First Anniversary (Doug Ukrainetz: 1948-2023)

August 5, 2024

Dear Dad,

It’s been a year since you left us, and not a day goes by that I don’t miss you. 

It feels like just yesterday we were talking on the phone discussing the next auction. Running this business without you has been challenging but I’m doing my best to keep everything moving forward. There are countless questions I still have, and I often find myself longing for your wisdom and guidance. I’m doing my best to keep going and to honor your memory in everything I do. Your absence has left a space in my life that no one, and nothing else, can fill.

This first year has been very, very hard. All the “firsts” have been gut-wrenching. Every new month was a first month with you. Birthdays, anniversaries, thanksgiving, Christmas, Easter New Year’s, Father’s Day, too many occasions to recount here…all have been harrowing! How I love you, Dad.

This weekend, I participated in a golf tournament and auctioned some items to support the cause. As I stood there, I shed a tear. I would have done anything for you to be standing right beside me, Dad. Just as we did in the years past! You and I with our auctioneer’s chant. The crowd mesmerized by your personality and humour. You made every auction a big party. I miss you deeply and often feel your absence more acutely during moments like these. Days like today can feel overwhelming, but I remember the values and lessons you taught me, and they carry me. Thank you for shaping my character with the love and lessons you instilled in me. 

I miss you so much, Dad, I can’t say it enough. How I long for your human presence, your real-time guidance and support. But even though you’re no longer here physically, your spirit and influence continue to inspire me. I’ve done dozens of auctions since you left earth, and it’s been a most pleasant surprise that the farm ones have increased. It’s like when you were here doing your farm auctions, except now, your love and wisdom guide me from afar.

I hope I’m making you proud and honoring the legacy you built. Life isn’t the same without you and will never be, and there are moments when the ache feels too much to bear. How my heart hurts when I think of you! Dad, I take comfort knowing you are in a better place, watching over me. I feel your absence every day, and I find solace in the memories we made, and the love you left behind. And I pledge to do my best to honor your memory every day.

Until we’re together again, know that you are always in my thoughts and forever in my heart.  Your memory is my constant source of strength. I hope you’re having a drink with the angels and singing away, enjoying the peace and joy you so deserve. I’m jealous of the angels.

With enduring love and everlasting thoughts.

 “If the good Lord’s willing and the creek don’t run dry, we will talk soon.” 


Today marks the first anniversary since the passing of the legendary auctioneer, Doug Ukrainetz.

His presence is ever with us. Reminders of him surface each time you click the website, each time you place a bid, each time your eyes fall on the treasures you obtained at bargain prices that you may not have been able to purchase elsewhere. Without him there’d be no Ukrainetz Auctions or Karla’s Auction. 

If you have a kind word or a picture to share, we’d love if you would email us at karla.ukrainetz.auction@gmail.com so we can add it to the First Anniversary page of our website. Meanwhile, you can view our gallery with Doug and read the historic legacy of a life well-lived by clicking on this link: https://ukrainetzauction.com/auctioneer-extraordinare-doug-ukrainetz/

Doug’s classic closing line was “If the good Lord’s willing and the creek don’t run dry, we will talk soon.” In a similar vein we say, “As long as you have sales, as long as you have consignments, and as long as there are bidders, we will have auctions.”

As a province we celebrate Saskatchewan Day today. As a business we celebrate a Saskatchewan-born auctioneer whose legacy continues adds to the SK economy. As a family we celebrate our deep love with cherished memories of a father/husband who became our ideal each day we lived in Saskatchewan.  

August 5th, 2024