This fonds consists primarily of Betty Newfeld’s activities after her retirement. This includes written works such as memoirs, poetry, short stories, and genealogy focusing on Niverville, Manitoba and other Manitoba locations, the Neufeld family and other experiences from her life. A small amount of material deals with her activities as an artistic painter which she carried on beside her career. While she was not closely connected to a Mennonite church this material shows the connections she made with history, including her own Mennonite past, after her retirement.

This fonds consists of two sections of letters which Jacob and Sara Braun received from the Friesen family. The first section dated 1921 to 1938 were received from the Friesen family in Ogus Tobe, Crimea, first while living in Tiegenhagen (Ukraine) and then after 1925 while living at Ste. Elizabeth, Manitoba. The second section dated 1956 to 1982 are letters written mainly by Helene Dueck, Renate Dueck, Peter Friesen and Anna Wall in the Soviet Union to Jacob and Sara Braun in Manitoba. The letters are arranged chronologically by year. The letters provide a view of how one immigrant family to Canada remained in contact with the family members left in the home country. They also provide a view of how one family experienced life in the Soviet Union from 1921 to 1982.

This fonds consists of the letters and reports which Kay Friesen wrote while serving as a nurse with Mennonite Central Committee (MCC) in Indonesia, as well as other materials which she collected related to the work of Mennonite Central Committee in Indonesia and the history of Mennonites in Indonesia.

This fonds contains mainly letters received from siblings who remained in the homeland (Russia/Soviet Union) written in the post-revolution era, after Johann J. and Helena Wiens immigrated to Canada. The letters describe experiences of family, exile and complete disruption of their way of life as the communist regime developed. There is a 19-year period of no letter exchange beginning in 1937 when Stalin initiated an horrendous purge of anyone that might be a threat to his regime. After Stalin's death, things began to change slowly, and starting in 1956 contact was again established and another series of letter were exchanged. This fonds includes letters which Johann received from his sister Anna Siemens, his brother Jacob's family, his brother Peter Wiens and his sister Liese Letkemann. There are also some letters from relatives, David and Justina Kasper, Gertrude (Enns) Regehr and others. In addition to the letters from Russia, this fonds also contain two notebooks -- one consisting of the Wiens family register compiled by Johann J. Wiens, and the other a 1948 trip diary and address book created by Helena Wiens.

This fonds consists of one album containing photos of Mary Neufeld (later Mrs. Mary Schroeder), the staff, activities, residences, buildings and landscapes associated with the places she worked before she married in 1959. One series were taken in 1947 and 1951 while working at the Rosthern Invalid / Nursing Home. Another series were taken in the summer of 1952 when Mary Neufeld served in the Brandon Mental Hospital on a Voluntary Service (VS) assignment. Another series of photos were taken during the summer of 1953 when she worked at the Ninette (Manitoba) Sanitorium. There are also a few photos from 1948 when she worked at a canning factory in the Niagara (Ontario) region and visited Niagara Falls, Crystal Beach, and Brock's monument at Queenston. A few photos were taken when she worked as a cook at the Rosthern Bible School in 1951-1952.

This fonds contains documents pertaining to the life of William Hespeler, such as confirmation of attending the Polytechnic Institute in Karlsruhe (1847-1849), of deferment from military service in 1850, of immigration to Canada, and of naturalization as a British subject. The fonds includes the items taken to Russia in 1872 (i.e. responses from Ottawa to the Russian Mennonite inquiries about priveledges been sought such as exemption from military service). The fonds also contains various items with the autographs of individuals such as Otto von Bismark, Kaiser Wilhelm II of Prussia, and the British monarch, Queen Victoria. The documents pertain to Hespeler's service to Canada or Germany.

This fonds consists of a set of personal journals from 1936 to 2011, which records people that visited, places she visited and the activities of those she lived close to. There is also a series of notebooks containing personal notes, sometimes attending to loved ones who were in the last days of life in the hospital. Contained in this fonds are also some items which she acquired from her father, mother, sisters and brothers, as well as some person memorabalia like a recipe book, book of her school art work and the record of her baptism. A significant item is the friendship book started by her grandparents, Jacob J. and Elizabeth Loewen, which contains birth, marriage and death dates of many friends and family members. The fonds also contains several hundred letters which she received from her parents, siblings and friends.

This fonds includes the personal papers of Peter Paetkau such as the journals he kept from 1961-2007, his autobiography entited "Seasons of my Life", letters received, sketches drawn, poetry and letters written. There are genealogical files and articles he wrote on family history. There are also files which document his involvment with organizations such as the Mennonite Literary Society, Parallel Press Club and the Winnipeg Bach Festival. There are photographs and sound recordings that document historical events and institutional life such as concerts, graduations, openings, recitals, lectures and anniversaries.

This fonds contains the information gathered on the subject of labour history in Mennonite family owned businesses in Manitoba. The fonds contains the audio recordings of interviews with owners and employees conducted between 1997 and 2003. The workers were selected from different gender and social classes. The content formed the basis for Thiessen's thesis on labour history of Russian Mennonites.

This fonds consists of minutes, correspondence, annual financial statements, lists of teachers and students, and detailed financial information for the years just prior to is closing and the dispersement of its assets.