KLAAMAS, Kalju

Today and every day, we celebrate the life of Kalju Klaamas, who passed away peacefully at the age of 86 on Thursday, December 16, 2021, at Shoreham Village Home for Special Care in Chester.

Born on the island of Koipse in Estonia, Kalju spent his boyhood circling the shoreline each day, bringing home whatever windswept treasures the tides brought ashore – such are the joys of living on a speck in the Baltic Sea. But with war came finds that no child should see, like the paratrooper’s chute that his mother sewed into clothing; a marine mine accidentally triggered by a friend; and, of course, the bodies.

When the Soviets invaded, the Klaamas name was on the list of families to be sent to Siberia, so at the age of eight, with his father Albert, mother Liine Elisabeth, and brothers Gustav and Paul, the family fled to Finland on a small fishing boat, with mortars flying overhead. From there, they made their way to Sweden, where they lived as refugees in Helsingborg for a decade.

In 1954, they made a choice – move to Canada or Australia to start a new life. And so Kalju and his family came to live in Feltzen South, Nova Scotia, where his aunt and her husband had a small homestead by the ocean. Kalju and his dad began fishing together, making enough money to buy their own land and build a house.

Many years later, a new girl moved in just three houses down, having defected from Soviet-occupied Estonia herself. Kalju always said that when he first saw her at the mailbox that day, he knew. Kalju married Ellen Laigar in 1969, and they had a daughter, Linda Elona, the following year.

After the death of his brother Gus at sea in 1972, Kalju stopped fishing and worked at Art Textile in Lunenburg, and then at Michelin Tires Canada in Bridgewater until his retirement.

Kalju is survived by his loving wife Ellen; daughter, Linda Klaamas (Robert Oliver) and grandson, Thomson Klaamas Oliver, of Toronto; and brother, Paul Klaamas, of Halifax.

Funeral arrangements are under the direction of the Dana L. Sweeny Funeral Home, 11213 Highway 3, Lunenburg. A gathering will be held Thursday, May 19, 2022 from 2 to 4 p.m. at the Dana L. Sweeny Funeral Home, 11213 Highway 3, Lunenburg. All are welcome to attend.

Many thanks to the staff at both South Shore Regional Hospital and Shoreham Village, who helped care for Kalju throughout his most recent medical challenges, and to the family, friends and neighbours who have reached out during this difficult time.

Those who wish to make a donation in Kalju’s memory may contact the Canadian Cancer Society Atlantic Campaign (cancer.ca/en/ways-to-give/atlantic-campaign) or the Heart & Stroke Foundation of Nova Scotia. www.sweenyfuneralhome.ca