Margaret Florence McKee Marshall

      Margaret Florence Marshall was a modest woman, quiet and observant in her ways. She was trustworthy and traditional in her approach to her life and in her relationships. She was tough-minded with the kind of “stick to it” attitude that earned the respect of all who knew her. She was also a woman who was meticulous, carefully disciplined, and orderly in virtually everything she undertook. Realistic about life, she was always at the ready, prepared to take on responsibility.

      Flo was born on September 1, 1934 at home in Nicholson, Ontario. Her parents were Della & John McKee. Flo was raised in Nicholson, Ontario. She was brought up to be self-confident and dependable. These were traits that would serve her well throughout her life.

      Growing up in the McKee household was a bit different than most homes. There were good times to be had, but just as often there was a fair share of challenges as well. However, Flo was able to work through the usual family problems when they appeared, and she was the one person in the family who seemed able to keep the stress at bay. Flo was raised with seven siblings. She had 4 older brothers, Douglas, James, Lorne & Victor, 2 younger brothers, Wallsie & Stanley & 1 younger sister, Mabel. Flo was constantly involved in activities with her brothers and sister. Flo and her siblings may have had the typical rivalries while growing up but Flo was always consistently loyal to her family.

      As a young child, Flo was never someone who needed to be the center of attention. She wasn’t pushy and never forced her way into games or other activities. Flo developed a variety of interests, though, and the things she enjoyed doing she did well. She was always curious about the world around her and was often eager to explore it. Flo took part in playing baseball with her brothers and her cousins. In her spare time she liked reading and listening to the radio. However, what Flo enjoyed most was simply playing and spending time with her many family members and friends.

      While her teachers and even her friends generally thought of Flo as being a serious person, she managed to have a pretty good time in school as she made that critical transition from childhood to adolescence to adulthood. She never had the opportunity to attend high school as she would have to leave her home in Nicholson where her parents needed her to help them with her younger siblings, as they were away a lot trapping and hunting for their livelihood. In addition, they could not afford for her to attend the closest high school, as it was in Chapleau, Ontario. Flo was a very logical person who enjoyed learning about factual information. Using her exceptional memory, she was able to learn much through observation. Flo always seemed to have a command of the facts and was able to make it seem as though she could easily master any problem that might be presented to her.

      College life brought with it a new set of challenges, but Flo handled them well. Being a critical thinker who always remained intellectually independent, Flo was able to focus on the task at hand in order to complete her class work. She seemed to thrive on college reading assignments, something that often bogged down her classmates. Flo was able to read the material and retain the information in a way that impressed her fellow classmates. The ability to efficiently complete the task at hand was a skill that served Flo well during her college experience. She earned her Certified Nursing Assistant Degree in 1961 from the Sudbury Scool of Nursing. She also pursued graduate school, earning her Emergency Medical Care Attendant Degree from Sault College in Elliott Lake, Ontario. in 1979. With her degree in Emergency Medical Care, she became one of the first female ambulance attendants in Northern Ontario.

      Always considered to be a solid friend, Flo was fortunate to have numerous acquaintances and several very close friends during her life. Since she disliked making generalizations about people and preferred to draw her own conclusions based on direct observation, Flo was able to see beneath the surface of relationships and became a true friend to those who knew her. She was committed to her friends and valued the trust she placed in them. It was not uncommon for Flo to go beyond the call of duty for others, and friends frequently sought her out for advice because she had a knack for coming up with practical solutions to any type of dilemma. While growing up, some of her best friends were her cousins Lily and Jeanie Jacobs. Later in life, she became friends with Dorothy Racicot, Leona Boyer, Evelyn Leblanc and Cathy Bashaw.

