Jean Hawkins

.HAWKINS, nee WALLACE, Jean W., died peacefully of old age in the presence of her family, on Friday, February 14th, in Kitchener, Ontario. Wife of James (Jim) and father of James (Jim) and Pierre, grandmother of Scout and Gavin; survived by sister Shirley and brother Doug, predeceased by sisters Velma and Olga and brothers Ferdinand and Wartman.

Born, August 26, 1916, in Harrowsmith, Ontario, Jean trained as a nurse in Kingston, Ontario, and served the Royal Canadian Army Medical Corps as a First Lieutenant Nursing Sister stationed in England during World War II. Following the war, Jean developed her career as a public health nurse in Montreal where she met her husband, Jim. She retired for about 15 years to raise a family, then returned to practice as a public health nurse in the Kitchener/Waterloo area; she served as school nurse at Grand River and other regional high schools.

Jean will be remembered as a kind and thoughtful person who believed foremost in the goodness of people. Scout, Jean’s granddaughter, remembers Jean’s love of art and her encouragement of Scout’s ambition to study art. Scout now attends the Pratt Institute School of Art and Design in New York.

Gavin, Jean’s grandson, remembers that his Gramma was sweet and caring and always ready for a good laugh. “When I was little, Gramma would take me shopping at the Dollar Store where she would let me buy practical joke props that my mom would never have bought me.” He added, “Whenever we visited Gramma, she would always rub my hands to warm them up.” Jean’s sons remember a pet name that their dad had for Jean, that sort of says it all, “Honey Bunny Boo.”

A visitation (closed casket) will be held at the Ratz-Bechtel Funeral Home, 621 King Street West, Kitchener, on Monday, February 17th, 2014 (only) from 2:00 – 4:00 and 7:00 – 9:00. A memorial service will be held at a later date, to be determined by the family. A private family burial will take place at Mount Pleasant Cemetery, Toronto, Canada.

Jean’s family wishes to thank all those who assisted Jean and visited her in her later years. In particular, the family wants to thank the many caring staff members of the Westmount Long Term Care facility for their attentiveness and friendship toward Jean. As we miss Jean, we will all miss seeing all of you as well.