Mrs. Virginia "Ginny" Mae Wood Martin

305 Mugford St. Kelowna, BC V1X 2E5

With fear in her heart and the courage of her lifetime, she left us. A peaceful smile of faith on her face and anticipation in her eyes she drifted away. Her brilliant smile and bright eyes will forever be emblazoned in our memories. A mental photo of her bravery, love and kindness are permanently imprinted on us.

A cancer began to grow in Ginny's pancreas its journey at first undetected. She fought with all her might to overcome the ravages of this insidious invader. Because she fought so hard, she gave her family an extra 17 precious months to spend time together, to laugh, to share, to cry, to be. But alas, a body weakened by time and disease finally succumbed and that is why we are gathered here today.

To have lived well, laughed often and loved much

To have gained the respect of intelligent people and the love of children

To have filled a niche and accomplished a task

To have left the world better and to have appreciated earth's beauty

and not failed to express it

To have looked for the best in others and to have given the best of yourself

THOSE are achievements. That was Ginny's life.

Virginia Mae Martin was a daughter, a sister, a wife, a mother, an aunt, a grandmother, and a friend. She leaves behind her adoring husband of 55 years, Bert, their two daughters Diane and Donna, son's in law Jim and Paul, grandchildren Evan, Colin, Jeff, Ryan, Nigel and Jordona, sister Violet, and all the other nieces. nephews, relatives and friends who loved her. We know that grief only comes in one size – extra large, and we are here to grieve with you. The sharpness of grief that you feel today will diminish over time into something gentler. It is the presence of family and friends that will ease that journey for they are the connection to Ginny's past and the sustainers of life in the future.

My name is Cathy Nesbitt and it is an honor to celebrate the life of this wonderful woman.

We are each a product of the union of two people and Ginny was the child of a couple who did a lot of unioning. George Wood of England married Grace Taylor in Scotland after meeting her in Aberdeen. He had been discharged from the Canadian infantry after first being wounded in France during World War I then spending time recuperating in an Aberdeen hospital. George took work driving a tram car and it was there he met a pretty, young ticket taker. The couple fell in love and married.

With the war over, George wanted to share his love of Canada with his new bride so they sailed to Canada in 1919. They settled first in London, Ontario where the couple's unioning began producing results. In total George and Grace had 11 kids of which our Ginny was the 7th.

The family moved to the small village of Byron, Ontario where they settled on a quarter acre. Violet, Ginny's older sister by a couple of years, took the young one into her care. The sisters developed a strong bond and love for each other – a bond that remained strong to this day. Violet remembers when Ginny started school. Because the Grade one kids were let out earlier than the older children, Ginny had to wait around to be escorted home by Violet. It was Violet's job to ensure that her petite sister was not swept away in the often violent Ontario storms that blew with vengeance into the region. Ginny loved school and excelled. She and Violet were awesome spellers – in part because of their incredible memories and they usually won at spelling contests. (For you young people, there once was a time before computers and spell check!) Ginny took great pride in her penmanship and practiced until her handwriting was perfect.

Ginny was popular in school for she was possessed with an easy charm and kind manner. She played baseball in junior high and loved to roller skate and dance. As she approached high school, sister Violet found Ginny a number of part time jobs. She worked at an amusement park, she cracked eggs destined to become powdered, she worked in a number of stores, and all the money the kids made went to their parent's to help with the mortgage and feeding the vast family.

One job would profoundly affect Ginny's life; that of telephone operator. In those days, all switching of lines was done manually and the operator had to be of a certain size and stature to be able to reach all parts of the switchboard. Ginny didn't meet the height requirement for she was a tiny thing. However she was blessed with unusually long arms so she was able to successfully perform the duties required. Her new job meant a move into London where she shared an apartment with Violet. In 1951 Ginny applied for a position on the switchboard at an air force training centre in St. Thomas. She got the job.

One of the trainees at the school was an ex-army war veteran named Bert. He first “met” Ginny over the phone. He made a point of stopping by the switchboard to put a face to the voice. A friendship blossomed which soon turned into love. Bert would invite the beautiful Ginny to the movies – not because Ginny liked the movies, but because Bert could put his arm around her and they could smooch. Kind and thoughtful, Bert would often bring Ginny lunch, or be waiting to give her a ride home when she worked a late shift. Three or four months into the courtship, Bert made a trip to People's Credit Jewelers and purchased an engagement ring. He brought the ring to the switchboard and presented it. Ginny happily said yes to the proposal.

They married in an empty United church with just the priest and the janitor. After this quiet beginning to married life, they boarded a train bound for Detroit where, amongst other things they shopped for civilian clothes. I'm not sure if that was the highlight of the weekend, but Bert remembers it well for the store clerk mistook Ginny for Bert's sister. He was quick to correct her.

Their first home was in Alymer, Ontario and then Bert was given the option of a transfer to either Clairesholm or Penhold, Alberta. He chose Clairesholm. Ginny soon found work at the small town's post office where she absolutely excelled for she had a brilliant head for geography and that incredible memory. The newly weds were there for about 2 years.

