Gwen Eulogy from Janice's Memorial Feb 21 2019 - broken into 3 posts

Part 1

Thank you for coming today to celebrate my mom’s life.  We know we are not alone in our grief, and we appreciate the thoughts, prayers and support you’ve all provided to us since my mom announced she had cancer. 

She lived a full and busy life.  But there were 3 things she loved to do above all else (not necessarily in order):

(1)	Travel – she traveled with my dad all over the world.  The only continent she didn’t visit was Australia.  She loved to learn and experience each country she visited, always bringing something (or lots of somethings) home from her trips

(2)	Laugh – she had a wonderful sense of humour, always looked at the bright side of life and tried to find joy in everything no matter how mundane.  Many of you experienced her humour and laughter, and you can see her love of laughter in all the photos that we have of her – always smiling and enjoying the moment. 

(3)	Family – She loved her family and it was very important to her.  You always needed an important reason to miss dinner and there were no phone calls taken during the dinner hour- if the phone rang....it automatically went to voicemail.  We did yearly family vacations to Virginia Beach, camping to the west coast and general sightseeing as a family.  Our parents did not have a vacation by themselves until we were teenagers!


(Gwen eulogy part 2)

She taught us that the best things were made not bought – from meals to special occasion outfits to homemade Halloween costumes.  I don’t think I realized stores actually sold Halloween costumes until I was older.  

She taught us to believe in ourselves, always try and never let anyone tell us we couldn’t do something.  And she proved it through actions time and time again:
-	I knew my mom went back to school while still caring for a young family, all while still being there for us at every turn.  
-	I saw her jump at the chance to travel and learn about other countries and cultures
-	I saw her learn another language late in life to be able to better communicate in the country where she lived.

She taught us not to sweat the small stuff. 

•	I still remember when my parents lived in Ottawa, they were repainting and decided they wanted to paint the dining room light yellow.  So they went and bought paint, and my dad started to paint the walls.  Then he had to travel for work, and we went to visit.  The first thing Andrew and I noticed when we walked in the house was the extremely bright yellow half painted wall in the dining room.  When we joked about it, her response was…it could be worse and its just paint.  Its easily fixed.  

•	In university I got a bag of free stuff.  In the bag was a box of hair dye and at the time I wasn’t dying my hair, but my mom was so I gave her the box.  In hindsight, either one of us should have known that a free box of hair dye wasn’t the highest quality…. but we didn’t.  My parents where out on a trip on the boat and my mom decided to dye her hair.  That was her – when she made a decision, she acted on it.  But instead of the rusty brown colour, she ended up with bright pink hair.  This was well before pink hair was common – and she rocked her pink hair until she could get to a salon; not caring about the looks or the stares she got.  We did however not get a picture – she wasn’t that fond of it 😊 


(Gwen eulogy part 3)

She also never hesitated to come help when asked – be it picking kids up from school, babysitting or just making dinner because she thought we’d be tired after work.

She was generous with her time and loved to spend time with her grandkids.  She would always remember what they had coming up and tried to come see every recital, practice or game at least once. She would eagerly wait to hear how they did on a test or a presentation, giving support where needed

I am inspired by my mother’s life and the way she chose to live it. 

Through putting this together, what I came to realize was that not only was she a great teacher, but she was also a fighter.  She stood up for what she believed in, she was always in search of something new to learn, and she did not back down from anyone or anything, much I’m sure to my dad’s chagrin.  

She took on cancer like she did everything else – with focus and with determination, and throughout it she never complained.  Even when it was evident that she was being defeated, my mom remained quiet and true to each task, focusing instead on how we were doing.    

And while she lost this battle, she left a wonderful legacy in her children and grandchildren.  My dad, Myself, Sherry and our families have endless fond memories of our time with her, and her teachings are alive and well within all of us.  

She will be missed.

Dear Hugh and family,

Thinking of you and so sorry for your loss. May your beloved Janice  Rest In Peace.

Ianthi Vayid

OBITUARY

Janice Williams

April 28, 1948 – February 13, 2019

Westmount Memorial Celebration Centre

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