Wadad Betty Ghosn

GHOSN, Wadad - 74 years, Halifax, wife of the late Jacob Ghosn, mother of Peter Ghosn (of Halifax), Jasmine Ghosn (of Toronto) and Cristine (Tony Kahil) (of Toronto), and grandmother of Alina Jo, Alexandra and Elias Kahil (of Toronto), passed away peacefully, on April 8, 2011, just one month after learning she had cancer, at the QEII Health Sciences Centre, surrounded by her family. She was the daughter of the late Francis and Foutina Hokayem, and born in 1937 in Artez – the mountain village of Bathroun, North Lebanon, and was the youngest sister of Marie, Haneh, Arsanious, and Abla. As a young girl she helped her family tend to the land, the olive gardens and grape vines and to make bulgur wheat, olive oil, soap, silk and other household staples. At age 11, she went to live with her oldest sister Marie in Tripoli to study at the School of Sainte Famille where she completed her Lebanese Certificate in 1953, and her French Certificate in 1954. While studying towards her Baccalaureate, and achieving first place ranking, she was offered a position with the Republic of Lebanon’s Ministry of Finance, in the Department of Lands and Surveys, where she worked from 1957 to 1964, as the only woman in a department of 75 men, initially at the Government offices at the “mayleeye” in Tripoli and later in Beirut – Centre Ville, during that period in history when Beirut was known as the “Paris of the Middle East”. As a beautiful, intelligent and independent young woman, she was largely devoted to teaching prayer to children, and serving with a chapter of the Legion of Mary, which she established, with the permission of the Maronite Bishop, at St. Michael’s Church in Tripoli. She coordinated annual pilgrimages to the various ancient Christian Churches and Monasteries located all across Lebanon. Despite many offers of marriage, it was an olive farmer from North Lebanon – Jacob Ghosn who ultimately captured her heart, and they were married in Tripoli on October 27, 1964. Wadad arrived as a new bride in Canada in February 1965, and since then was an active member of the Lebanese Community in Halifax. She was a hard working lady – both inside and outside of the home, raising her three children, assisting her husband in running a general store for approximately 17 years on Rockingstone Road in Halifax, and later working in the Dietary Department of the Victoria General Hospital, known by her co-workers as “Betty”. Wadad was a member of the Confraternity of Our Lady of Lebanon Church in Halifax, and was also a member of the Catholic Women’s League of Canada (CWL) at St. Teresa’s Roman Catholic Church on North Street. She will be remembered most for her faith and kindness towards others, for her sparkling smile and very social nature, her ability to make new friends of all ages, and to opening her home in such a way that new friends would soon call her “mother” or “sister” or “grandma”. She will be dearly missed by her many friends and her family, including nieces and nephews in Ottawa, Washington DC, Abu Dhabi, and Lebanon. Visitation will be held 2-4 p.m. and 7-9 p.m. Sunday at Cruikshanks Funeral Home, 2666 Windsor Street, Halifax. Funeral service will be held at Our Lady of Lebanon Church, Joseph Howe Drive, Halifax, Monday at 11:00 a.m. Interment will take place in Diman, North Lebanon. Family flowers only. The family is very grateful to the supporting community of friends and the nurses of unit 4.1 at the QEII for their kindness in caring for Mrs. Ghosn during the final days of her life.