Elizabeth "Betty" Jean McGrath (née Brunne)

Betty was the beloved wife of the late Smith McGrath, a loving mother to Brian (Grace) and Stephen (Marjorie), and a cherished grandmother to Katherine, Kevin, Alecia, Jonathan, Carrie, Allan, and Corinne.

She was so proud of her great-grandchildren: Serena, Cara, Matthew, Meredith, Ethan, Carter, Owen, Violet-Mae, Hudson, and Ronan. Betty’s family brought her so much joy. She delighted in watching them grow, celebrated their achievements, and tried to keep up with all the details of their lives and adventures.

Betty loved to tell stories, sharing photos and memories with anyone who took the time to listen. Even when a familiar story had been told many times before, she would bring it to life with the same warmth and joy.

Some of her happiest stories were of her family adventures in Madeira Beach, Florida: one of her favourite places on earth. Over the years, many family trips were filled with collecting seashells, watching dolphins, building sandcastles, visiting Disney World, and simply enjoying being together. These are memories that her family will treasure for years to come.

Betty had a gentle kindness that extended to everyone she met. She was often found offering a candy, a cookie, or an extra special McGrath Tart to show that she cared.

In her later years living at Bethany Courts, Betty was blessed with wonderful neighbours who became dear friends, as well as many nurses and personal support workers who cared for her with great compassion. Betty was so grateful for the kindness shown to her and would often describe those individuals as being “like God with skin on”: people who showed God’s love in a tangible way. Her family is deeply grateful for all of these special friends.

At the end of her many visits with family, Betty would often say, “I love you—all of you.” Those words were meant for the whole family. No matter who she was saying goodbye to, she wanted her love to reach everyone, reminding us that each and every one held a special place in her heart.

Betty leaves behind a beautiful legacy of faith, love, kindness, and devotion to family. Her gentle spirit, ready laughter, treasured stories, and the many little ways she showed her love will be deeply missed, but will live on in the generations of family she leaves behind.

As her great-grandson Ronan so perfectly put it:

“We love you more than ever, plus extra extra extra.”

In lieu of flowers, friends are requested to make a donation to the Sunnybrook Foundation or Gospel Trust Canada in memory of Betty McGrath at the following link: https://www.gospeltrust.ca/worker/unlisted-worker/ and follow the instructions for "In Memoriam".

If an e-transfer is your preferred method of donating, please send your e-transfer to [email protected], indicating in the Message section that the donation is in memory of Betty McGrath. When considering your challenge question, please ensure that the password on the e-transfer is: McGrath (Capital M, capital G, no spaces, no punctuation.)