ARLENE HAGEL
Posted: July 31st, 2026
ARLENE HAGEL 1935 -2026
Arlene Hagel, beloved wife of the late Clarence Hagel, passed away peacefully at the Caramel Hospice on Monday, July 27, 2026, at the age of 91 years. She leaves to cherish her memory, her beloved brothers, sisters, nieces, nephews, neighbours and friends all the way from northern Alberta to sunny California. She loved them, prayed for them, and all were blessed to know her. Arlene was the only girl born in a family of five. Her mother died in childbirth when Arlene was only 10 years old. She learned to cook, run the home, and care for her brothers. As Arlene desperately missed her mom, a kind housekeeper introduced her to Mary, her Eternal Mother who would never die. This led Arlene to convert to the Catholic faith and eventually enter a religious order where she spent many years as a Catholic nun and elementary school teacher. Over time, Arlene’s sensitive spirit suffered under the semi-cloistered FCJ order, and it was necessary for her to leave after more than two decades of faithful service. Arlene spent time with her aunt and uncle in California to heal, then bravely struck out on shaky legs to teach in Medicine Hat, where she miraculously met her bachelor/farmer husband. She and Clarence were married for 43 long years. Arlene had a knack for cooking, sewing, caring for animals and growing things. The ideal farmer’s wife. They filled up their root cellar every year with healthy things for her family members to share. Arlene loved living on the farm with her cat, Buddy, and had only moved to town seven months prior to becoming ill. When she received the shocking diagnosis of cancer less than a month before her death, she consoled the doctors by saying with a twinkle in her eye, “That’s OK. I’m not afraid to die. I think I’ve been a good girl.” The Memorial Service will be held in the PATTISON FUNERAL HOME & CELEBRATION OF LIFE CENTRE on Monday, August 10, 2026, at 2:00 p.m. with Fr. Terry Gubiana celebrant. The service will be live streamed. Those who wish to attend virtually, please visit Arlene’s obituary page on our website for the link. Interment will follow in the HILLSIDE CEMETERY. To leave a message of condolence you may visit www.pattisonfuneralhome.com.
PATTISON FUNERAL HOME
AND CREMATORIUM
540 South Railway St. SE,
Medicine Hat T1A 4C2
Miss McArthur was one of my favourite teachers at St. Louis school back in the late 1970s. I remember the day at recess when there was a tizzy around my beloved teacher because there was a big shiny ring on her finger. It was Mrs. Hagel soon after that. She nurtured my love of learning, of reading, and inspired me with her kindness and faith. In her class, I remember hearing for the first time Ecclesiastes “There is a time for everything, and a season for every activity under the sun.” I always think of her when I hear that passage. In my own teaching career, I treated my students the way she inspired me, with kindness, compassion and understanding, with a great giggle here and there. As an adult, we would occasionally run in to each, and I remembered having a good discussion with her about farm life. Almost 50 years later, I remember her with fondness. Though she has passed from this world into her heavenly Father’s realm, she will always be remembered in my heart, and continue to inspire me to be kind, compassionate and to continue to be a woman of faith.