Glenda Lorraine Sherwood

Born in Cape Breton to Winnifred (nurse and folk songwriter) and Ronald Protheroe (coal mine timekeeper and jazz piano player), Glenda grew up near Tompkinsville Road as the middle of three sisters (Carol, the oldest and Pam, the youngest). She attended Riverview High School where she met her sweetheart and eventual husband, John Sherwood (although not before he had to prove his devotion by shovelling her mother’s driveway in the winter and painting her house in the summer).

Both Glenda and John moved to Halifax after high school where she trained at the Halifax Childrens' Hospital and received her RN diploma in 1967. She began her nursing career at the Grace Maternity Hospital in Halifax, moving on to neonatal research, rheumatology research, occupational health, and finally geriatric research. Her natural ease with people and genuine curiosity made her perfectly cut out for connecting with families dealing with the harsh realities of later-in-life health crises.

Glenda was a socialite and loved parities, theatre and music. She strummed her way through the 60s on her tenor guitar and even found herself once at a party with Anne Murray on Bland Street in the South end of Halifax. She also loved family and started her own in the 70s, having two children, Alison and Ian, and devoted herself to building a safe, nurturing home and being a role model for them to follow their own paths in life.

Glenda also loved her animals. She and John first adopted a skunk (Archie). When, after a few stressful months of sharing a space with a clever omnivore with thumbs, they decided wisely on a more reasonable species: cats. Over the years, Glenda had many well-loved and pampered felines and enjoyed reminiscing about their crazy misadventures and behaviour. Then, in the 2010s she was thrilled (at first) to have a few wild deer move in to her backyard. However, this relationship became more complicated as they developed a taste for her prized Hydrangeas.

Glenda’s passions in life included baking. Her cakes were highly regarded and she made many for weddings and birthdays over the years. Her blueberry pie was second-to-none and her black bottom cupcakes were a thing of legend. She also loved Christmas and had an entire storage room in her home dedicated to ornaments and decorations. The holidays were a special time for her as they usually brought together what she valued most: family, gatherings, and good food. Throughout December her home was decked-out in the most impressive and tasteful ornamentation and her perfectly trimmed tree was adorned with a mix of decorations that were handmade, gifted and acquired with meaning and purpose.

Glenda’s dedication to her husband and children could only be matched by her love for her grandchildren. Blessed with three (Owen, Winnie and Daphné), she had the entire top row of a 10 foot long bookshelf (made to spec by her husband, John) covered in photos of them over the years. She loved receiving pictures of them swimming and surfing in Hawaii, videos of them performing at music recitals, or a rare picture of the three of them together. She was a proud matriarch and was in her element when schedules and stars aligned to bring everyone together.

Those stars did, in fact, align this past week when Glenda left us. Surrounded by her husband, children, their partners and grandchildren, Glenda spent her final days in her cherished home in Pine Bluff that she and John spent a lifetime making the perfect place for their family. It is with the deepest sadness but also love that we say goodbye to our mother, grandmother and wife. We love you and know you are now at peace.

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Glenda is survived by her husband John, sisters Carol Cunnane (Michael) and Pam Brown (Gary), daughter Alison Sherwood (Gernot), son Ian Sherwood (Geneviève), and grandchildren Owen, Winnie, and Daphné.

A Celebration Of Life will be held in the fall, Glenda’s favourite season.