I was so blessed to call Eileen my friend.  Her kindness and generosity toward me will never be forgotten.  One example, she arranged for me to receive twelve books, one per month, with the title, Magnificat.  How I looked forward to reading those each month and seeing the beautiful art work on each cover.  In our day, we sang a hymn, the Magnificat in Latin.  I will always treasure these books.

Eileen wrote beautiful letters to me often, and she always added a letter to my birthday card and Christmas card.  She never wrote about her academic accomplishments which were many.  She wrote about what was most important to her; that is, her children and grandchildren.

Eileen's strong Faith in God and our Blessed Virgin Mary inspired me and increased my Faith.  Her children, grandchildren and friends can still give her a gift this Christmas 2016 and beyond.  That is, to stay true to their Faith and pray often.  I will miss Eileen terribly, but remind myself of the happiness she is experiencing now as a reward for her many good deeds.  I can only try to imagine the joyful welcome she received in heaven and God saying, Well done, good and faithful servant.

I read , a long time ago, that the greatest thing that can be said about a woman is that she was a good mother.  Eileen was a good mother and a grand, grandmother.  I'm so proud of her and very grateful to have known her. God bless her loved ones.  Eileen's influence will be felt through the generations to come.

Bunga, you were always important to us! You picked us up from school in your last days and would make sure our homework was done and understood. The perfect teacher! You took the time to make it fun and to even draw pictures with us! Going swimming with you was the greatest time with you because you would laugh and watch us do our tricks! You were our biggest fan and always encouraging! We love you Bunga and will never forget the love you gave us!!! Xo

I'm so sorry for your loss Ada. My thoughts are prayers are with you.

our deepest sympathy to Eileen's family.Our thoughts and prayers go out to you.
Winston and Rose Cameron

Eileen was born in New Waterford, Cape Breton. She was one of thirteen children. 

While growing up, Eileen's sisters recall that she was very smart and observant. She would always use big words and they would say to her, you must've swallowed the dictionary. Eileen was rarely seen without a book in her hand.

Eileen met Arthur in New Waterford, Nova Scotia. They were married. They had two children, Weldon and Ada, and were pregnant with Gary when they came to Ontario in their young twenties to start a new adventure. Their fourth child, Patti was born in Ontario.

Eileen and Arthur made sure to go back to the East Coast every winter and they brought their kids along.

Eileen was a real go-getter.  She worked various jobs, while raising her children, and saving money to fulfill her life-long goal of attending teachers college and becoming an educator. 

Her first teaching job was at St. Augustine's school as a primary teacher.  Throughout her career, she worked at many schools in the Catholic system.

She spent ten years as a teacher librarian at St. Joseph's school. In reflecting on her time as a librarian she said,


I feel the school librarian is in an unique position in that she is actively involved with all of the students and teachers in a school...she can stress the importance of research skills and foster a love of good literature and a respect for expressing oneself well.

While teaching, and raising a family, she achieved a Bachelor's degree at McMaster as well as a Masters degree in education from Niagara University. 

She eventually became a Vice-Principal and then a Principal, while passing exams to become a superintendent.

Ultimately she decided to remain a principal because she loved her interactions with children. She especially loved sharing bible stories, and many of her former students reflected on her good example of Catholic values.

One of Eileen's biggest achievements was the creation of a behaviour book at St. Columba School.  In her letter to students, she said, 

We hope that each girl and boy at St. Columba School will try to remember how St. Columba behaved while he was alive and that you will always do your best to love God and be kind and helpful to other people.

In reflecting on her career, colleagues remember that Eileen always effectively used authority with compassion. Her children and grandchildren remember this fondly.

Shortly before she retired from teaching, her first grandchild Scott was born, followed by Heather, Karalena, Patrick, Brooklynn and Madisynn.

Eileen's grandchildren quickly became her priority.  Her grandchildren have happy memories of summers spent together, especially when she prepared first and second breakfasts for everyone.

Eileen was very family-oriented and welcoming of everyone, she was always giving to others. She considered that her greatest accomplishments were her children and grandchildren's own accomplishments.  She was a giver, and was always ensuring her family's needs were met before her own.

She was a life-long member of the Catholic Women's League and spent much time volunteering with Martha House (the good Shepherd shelter for women).  She spent a life-time advocating for the rights of women, and breaking down barriers for equal pay for equal work. 

