Mary Anne Garland

March 1, 1937 – July 29, 2026

Mary Anne Garland, age 89, died peacefully on Wednesday, July 29, 2026, at Sunnybrook Health Sciences Centre. Known to everyone simply as Anne, she was born in Hastings, England, to William and Ninon Strickland, and grew up alongside her brother, John.

Anne trained as a nurse at St. Bartholomew's Hospital in London. She married Graham Duncan, and the two moved to Canada, where they adopted their sons, Robert and James. Following their divorce, she met and married the Rev. Canon James "Jim" Garland, whose adopted son, Jeff, she took as her own. She was also especially close to her granddaughter Kearyn, whom she loved as a daughter and who cared for Anne devotedly in her later years.

She spent more than twenty years of her nursing career in oncology at the Odette Cancer Centre at Sunnybrook. Involved in many initiatives there, she was instrumental in developing the TRAPP clinic, a respiratory program in which she would later be a patient herself. She was called back to work several times after her first retirement, a testament to the calm and reliable leadership and patience she offered to all her colleagues and patients.

Anne remained active in her community well into retirement, particularly in the West Rouge area of Scarborough, where she joined the community association and took part in the life of the local parish and crafting group at St. Dunstan's. She was an enthusiastic gardener and a lifelong crafter, knitting, quilting, and sewing. She loved a good book (Louise Penny above all), classical music playing in the background from 96.3 FM, and getting together with the “Ladies Who Lunch.”

The family wishes to thank the friends who surrounded Anne in her final years and whose companionship meant more to her than they knew.

Anne is survived by her husband, Jim Garland; by her children, Jeffrey Garland (Louella Burchat), Robert Duncan (Katie Duncan), and James Duncan; and by her grandchildren, Kearyn Vos, Michael Vos, Christopher Vos, Elizabeth Garland, Austin Hauser, Drew Duncan, Beau Duncan, Alexandria Hauser, Natalie Duncan, Julian Duncan, and Kennedy Duncan. She is also survived by her younger brother, John Strickland (Anthea). She was preceded in death by her parents, William and Ninon Strickland.

A Service of Remembrance will be held on Saturday, August 8, 2026, at 11:00 a.m. at St. Margaret in-the-Pines Anglican Church, 4130 Lawrence Avenue East, Toronto, Ontario. A Committal will follow at the same location at 12:00 p.m., with a reception to follow. All are welcome.

In lieu of flowers, the family asks that donations be made in Anne's name to the Sunnybrook Foundation in support of the Odette Cancer Centre or the St. Bartholomew's Hospital League of Nurses.

Arrangements have been entrusted to the care of Giffen-Mack Funeral Home & Cremation Centre, West Hill.