Monica was born on August 8, 1964 in Melville, SK to John and Ida (Bogdan) Douhaniuk, the sixth of seven children. She was raised on the family farm five miles south of Killaly and moved to the village of Killaly with her parents when they built their new home. She attended Killaly School and Melville Comprehensive School.

In her youth, Monica was involved in 4-H and army cadets, where she also enjoyed the benefits of attending cadet summer camps. She played baseball and broomball, and she curled, which she continued when moving to Regina, and any sport that a youngster growing up on a farm near a small town offered. Monica was very much a tomboy and loved to be out chasing cattle, milking cows, butchering chickens, hauling bales and combining. She loved coming home from Regina to help Mervin and Morris with the annual branding of the cattle every spring.

Upon graduation from high school, Monica found employment waitressing at the Classic Inn in Melville. She then decided to try moving to a larger centre and moved to Saskatoon where she became a salesperson of household gadgets! When she realized that this would not be a great career move, Monica decided to make her permanent home in Regina. She became a homeowner shortly after moving to Regina and began her employment with Regina Qu’Appelle Health Region on April 19, 1989, working at all Regina hospitals over the years in various positions. When she first started at the health district, it was not full-time employment so she supplemented her income by working at Joey’s Only. Most recently, Monica was working in security in the parking division based out of the Regina General Hospital and was looking forward to retiring in a couple of years. She also worked at Evraz Place for socialization purposes.

Monica had a great love for her beloved Saskatchewan Roughriders. She volunteered, doing ticket sales at their home games and was fortunate enough to work the Grey Cup Game and experience the win in 2013 when the Riders won it all!

The Terry Fox Foundation was very special to Monica’s heart because she had melanoma in her early twenties and felt very blessed to have fought that battle and won! Therefore, she volunteered faithfully at the Terry Fox Run and was also on the organizing committee when her health permitted. With having grown up on the farm, Monica developed a great love for animals. She even did a bit of a stint working/living on a farm outside of Regina helping with the cattle, which brought her back to her roots! Upon moving back to Regina, Monica adopted a dog she sadly had to give away when she could not have a pet in the apartment into which she moved; however, as soon as she once again became a homeowner, she immediately adopted the first of three Pomeranians that quickly became her "babies".

Monica had a variety of hobbies, ranging from doing word searches and reading the Leader Post daily to having a great love for books; she always had a book on the go! In the summers, Monica looked forward to camping with her brother and his wife and the puppies. She welcomed any friends and family to join them to enjoy time around the campfire. She looked forward to swimming in her backyard pool and loved to go hottubbing while visiting her sister and her husband and their family. She also enjoyed going for rides on her motorbike! Every day before work, Monica would get up early and go for coffee at A&W before heading in to do her shift. This was something she really enjoyed before the start of her work day, as she was a very sociable person.

Monica enjoyed travelling. When she was in her twenties, she went on a trip to Mazatlan, Mexico with a group of girlfriends. In 2014, the year she turned 50, she WON a trip to St. Lucia through Curves. Even with her health conditions, she still strived to be fit and healthy! She also enjoyed mini vacations to Minot with her family.

Monica had a great LOVE of FAMILY....all her nieces, nephews, great-nieces and great-nephews meant the world to her, and she tried to attend as many family functions from births, baptisms, graduations to weddings whenever possible.

Predeceased by two of her furbabies, Buddy and Ricco, she is survived by her puppy, Xena and her cat, Suki.

Monica was predeceased by her mother Ida in January, 1996, her father John in July,1999 and her infant brother Mark in October, 1956. She will be sadly missed by her brothers, Ralph (Verna), Mervin (Robbie) and Morris (Donna) and sisters, Yvonne (Vaughn) Rogalski and Lisa (Marcelle) Leik, as well as eighteen nephews and nieces, five great-nephews and great-nieces and her long-time roommate and friend, Murray Andrews.