Anyone who knew Eileen knew that her faith and dedication to gospel values was of great importance. Her love of Jesus Christ guided her and she strived to live in His image.  

She spent winters in Florida with Art for sixteen years, always inviting her family out to enjoy the great weather and play card games, like sequence.

Eileen led a brave and courageous one and a half year battle with cancer.  Her faith and love of God gave her great comfort throughout her journey. She knew He had a plan, and she accepted that. All she asked her family for was prayers and love.

Eileen enjoyed taking her family to the Casino, and one of the last trips she took was to Las Vegas with her daughters, Ada and Patti. She believed that this was the start of a new chapter of her life, and she embraced every moment.

In her last months, she spent as much time with family as possible. She took her youngest grandchildren to the pool, picked them up for school, and made sure she did all the things she had done with her older grandchildren. Her selfless nature will forever be remembered by her grandchildren and children.

In her last moments, she held her Rosary close to her and Father Malcolm graciously prayed with her to bring her comfort.

Her family knows she is with Jesus, and her beloved Husband, Arthur, and that she is at peace.

Very sorry to learn of aunt Eileen's passing, may God bless her and keep her.

Paddy & Helen Pembroke

I am heartbroken that I couldn't make it, but treasure the conversations we had over the past year!

I will always remember you for your tenacity and you never believed in giving up!  You worked so hard to get where you wanted to be and raised four children at the same time, yet still found time to pack up the car and take me home for Christmas, because I wouldn't stop crying!
I am glad you are at peace and suffering no longer!
RIP my beautiful Sister!  Love you! xoxo

Mom, When I close my eyes you are with me, smiling and free of pain. You have loved me, directed me, inspired me, and molded me into the person I am today. My heart is happy knowing I now have two very precious guardian angels watching over me.
Will love you forever  Ada

Bunga, 

It's hard to say goodbye to someone who played such an integral role in my life. Many of my earliest memories involve you.  Every day of every summer, you and I (and eventually Pat) spending our days together in the pool. You taught me how to write my name, how to swim, multiply and divide, and so much more.  Every morning I would crawl out of my bed and into yours, you'd cuddle me and ask if we could just sleep for a few more minutes.  Eventually we would get up and you would make me whatever I wanted for breakfast.  After Patrick came along, the same rules applied but it would be for both first (and second) breakfasts. 

You taught me the importance of education. You encouraged me to pursue my goals, dreams, and to never stop hoping. You made sure that I knew that the only barriers to success are the ones we set up for ourselves.  You set such a powerful example of the strength of women.  You told me how you raised four children, while teaching full-time, and earning a BA/MA and various other teaching-related certificates.

You led the employment equity committee of your union, and spent a life-time fighting against pay inequity. While we certainly didn't agree about everything, there's no doubt in my mind that you shaped so much of whom I am. We laughed in your last days about where I got it from. But for me, I've always known.

You loved a good book. We spent the last ten or so years exchanging books. Your love of good literature was passed on through to all of us grandchildren (and children too, I think). It always felt good to share books with you and to talk about them afterwards. I still have the set of books you gave me at Thanksgiving and I know I'll find comfort in reading them in the next few months.

I remember the many nights laying in your bed with you eating sour cream and onion chips, watching some menial television show and chatting away about anything and everything.  Thinking about those moments brings me a real sense of calm. I can still hear you laughing at your own jokes.

Your sense of humour was truly unmatched. That quiet, surprising, make you cry laughing type. In your last days, when the nurses asked if they could get you anything, you'd ask for a rum and coke.  When I told you that Papa was waiting for you, you said, yeah with a sledgehammer.

You've taught me so many important lessons about life. In my reflection, I can see the tenderness with which you approached difficult conversations with me.  Even though you held your faith dear to you, you accepted that I had questions. You encouraged me to explore what made sense to me.

In going through our emails, I'm struck by your unwavering support.  Even when I asked you to learn how to use Microsoft Word (just) to edit my MA thesis. You never even hesitated, just went right to it.  In some ways, I think I was searching for your approval because I looked up to you so much. You always made sure that we knew that you were proud of us.  Now that I am more familiar with all of your successes, I think you leave us all with the important lesson of humility.

