Margaret McEwen

McEwen, Margaret Leith

Our dear Mother, Margaret Leith McEwen, passed away peacefully on November 21st at the Elisabeth Bruyère Hospice, in her 93rd year. Born in Montreal in 1930, to Mary (Pollock) and Bill Turpie, after WW II she moved with her family to Army temporary housing at Uplands in Ottawa where she met our father Keith, an air mechanic at the Ottawa Flying Club. They fell madly in love. When Dad joined the RCN Air Branch Mom waited until her 20th birthday, then quit her job at the bank and ran away from home to join her sailor in Halifax. Their marriage in 1950 was the beginning of a wonderful 62 year partnership during which Mom made homes for us in various places around the Halifax/Dartmouth area; in Hamilton; at Arbroath, Scotland; Los Angeles; at Carleton Place; and in Ottawa. Mom showed us the value of family through her unflagging love and dedication to our happiness and well-being, and by her consistent encouragement and support for all our endeavors. As we grew older Mom also frequently worked outside our home, in various banks and as a bookkeeper. With her bright sociable personality, she easily fit into new surroundings and made lifelong friendships. Mom particularly prized the group of people with whom she and Dad worked to build homes on Ocean Lea Drive in Eastern Passage. She loved cruising far and wide with Dad during their retirement.

Mom was predeceased by her parents, her beloved Keith, her brother Jack Turpie, and our much-missed brother Rob. She is survived by her sister, Nancy Champagne, her brother-in-law Finley McEwen (Mary), her sons Hugh (Bonnie) and John (Debbie), and her daughters Mary and Meagan, along with ten grandchildren and ten great-grandchildren, and many nephews and nieces. She loved us all!

Visitation will take place at the Alan R. Barker Funeral Home, 19 McArthur Avenue, in Carleton Place, on December 9, 2022 beginning at 11 am, to be followed by a memorial service in the chapel at 12 noon and a reception. Cremation has taken place and inurnment will be arranged for a later date.

Please consider making a donation to the Kidney Foundation and the MS Society, or to any other charity.

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