We knew Ann from church. She was always welcoming, helpful and kind. She took an interest in our granddaughter, Penelope and made sure there was always an activity for her to do when she was at church.

We send Thomas and family, sincere condolences. 

Barb Ennis and Dave Hewitt

I worked with Ann at Glen Orchard. She was such a strong and caring teacher. My daughter was so lucky to have her as her first teacher. 

I also had the pleasure of teaching her Grandson Porter trumpet lessons. It gave me the opportunity to see her weekly when she dropped Porter of at my house. She was so keen to  see and hear Porter play her father’s trumpet. We had lots of fun!

Finally I passed on to her the information about our ukulele group here in Gravenhurst. In no time she got a ukulele and joined our group. She became a very accomplished ukulele player and loved to attend all our gigs we were invited to play. Always so happy and with a big smile on her face. She even eventually brought Tom along with her as well. 

She was such a lovely and positive woman. I will miss seeing and chatting with her in so many ways. 

Rest in Peace Ann

Janice 

I send my sincere condolences to Thomas, Kim, and Jeremy.  Ann was so proud of her family and delighted in your many accomplishments. 

 When I think of Ann, I recalled her laughter.  In particular, I think of her dedication to the bell choirs at Bracebridge United Church.  When Ann would make a mistake at rehearsals, it would be followed by an outburst of infectious laughter.  Soon, everyone was laughing along with Ann.  Rehearsals were never dull! 

 Ann will be sorely missed by her many friends.  

Breathe.

The grieving I’ve experienced since mom’s death is like nothing I’ve felt before. You cannot truly love someone, without being vulnerable. To care so deeply for someone, is to feel both their triumph and their pain. When you lose them, you lose a part of your being.

In a strange way, I take some reprieve from this unrelenting, visceral grief. I loved mom with all my being and hence, I will suffer the same. Love hard, grieve hard. I wouldn’t change a thing.

From birth we begin to spin a web of emotional connections strengthened with love and further strengthened by shared life experiences. What is it to have a fulfilling life? I believe we strive for the good moments to outweigh the bad. In my opinion; to be truly loved & nurtured by your family, is to be truly wealthy. With mom leading me, I was destined to have the good outweigh the bad. It was her life mission. She showed me how to live, how to give & how to love. Everyone here today was lucky enough to feel her special ability to nurture.

And here we are, this is the vulnerable part. This is where we try to come to terms with the massive void she has left. Mom showed us how to selflessly give to others and how to yearn for homeostasis and balance within the family. She showed me vulnerability and did her mighty best to carry our life burdens to lighten the load along the way. The sheer effort she put into making our lives easier was astounding; loving dad & Kim, loving Jerri & our kids, fighting the good fights, getting wound up about work politics in EMS & teaching, endlessly volunteering, making specialty meals & treats, parachuting into our home to blitz the kitchen when I was on shift and of course stealing our laundry. Oftentimes Jerri and I would scratch our heads wondering if we were losing it, then mom would show up at the door with a freshly folded basket of laundry under her arm, smiling with pride that she had hung everything to dry in the fresh Muskoka air.

Porter and Koby were a huge part of mom’s life. I am forever grateful that between the two of them they had 38 years of unhindered love from their Nanny. Parenting is one of the hardest things we will ever undertake in this lifetime. Jerri and I embraced the time they had with mom & dad, knowing full-well all parties would be left richer for the time spent.

With a diagnosis of this nature I had a deep inner-conflict between having & instilling hope with mom and acknowledging that she would die from it. It happened fast.

A week before mom’s admission to Andy’s House, we sat hand in hand in the big chairs in the living room. We spoke candidly about our lives. We walked down the driveway until we found a spot where the sun cut through the trees to warm our cheeks. We talked about our lives. I thanked her for her love. I thanked her for showing us the way. I reminded her that the way she lived her life, she should have no regrets. She agreed.

I selfishly yearn to have more time with mom. But I take solace in zooming out to see the big picture. I have been blessed with 48 years of spunk, laughter, eye rolling and mom telling me; “Jeremy don’t do stupid things (right up to the day before she died). She repeatedly told me how painful it was to birth me, far worse than Kim she said “cause she was already stretched out”. On Monday she pulled herself out of a drug induced sedation to say goodbye to us, it was one last validation of her sheer will to comfort her family. Her humour was 100% intact. She was still worried about us. We laughed and cried and held hands.

Jerri said it best; “She was our matriarch”. A true leader of our family & a cherished friend to all who knew her. Thank you mom, for showing us the way, in life and in death. You are embedded in our hearts forever.