You took Patrick and I school shopping every year and made sure we had everything we would need to succeed. You took every opportunity to step up and play a parent role for us. You were so selfless, so concerned with the well-being of everyone else over yourself.  I know that we are grounded and level-headed because of you.

In those fleeting moments, all I could say was that I loved you, that it was okay for you to go, and that I was thankful for everything you had done for me. So much of our relationship went unsaid. 

The truth is (I know, you knew) I considered you a second mother in every sense of the word.

Thinking back to those nights when we sat together watching storms out the window, drinking tea, and playing cards   I understand the concept of unconditional love.  In the moments where you pretended to be interested in my random tangents, I am reminded of the important sacrifices we make for those we love.

When I was young, you took me with you to vote and talked me through the process of how it all worked. I got to stay up late with you and Papa in the name of being informed. You played such a big role in spiking my interest in politics, I'm not sure you know how important you were to my success.

When I went in a different direction (politically) than you were used to, you embraced it, asked questions, and supported me every step of the way. You told me about your roles in the teachers union, showing me that you respected what I was doing.

At our last family gathering, you made everyone watch the SNL coverage of the American Electionknowing I'm sure that it appealed mostly to me. I can still hear you giggling. 

I know that you were not scared to die because you had your faith.  I only hope that I am able to have half of your strength in the challenging parts of my life to come.

When I think about you, I think about you singing Gaelic music, dancing with your sisters, reading a book, or giving me hugs and encouragement.

I think about your smile, your laugh, and the fact that you embraced me calling you Bunga (without hesitation). You even encouraged the younger grandchildren to do it. I hope you know that I plan on telling any future children I have about you. They will know about my beautiful, amazingly strong and intelligent Bunga.

Even though you're not here with us physically, I'll always hear your voice in my head (in those moments of stress) telling me not to worry about anything because it will all come out in the wash.

Forever in my heart Mom love you all the way to Nova Scotia and back.xo Pattit Vissers Mclean

Anna and family ,so sorry to hear of Eileen's passing.Our thought's are with you at this time.Simon & Bobby White, New Waterford,NS

Eileen was a beautiful, strong, determined & courageous woman.  She devoted her life to her family but also pursued her dream of becoming an Educator.  She encouraged her children & grandchildren to be the best they can be.  She was a woman of great faith and carried this with her until the end. 
I am so proud to be your Sister, so blessed that I was able to be with you and will carry you with me in my heart always.
To my nieces, nephews & great nieces & nephews, may you find comfort in the wonderful memories you have of your amazing Mom and find peace that she is now with your Dad. She will be your most precious Guardian Angel. 
Always & Forever❤

Sending our deepest condolences on dear Aunt Eileen's passing.Our thoughts and prayers are with you at this sad time. niece Judy and Don MacLean, Pictou, NS

Thinking of you during this most difficult time. May Aunt Eileen find peace.
Rose Pembroke-Abraham from Cape Breton Island, Nova Scotia

Sincere condolences to Weldon,Ada,Gary,Patti and families.Such fond memories of numerous gatherings and family reunions over the years.Your mom and dad were two wonderful people,always making you feel welcome.They will truly be missed.Our thoughts and prayers are with you all at this most difficult time.All our love,Charlene,Terry and family.

Sorry to hear of the passing of Aunt Eileen.   Our thoughts are with the family. 

Peter and Jackie Pembroke

Thinking of you and sending you prayers and love across the miles. 
Please find warmth and strength in the realization that your beloved mom, sister, grand-mother, aunt; is now in a place of peace, comfort and amazing joy.
Hoping you find solace in your precious memories - which will remain in your heart and never be further than your closest thought. 
Much Love,
Holly, Paul, Brett & Cody
 xo

Sincere condolences to Aunt Eileen's Family. Please know that our thoughts and prayers are with you from River Ryan, Cape Breton.

Niece Anna and husband David Fraser

Our sincere condolences to Eileen's family. Our thoughts and prayers are with you all at this time. May Eileen now rest in peace.
Paul and Lucy Ryan, Waltham, Ma. ( formerly a neighbor of Art.).

AVIS DE DÉCÈS

Eileen Joan McLean

31 mai 1940 – 28 novembre 2016

Cresmount Funeral Home - Fennell Chapel

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