work ethic and determination to overcome health challenges in his 50’s allowed him to continue operating his own business until the time of his retirement.  Throughout his busy working years he always made his best effort to spend Sundays with his family making German pancakes for breakfast with homemade apple sauce and cherishing the time to spend with his family.

Karl crafted many beautiful things and took great pride in his work. His crown jewels would have been a throne for the Aga Khan, a hope chest for his daughter, and boat bar for his brother-in-law, a built-to-scale car for a pub, though his most prized creations were a wall unit, table and bench he built for his wife, Monika. The table served as the space for many happy dinners, conversations and games to take place over the course of their 50 plus years of marriage. 

His love of music was a constant throughout his life, he always had a radio on in his shop. He whistled while he worked and sang around the fire pit in the back yard and when camping. 

Upon his retirement he became a devout SKAT player (a German Card game) meeting his friends on a weekly basis for some enthusiastic card playing and German camaraderie. He was also an avid scrabble player, for many years, he and Monika would play anytime they could including in their backyard while enjoying their garden and pond. 

In 2006, Karl was the first man in his family in over 100 years to become a grandfather! Affectionately referred to as Opa, he was devoted to spending time, with first his grandchild (Josh), and then subsequently his second grandchild (Jeremy). He was so thrilled to have the time in his retirement to spend with grandchildren that he was not afforded during his working life. In 2014, he received the gift of two additional grandchildren by way of Cliff’s partner, Vicky joining the family with her 2 children, Andy and Mya who were 7 and 10 years old at the time. Subsequently he was blessed with another 2 grandchildren, daughters of Cliff and Vicky. Korra was born in 2015 and Toph was born in 2018. Opa was delighted to have the opportunity to be a grandfather for as many years as he was. He loved to bake muffins and make German pancakes for the grandchildren and was delighted when they would have an opportunity to help him.

As he began to spend more time at home, he loved listening to music and watching the birds feed and bathe on the back deck while enjoying his beloved coffee! He also grew to love snuggling with Neptune, his beloved dog. 

His journey on this earth was one that positively affected all whom he interacted with, and his warm, friendly demeanor always put people at ease. He will be greatly missed but his impact will never be forgotten.