Ilga Gulbis (née Erglis) passed away peacefully at Kristus Dārzs Latvian Home on Dec. 28, 2025, with her beloved daughter “Sandrit” by her side.

Omite to six grandchildren, Ilga was a loving, loyal and headstrong woman. Family and community were everything to her, and she was proud to know that she would leave behind a legacy of love and devotion that many will cherish.

Born in Daugavpils, Latvia, to Olga and Janis Erglis, she emigrated to Canada in August 1949 where she built a big and beautiful family. In 1955, she married Hedvigs Gulbis with whom she had two daughters, Laura and Sandra. She remembered their births as the best times of a long life blessed with family and love.

After 96 years marked by both hardship and joy, she is now reunited with her eldest daughter, Laura Pauksens (née Gulbis), her husband, Hedvigs Gulbis, her partner Valentins, and her sister Lilija.

Her memory lives on through her daughter, Sandra Forani (née Gulbis); her brother Laimonis Erglis (Edite); her sons-in-law Joe Forani and Andris Pauksens (Linda); her six grandchildren, Erika (Josh), Alexandra (Fraser), Adam (Shelley), Jonathan, Michael, Katarina; and her seven great-grandchildren, Marshall, Harry, Jacob, Luke, Lily, Liam, Tessa.

Ilga cherished her Latvian heritage and was an active part of the Latvian-Canadian community, building memories over several decades at the Latvian Canadian Cultural Centre in Toronto. A woman of faith, she was a devoted board member of St. Andrew’s Lutheran Latvian Church. In 1999, she was appointed Treasurer for the Latvian Evangelical Lutheran Church in America (LELBA).

Ilga will be remembered for her determined spirit and sharp wit, her delicious piragi and morning pancakes at the cottage, and above all as the beloved Omite and matriarch of a growing family she loved with all her heart.