McINTOSH, Mary Louise (nee Creswick) - Mary McIntosh (nee Creswick) passed peacefully in Newmarket, Ontario on October 13, 2021, in her 97th year.
Mary touched many people with her kind and cheerful nature. Always thoughtful and sincere, she made a point of learning about and taking an interest in other people and the world around her.
She leaves behind a guide to the creation of a meaningful life full of kindness, wonder, and gratitude.
Mary was born in Weston, Ontario in 1924, the oldest of three daughters (Mary, Kay, and Pat) to Maurice and May Creswick. Her parents encouraged their daughters to learn and take an interest in the world around them, something that defined Mary as a person throughout her life.
She married Kenneth Ian McIntosh on August 9, 1945. A dedicated mother to David, Nancy, Shelagh (Tom), Patsy (Hugh), the late Douglas (Katia), Margaret (Hugh), and Leslie, Mary was also a special grandmother to 16 grandchildren (Natasha, Fritz, Julia, Hans, Alexis, Toni, Vanessa, Gillian, Liesl, Brigitte, Katharina, Melissa, Stephanie, Connor, Shannon, and Bryce) and 14 great grandchildren, who are spread out across Canada and three continents.
Many of her great grandchildren had the fortune of knowing Mary and enjoyed her homemade cookies and the lovely little creative activities she would carefully gather for their visits. Mary was always very thoughtful in her giving, choosing meaningful books or little treasures from her world travels to give to her many different grandchildren.
A dedicated volunteer throughout her life, Mary gave her time and talents to organizations such as the Red Cross, Girl Guides, the Cancer Society, school libraries, and the Aurora Historical Society. She and Ken were active members of their condominium community in Aurora and often ran movie nights for their neighbours to enjoy. Mary and Ken also spent many years as members of the Aurora Seniors Center.
Although she spent much of her life raising her children and serving others, Mary was also a woman who explored her own interests. After WWII made it difficult for Mary to pursue higher education, she returned to school in her 50s to pursue a degree in history and geography at the University of Toronto. Mary was a lifelong learner who continued her many intellectual and creative pursuits well into old age. An accomplished and talented artist, Mary painted gorgeous landscapes and flowers and showed her work at seniors’ art shows in Aurora. The homemade birthday and Christmas cards she made from her paintings are surely treasured by their many recipients
Mary had many dear, lifelong friends and always made space in her life for new friends, including those she met in her final years. Her family wishes to express their deepest gratitude to the kind and lovely staff of 4W Southlake Care Village who took such good care of Mary.
Private Family Memorial Service and livestream arrangements are entrusted with Thompson funeral home, Aurora.
In lieu of flowers, contributions in Mary's memory may be made to Canadian Cancer Society, cancer.ca; and Heart & Stroke Foundation, https://www.heartandstroke.ca/
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