The couple remained in close touch with family. Violet, who was working as a stenographer would sneakily write letters to her sister during company time when the boss wasn't looking. After 2 years in small town Alberta, Bert was transferred to Vancouver. He spent his days transporting officers around the lower mainland and Ginny found work at a dry cleaning plant down the street. They lived in an apartment for $60 a month and spent their free time visiting with Bert's parents who lived in North Van or playing cards with friends. However Ginny hated Vancouver. Too rainy, too big, too urban , too ethnic, too much. She missed home. When Bert's 3 years with the Air Force was up he had the option to sign on for another 5 years or get out all together. Ginny begged him to leave and he did.

The Martin's moved back to Ontario. They thought they would try it on for a while and see how they liked it. After a year, they returned to Calgary.

Finding suitable employment was a problem so back to London again for another year. But Calgary beckoned once more and they finally settled there.

Much to Ginny and Bert's chagrin, they were unable to conceive. Saddened though they were about this, they decided on adoption. Bert wanted a girl, Ginny wanted a boy. What they got were two adorable little girls from the same family. The sweet children were Diane then 4 years old and Donna who was two and a half. Ginny and Bert took instantly to parenthood. According to Bert, he was the softie while Ginny was the tough task master. Tough, maybe but a doting mother. She delighted in dressing the girl's up in identical outfits, she ensured that the kids knew their extensive family, they were always well fed and turned out…and very much loved. Ginny continued to work so the girls spent time with a babysitter who lived across the street. After work Ginny would pick them up and come home to start dinner, which on busy days might be TV dinners on foil trays. Ginny was particular about the house and kept it spic and span and this often involved the help of the entire family.

Wanting Diane to look the part of the perfect little lady for her first day of Grade 1, Ginny dressed her up in a little suit, accessorized with a hat, purse, and red gloves. From an adult perspective, Diane was cuter than a ladybug in sneakers, but from a kid's perspective, this was death by garment. Poor Diane was teased mercilessly. I think Ginny was more casual by the time Donna hit Grade one.

Each weekend started with a traditional Friday evening trip to buy candy. This was in lieu of allowance. Bert would pile the girls into the car no matter the weather and off to the store they went. The store owner was very, very patient as the girls tried to select and reselect which candies they would take home that night. Saturday's routine was to get groceries and then perhaps take a trip over to K-Mart. Sunday's were family days. Ginny would cook a meal of roast beef with Yorkshire pudding. Family chores would get caught up on, The Ed Sullivan Show would be on, homework would be done, and later in the evening, there might be tea and toast.

Ginny discovered the joy of Bingo and she was a master at it. She could play 15 cards at a time and this was back in the day when you placed markers on top of the numbers on your card. She not only kept a quick and careful eye on her own cards, but she knew how the people around her were doing. She often spotted a Bingo before the owner of the card noticed it herself. Ginny and Bert also loved going to the racetrack. Often their daughters would accompany them. Bert would let the girls choose horses to bet on and he would place the bets for them. On one occasion, Donna picked two unlikely horses to win. Bert tried to talk her out of wasting her money on these long shots, but she was adamant. Wouldn't you know it!

Both horses won which resulted in Donna being frightfully wealthy for a time.

With true entrepreneurial leanings, Diane found a way to keep her and Donna amused at the racetrack and make money. She and Donna collected discarded race programs and hung around the entrance doors reselling them. This worked great for a time – until the racing commission caught wind of it and shot the enterprise down.

A good Calgarian supports the local teams and both the Calgary Flames and the Calgary Stampeders could not have had a better fan than Ginny. With her Ontario roots and no baseball team in Calgary, she also supported the Toronto Blue Jays. When her teams were playing she could sometimes get just a LITTLE carried away. Ginny would shout at the TV when refs made bad calls, she would stomp up and down loosening the stucco on the basement ceiling, she lived every second of the game. When her team scored she'd whack poor Bert in her excitement and he had the bruises on his arms to prove it. Any sort of sports memorabilia given to Ginny would ensure that you were in her good books. And her Gray Cup parties? Legendary.

(Hockey Song)

Ginny truly was a domestic goddess in her own right. She liked to knit and sew, and she loved to cook. Her rice pudding was apparently the best in the world. She also made spectacular butter tarts and usually in double batches – some with nuts, some without. Ginny planted an annual garden and took full advantage of the results by canning and freezing the fruits of her labor. She also delighted in planting and tending the flowers that adorned her home each spring and summer. Summers also often saw the family load up the truck and camper and head either east to London, Ontario, or west to Vancouver or Victoria.

Christmas was a magical time in the Martin home. Ginny would decorate the house from stem to stern, she would cook for days, and her invitation for Christmas included anyone and everyone for Ginny believed people should be together during the holiday. Relatives and friends descended upon the Martin household to eat, drink, play games, and make merry.

