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Aunty Cay
Our dear friend, my mom's cousin, Catherine
Gibson passed away on August 14, 2012 after a long struggle
with Alzheimer's.
Aunty Cay, as we called her, or Aunt Cath as her relatives in Calgary
called her, was a wonderful kind lady who always had a smile, and was
always so happy to see you.
As a kid, I always enjoyed visting Cay in her house. There was a
shuffle board game in her basement, and lots of rooms to explore.
There was a laundry shoot we would send things down (and then get
heck from dad).
Cay
loved her dog Queeny, and later, her black cat. She always
commented on how beautiful Queeny's fur was - she even collected it and
had a pair of mitts made.
Best were the practical jokes she would play, and the exploding presents at Christmas or Birthdays.
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Catherine Mary Gibson
12/16/1918 - 08/14/2012 |
2004 St. Albert Singers Christmas Concert
Muriel, Cay, Patty, Linda and Louise
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Living South of Edmonton, we would often pick up Aunty Cay, and
sometimes her friend Linda, on the way to my Mom's Christmas Concerts
(St. Albert Singers), or for Christmas or Easter dinners at Mom
and Dads' or at my sister Patty's in St. Albert. I
am so glad that Spencer and Laura got to know Aunty Cay a little bit,
although I wish they could have met her when she was in her prime.
During the last
few years, she didn't really know who we were when we visited, but she
was always very happy to see us anyway.
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She enjoyed her word games, and while I never played scrabble with her,
my sister Patty tells me that she was a formidable opponent, right up
to the end. She was laid in state with a word puzzles book in her hands.
Over the last years, we visited Aunty Cay a few times, but not as often as we should have.
Thank you Patty and Mom (and Karry and Ted from Calgary) who did visit regularly.
Thank you Patty for being there at the end. I know that Cay and all of us appreciate it.
I
know that Cay was loved by everyone who knew her. At her funeral, I
met a long time nighbour and one of the fellows who cared for her in
the lodge. Both had wonderful things to say about her. |  |
Muriel and Cay at Muriel's 60th Anniversary
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Lunch with Cay and Linda before a Christmas Concert in 2002
Cay, Spencer, Linda, and Louise |
Gibson's - Grandma's 80th Birthday
Back: Grandma (Muriel), Norah, Bob, Freddie
Front: Dez, Cay, Wilma and Janis |
Some of our
favorite memories;
- The little shrug and smirk - you can see it on Dad's Super 8 Movie
below...
- The way she answered the phone with a singsong hell-o' o
- exploding presents
- The way she said "yeeessssss"
- How she would clap and then clasp her hands when she liked something.
- Taking Queeny for a run in Strathearn School Yard... me on
my
bike with Queeny's chain hooked around my elbow - going full out when
Queeny decides to go on the other side of the goal posts... ouch...
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Cay at Micky and Patty's 50th Birthday Party |
Another Concert - 2005
Patty, Linda, Cay and Grandma |
Lots of love - 2007!
Back: Ted, Bob, Betty, Nora, Brian, Cay, Patty, Ross, Micky, Darcy,
Fallon, Kit, Moira, Freddie, Laura, Dez,
Centre: Janis, Louise, Muriel, Bill, Wilma
Front: Paulette, Rebecca, Devon, Spencer
Very Front: Graham, Ann |
GIBSON,
Catherine Mary
Passed
away peacefully at Extendicare Eaux Claires on August 14, 2012.
Catherine
was born in Innisfail, Alberta on December 16, 1918 to Maggie (Munro)
and James Gibson and grew up in Innisfail, Stettler and Botha where
Maggie and Jim owned the General Store. She was predeceased by her
parents and sister and brother Nina (Ronald) Ball and Willis (Margaret)
Gibson. Catherine attended Alberta Business College and enjoyed a long
and varied career in office administration.
Although
she never married, Catherine delighted in the lives of her nieces and
nephews, their spouses and children. Family was very important to her
and she maintained contact with her many cousins, friends and relatives
over the decades using her beautiful script. We were all privileged to
receive notes, enjoyed her eternal optimism and delighted in her
sayings, quotes and the odd joke.
Please
join us Monday, August 20, 2012 at 11:00 a.m. at Hainstock's Funeral
Home 9810-34 Avenue, Edmonton to share memories and celebrate the life
of this wonderful gentle woman with Reverend Steven Johann officiating.
Burial to take place after the service at Mount Pleasant Cemetery.
Should you so wish, memorial donations may be made to Knox-Metropolitan
Church 8307-109 Street Edmonton, Alberta T6G 1E1.
Expressions
of sympathy may be forwarded
to
the family via the website
www.hainstockedmonton.com.
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Cay Gibson and Queeny from Ted Gillespie on Vimeo.
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| For extra fun -
have a look at our Christmas Past !!! |
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