Mary was born in L’Ardoise on Cape Breton Island, Nova Scotia proudly to a teaspoon of brandy which was credited to her survival to stave off the Spanish Flu. She is the fifth of eleven children raised on the family farm. As was typical in that era to make room for younger siblings in the homestead, she landed in Montreal after her schooling to join her oldest brother. During that time, she met Dennis William, a military man. Soon after the Second World War ended, they wed, but their intense dynamic lead to an intermittent union that essentially left her to raise their three young children on her own. She worked long hours as a waitress, first at Murray’s then at Ruby Foo’s in Montreal. In her early retirement years, she moved to Ottawa to live with her eldest’s family as their Granny-nanny. In recent years, she moved to the west coast to be closer to her son and daughter as well as her remaining living siblings. During her 102 year life, Mary experienced incredible world changes and extraordinary historical events with pandemic bookends. She was the spark of any gathering and thrived on the attention. She made an impression to all she met and was resilient to the end.
Mary is survived by her son Bryan, daughter Catherine (Lynn), son-in-law Al, several grandchildren and great-grandchildren as well as a plethora of additional family members coast to coast. She is predeceased by her parents: William Sr. and Julia. She is also predeceased by her daughter Maureen and all her siblings: Henry (Josephine), Patrick, Ambrose, Anne (Allan), James (Sadie), Beulah (Roy), Catherine (Harvey), Alice, Margaret and William.
Prayers & Visitation will commence at 12:00 p.m. on Friday, June 4, 2021, immediately followed by the Funeral Mass at St. Peter’s Church, New Westminster, B.C. with Father Jack Herklotz, OMI officiating. The interment will be in Ottawa, Ontario at a later date.
Please note that masks are mandatory in Church.
For those who would like to participate via Livestream, the link is as follows: