Mait Birgitta Selen

Mait Birgitta Selen (née Björkman) March 6 1935 – April 7 2024 Birgitta passed away peacefully April 7, 2024, in Pleasant Hill Tennessee surrounded by the love of her family. Birgitta was born March 6, 1935, in Stockholm, Sweden to Gustaf and Mait Björkman. She was the eldest sister, followed by Lena and Barbro. Their family resided in Fagersta, Sweden for many years where Gustaf worked for Seco Tools AB. In 1950, the company sent Gustaf and family to Springs, South Africa. They would often visit Kruger National Park, vacation on the beach in Durban, and enjoy a wealth of cultural experiences, sharing unforgettable stories with their loved ones in Sweden. In 1953, Birgitta was a debutante at the Coronation Ball held in honor of Queen Elizabeth II. While she was admired by many eligible bachelors at the ball, her heart belonged in Fagersta, where Lars “Lasse” Selen, her former classmate, lived. The two would send letters and photos to each other often during her time in South Africa and were eager to reunite. On a trip back to Sweden in 1956, Lars proposed to Birgitta on Midsummer Eve in Fagersta. Later that year, the couple eloped on New Year’s Eve at a chapel in Norn, Sweden. On June 14,1958, they welcomed their son Mats Anton. They would spend many happy years in Sweden before immigrating to Canada in 1968, where Lars was to operate a subsidiary of the steel company Stora Kopparberg. In 1970, Lars and Birgitta started their own company, Canadian Steel Service, truly a family run operation with Lars working the shop, Birgitta running the administrative parts of the business, and Mats earning his keep on the weekends. They sold the company in 1975 and used the money to start a successful sheep farm, Malabi Hills, in Marlbank, Ontario. After several more moves in Canada and the US they settled in Arizona for the rest of their lives together, enjoying the dry desert heat and landscapes of Phoenix. After 60 years happily married, Lars passed in 2017. Birgitta moved to Crossville, TN to live only a short walk away from Mats and his wife Lyn. Birgitta was a lifelong learner and explored a wide variety of interests and careers. In her youth, she was a talented pianist, was skilled in cross stitch and knitting. She learned to fly at the Toronto Island Airport, earning her Pilot’s license in 1970. At different times, she worked as a radiographer, was a partner at Canadian Steel Service with her husband and was a skilled farmer and gardener. She earned a Library Technician degree from Seneca College in Toronto at the age of 50 and worked in several public and college libraries. This was a very fitting role as reading was by far her favorite thing to do, finishing several books per week on her Kindle from the comfort of an easy chair in the sunroom of her home. Birgitta and Lars were very active in their golden years, enjoying daily hikes behind their house in Phoenix on a trail to Shaw Butte. They took many unforgettable trips to the Grand Canyon: hiking the Rim-to-Rim trail, camping at Phantom Ranch, and white water rafting on the Colorado River. Birgitta is survived by her son Mats Anton Selen and daughter-in-law Aledria Lyn Selen of Crossville, Tennessee; her grandchildren James Anton Selen, of McKinney, Texas; Emily Anne Isenbarger of Spring Hill, Tennessee; Catherine Victoria Selen of Chicago, Illinois; and Aledria Leithliter Cooper of Cary, North Carolina. She has three great-granddaughters, Julie Anne, Kate Marie and Susan Jane Isenbarger. In lieu of flowers, donations may be made to The Humane Society.