       Flo married her 1st husband Marcel Cloutier in a civil ceremony in Chapleau, Ontario in 1955, her second marriage in 1967 to Dan Marshall, also in a civil ceremomy took place in Sudbury, Ont. Compassionate and devoted, Flo held endearing, traditional values about marriage and family life. She took the responsibility of marriage to heart, giving it her total commitment. She was a source of strength to both Marcel Dan and using her gifts at nurturing one-on-one relationships, she worked hard to make her new family happy.

      Flo brought the same traditional values in her marriage to bear on how she raised her children. She was a good parent to them, always firm yet fair in her dealings. She would always listen carefully and think things through before she acted, even when it was an adverse situation. Flo was also a walking schedule, always seeming to know what everyone in the family needed to do, where they needed to be and when they needed to be there. Flo was blessed with three daughters, Colleen, Audrey and Helen. She was also blessed with seven grandchildren, Heather, Sean, John, Melissa, Aaron, Megan & Kelsey and three great grandchildren, Tyler, Katelynn and Billie.

      Flo greatly enjoyed what she did for a living. She was a hard worker who expected the same in return from her co-workers. She was skilled at working effectively in small groups and in one-on-one situations as well as handling solo assignments efficiently. Flo enjoyed dealing with concrete ideas and could penetrate any amount of fuzzy information to reach the essential facts. Always able to attend to the task at hand, Flo was excellent at meeting deadlines. She was an efficient worker, one who paid careful attention to detail, allowing sufficient time to complete one task before moving on to the next. Her primary occupation was a nurse and an ambulance attendant. She was employed for over 30 years at St. Joseph's Hospital in Blind River, Ont. Flo worked hard to be a team player, doing what was necessary in order to get the job done.

      Flo liked to experience things first-hand as well as learn about them. This trait carried over into her hobbies, where she was very methodical in how she organized her activities and categorized things. Since she enjoyed her private time, Flo always tried to allocate a specific time for working on her hobbies. Her favorite pursuits were playing bingo & cards. Flo was content to enjoy her hobbies alone but was also willing to share her interests with others.

      Flo found pleasure in sports. Being a person who was comfortable making win/lose decisions throughout life, she could appreciate that athletes made those types of decisions in sports. She applauded those who won, and she enjoyed the statistical data and sports facts and could find herself wrapped up in those details. She would watch her favorite sporting events whenever she got the opportunity. Tops on her list were Toronto Blue Jays' baseball.

      Flo enjoyed traveling and taking vacations. Since she was an early starter and had a knack for planning everything, traveling with Flo appeared effortless. She enjoyed researching all of her examined options and applying cost-effective planning techniques. Plus, no matter where she traveled, Flo always had a back up plan at the ready, just in case. Favorite vacations included visiting family & friends and her memorable trip to Las Vegas.

      When Flo’s retirement finally arrived in 1994, she was well prepared. She always trusted and placed value in what was logical and in the things she knew, so she was very confident in planning her retirement. She had begun the process early and had her retirement all laid out well in advance. Her new life involved relocating to Windsor, Ontario. In retirement, she found new pleasure in continuing to play bingo and cards. Even in retirement, Flo continued to stay in touch with her old friends while making plenty of new acquaintances. She was active in her new community and felt fulfilled.

      Margaret Florence Marshall passed away on November 26, 2008 at Malden Park Continuing Care Centre in Windsor, Ont. Flo fought a brave battle with cancer. She is survived by her 3 daughters Colloeen, Audrey and Helen, her grandchildren, Heather, Sean, John, Melissa, Aaron, Megan & Kelsey, her great grandchildren, Tyler, Katelynn & Billie. A Memorial Service was held at the Menard Funeral Home in Blind River, Ontario. Flo was laid to rest in Chapleau Cemetery in Chapleau, Ontario.

      Commitment is a key word that can be used to describe the life of Margaret Florence Marshall, "Flo" to those closest to her. She was committed to living the life of a good woman who was both practical and trustworthy. She was committed to the traditional values that she upheld her entire life. She committed herself to being a hard worker who expected the same effort in return from those around her. Most of all, she was committed to those she knew and loved.