Gail Campbell Klug

In September 1936, Gail was born in South St. Paul, Minnesota, where as a child she lived in a home overlooking the Mississippi River near the stockyards. There she met, and in 1957, married her husband, Michael Klug, who she deeply loved and to whom she was completely devoted until he passed in 2009.

In the 1960s, after attending the University of Minnesota, Gail lived in Manhattan, Kansas and Champaign-Urbana, Illinois with her growing family – the care of whom was the primary work and focus of her life. She immigrated to Nova Scotia in 1968 after Mike accepted a job in the Dalhousie University English Department. That summer, they loaded their four children, some Irish setters and all their possessions in a car and tow-trailer and started their new life to Canada.

In 1970, Gail settled in Wellington, NS where she lived for 45 years. There she created and kept up a charming and tidy home on a beautiful property. With her characteristic composure, gentle compassion, generosity and diligence, she selflessly organized a hectic family life. She did so with humor, engaging conversation and the encouragement of others, that is with love. The home in Wellington – where she often hosted their many close friends for extended comical nights of dinner and drinks – ran on her good food. Gail also worked as a part-time bookkeeper for many years for Cara at the airport, consistent with her prudent but generous approach to matters of finance.

In 2015, Gail moved to Halifax to be closer to her son Matt and his family. Even if at a distance, she always remained at the heart of all her children’s and her brother’s lives. In Halifax, she maintained an active, independent social life, keeping a close eye on AL East baseball, tennis and politics, while appreciating the ample pleasures she found in daily life. She was immensely proud of her eight grandchildren (“the best grandchildren in the entire world” she claimed) and was uplifted with the recent arrival of her first great grandchild. Gail passed content she had lived a blessed life.

Gail was preceded in death by her husband Michael Klug, her brother Frederick Crosby Grant and a grandchild, Noah. She is survived by her children Martin (the late Antonio Saravia), Matt (Andrea Bryson), Ann (Joseph Kenkel) and Michael (Silvia Langer) her grandchildren, John, Hannah, Rose, Ursula, Heidi, Anneliese, Raymond and Lewis, and her great grandchild, Sophie.

A celebration of Gail’s life will take place on May 9, 2026 at 1 p.m. at the Waegwoltic Club, 6549 Coburg Road. In lieu of flowers, please consider a memorial donation to a local food bank, including https://feednovascotia.ca/donate/.