Bert by now had been employed with the school board for a number of years. Relatives on both sides had moved to and from Calgary with several were now calling Kelowna home. Bert had always wanted apple trees and with the blessing of the school board who promised him a job in Kelowna, the family moved. Everyone was thrilled about the move except Diane who was now in her teens. She had a boyfriend and friends, and the idea of moving to Kelowna was devastating. Her heart broke as she watched the Calgary skyline disappear. Ginny, Bert, and Donna on the other hand, loved Kelowna and all that it had to offer (although as it turned out there was no school board job for Bert after all). However, he set about finding work, and Ginny got employment at the One Hour Martinizing in Rutland.

They purchased a lot and built their dream home. In the late 1970's Ginny applied for and got a job in the laundry department at Kelowna General Hospital and here she found a network of people who were not only coworkers, they became friends. She stayed there for 13 years until she retired at age 62.

It was also in the early 70's when the family took a trip to explore their Scottish roots. This would be the first of at least two trips across the pond to Scotland and England where Ginny and Violet got to see real, living relatives in their native country. And it was because of those strong family connections and reconnections that Ginny was invited to attend the wedding of a previously unknown second cousin in nearby Castlegar.

Bert and Ginny also went to Air Force reunions every couple of years. These events would take them across the country and created wonderful memories, for Ginny was tremendously proud of her husband's military participation.

In the meantime, Diane and Donna had grown up and were making their own lives. Donna married and produced 2 lovely boys, Jeff and Ryan. Bert and Ginny marched happily into grand parenting and lovingly took care of the boys while the parents worked. Supportive of all sporting endeavors, Ginny and Bert were thrilled when the boys excelled at hockey and baseball and they were present at many games.

For Ginny, there truly was nothing better than family. And that included 4 legged family members as well for Bert and Ginny often took charge of their precious grand-dog Niki. Diane started her family later in life and Bert and Ginny were there with open hearts and arms as Evan and Colin came into the world.

God Paint Grandma's Portrait

Let the lines and wrinkles show,

Let the silver halo crown her

For she has gone to rest.

Let your brushes tell the story

Of her patient tender care.

Mingle love with joy and sorrow

Just as life has put her there.

Blend your colors softly Lord,

Face her towards the setting sun

Towards the calm and peaceful valley

From here her task is done.

Can you paint the pathway brighter

Toward the land of endless day?

Where blue forget me nots are blooming

All along the sun lit way.

Call the picture simply “Grandma”

All the world will understand

Homes and hearts are brighter

Because she graced the land.

Diane would introduce her parents to a whole new world of touring when she was employed as the guide on a bus bound for Reno. Taking a winter jaunt to Reno for a little gambling and relaxation became an annual event.

Alas, growing older can have its own cruelties and Ginny was diagnosed with pancreatic cancer 2 years ago. She took it with her usually graciousness becoming more worried about how her beloved husband and the rest of the family would cope.

Virginia Martin took the life she was given and she made the most of every moment. She loved to laugh and her laughter was contagious. She was loud and out-going, the lover of a good practical joke. In her world there were no grays for everything was black or it was white. Even though she was thrifty she was also extremely generous. She had a heart of gold, was a loving wife and conscientious mother. She imparted good values to her children and those around her. Ginny was a hard worker, industrious and felt that if you weren't going to do it right, then don't bother doing it at all! She had the memory of an elephant, she was strong, she was passionate. When you find you are missing her, look at all she has left behind for you for a piece of her lives on within you.

Psalm 23: The Lord is my Shepherd, I shall not want. He makes me to lie down in green pastures, He leads me beside quiet waters. He restores my soul. He guides me in the paths of righteousness for his name's sake. Though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, I fear no evil. For Thou are with me; Thy rod and Thy staff, they comfort me. Thou dost prepare a table before me in the presence of mine enemies; Thou hast anointed my head with oil, My cup overflows. Surely goodness and loving kindness will follow me all the days of my life. And I will dwell in the house of the Lord, for ever. Amen.

Chiam Potok once said “Human beings do not live forever. We live less than the time it takes to blink an eye, if we measure our lives against eternity. So, it may be asked, what value is there to a human life? There is so much pain in the world. What does it mean to have to suffer so much if our lives are nothing more than the blink of an eye?

Potok then paused, his eyes misty now, and went on. “I learned a long time ago, that the blink of an eye in itself is nothing. But the eye that blinks, that is something. A span of life is nothing. But the woman who lives that span, she is something. She can fill that tiny span with meaning, so its quality is immeasurable though its quantity may be insignificant.” Ginny filled her time with meaning for she was an extraordinary lady.

As the Martin children and their families face a year of “firsts” – the first Christmas, the first birthdays, the first anniversary, Ginny's absence will be felt with a fresh sense of loss. In the months to come, be vigilant with the family for your presence can help mitigate their pain. I hope as a family that you keep memories of Ginny alive by reviving her recipes, watching her beloved Calgary Flames as they head into the playoffs, looking at family photo albums, and tell her stories. It is those little things that will keep her in your hearts and minds.

Now we say farewell to this wonderful woman. We wish her a gentle journey.

On behalf of the Martin family, thank you for sharing your time with us today.

(Celine Dion – Good Bye)