Josephine Ruth Clarke (nee Wilson)

Dear Family and friends,

It is with the deepest sadness and regret that I must inform you all of the passing of my dear and precious mother, Josephine Ruth Clarke – nee Wilson (“Jo”, to all of you, I am sure) at the age of 99 years, 5 months, on the evening of October 9, 2021, at Mount St. Mary’s Hospital and Care Home in the beloved city of her birth – Victoria, British Columbia.

A blessing that Mom’s caregivers Lynn and Cathie, and myself, were with her during those final hours as she journeyed into that good night – metres from where she was born, ninety-nine springs ago. Deep gratitude for their loving dedication goes out to all of Mom’s care “team” – as well as to the staff at Mount St. Mary’s – where Mom spent her final four and a half years. Too numerous to mention, several of them truly championed Mom’s wellbeing – until the very end.

I know that each of you has had distinct, shared bonds with my mother – from various eras or places, but I believe that we all can treasure vivid memories of “Jo” as a gracious woman of authentic thoughtfulness and selfless generosity. From her formative classical education in Victoria, Mom developed an enduring love of literature, ballet and the arts, culture and history, which she was fortunate to partly actualize through travel opportunities with three of her lifelong friends – later in life.

At her core, however, my mother was unpretentious – having experienced the Thirties as a teen, an experience which likely readied her for forty years of facing the realities of rural life at our Deepewood homestead near Georgetown, Ontario. “Jo” delighted in gardening and entertaining visitors from afar, volunteered in the local community, and even returned to the work world at age sixty. As a woman of her era, Mom considered it her duty to support, first, my late father Harry, in his airline career with TCA/Air Canada, and then my late sister, Heather and I, as we grew into adulthood. She became a grandmother later than most – to Jenni, and revelled in the role during a decade of family holiday celebrations in Toronto. In 2012, Mom quietly returned home to her Victoria near Beacon Hill Park, and her passion for crosswords.

Mother has asked that her remains be cremated and mingled with those of my father in the waters of Deep Cove and Patricia Bay in Saanich Inlet, Vancouver Island, on some bright, warm day between April 22, 2022 (which would have been Mom’s 100th birthday) and late next summer – as the situation allows. Mom’s commitment will be followed by a small gathering of family and friends. Further details will be announced, once arrangements have been made – closer to the date.

I shall greatly miss my mother – my greatest, and most steadfast booster, throughout my life. We all shall miss this grand lady!!! May my mother Jo finally rest at peace – now reunited with both, my late father and sister – in God’s arms in Heaven!

Condolences may be offered to the family below.

McCall Gardens
www.mccallgardens.com