Winnifred "Dot" May Ursaki

Dot was raised in London, Ontario. There were 5 in her family: her parents, Henry and Agnes (Hobbs) Baker, an older sister Vera, then her brother Henry and finally Dot who was the baby of the family.

Even though her name was Winnifred May she was called Dot all her life. When she was a baby her sister nicknamed her “Dottie Dimples” after a comic character in the newspaper. When she was around ten Dottie was shortened to Dot and so she remained.

The Canadian Girl Guides played an important role in her young teeen life. She joined the Guide Troop at the Salvation Army in London and met girls such as Lil Hoe who would remain life long friends. She especially enjoyed the hiking and camping. After Guides she carried on as a Ranger into her late teens.

Dot went to H. Beal Technical School in London and completed Grade 10. Her goal was to become an interior designer. But at age 16 in 1932 she had to quit school in order to go to work to help support her family. The fact that her father suffered from health problems and the depression made life especially difficult for her family.

Her two favorite sporting activities were swimming and tennis. When she and her friends went to Guide camp they would swim long distance out to an island off shore and back. She had a very elegant and efficient side stroke that ate up the distance. London in the twenties and thirties had free tennis courts in the city parks. So she and her friends were able to become quite proficient at the game. As a teenager I played tennis against her but rarely beat her, much to my chagrin.

Dot was a very good seamstress. As a child she learned to sew from her mother. As she grew older she used those skills to make her own stylish clothes. Sewing was a great creative outlet for her design and fashion abilities. After she married George she continued to make her own clothes as well as those of her two daughters.

It was at Guides that she met George Ursaki her future husband. He and two other friends would come over to the Guide meeting on their Bicycles to see what the girls were up to. The girls thought they were a bunch

of smart alec’s.

Married Life

On May 10, 1941 Dot married George Ludwig Large Ursaki in London Ontario. The ceremony was performed by Col. Edgaer Hoe of the Salvation Army.

Married life began for them in a duplex on Thornton Ave. in North London. George worked for Somervilles a box and packaging company. He couldn’t sign up for the army as he had a bad arm so he joined the Thames Vally Reserves. Dot set about making a good home for the two them.

Thay had two daughters, Lynda born in 1942 and Dale born in1947. With Dale’s birth a larger house was needed. A friend who was a builder said he could build a house for them on a lot he had on Wortley Rd S. just outside the city limits that they could afford. So they had the excitement of designing and building a two storey, 3 bedroom house with screened-in porch. That screened in porch would be a feature of all their future homes.

Dot became invoved with the London Chapter of the I.O.D.E. She thoroughly enjoyed their commmunity activities. Each year they put on a ball to raise money for local causes. Her organizational expertise was put to the test the year she was chairwoman of the ball. From all reports it was a resounding success.

The Move to Port Credit

In 1953 George was offered an excellent Sales Manager job in Toronto with Continental Can Company. It must have been a wrenching decision for Dot as she had lived in London all her life, all her family were there. However it was a great opprotunity for George. In June 1953 the family packed up and moved to Radley Rd. in Port Credit.

While George commmuted to New Toronto each day Dot looked after running the house etc. She became a parent volunteer with the Brownie and then the Guide company her daughters belong to. Dot and George joined First United Church in Port Credit. Over the fifty two years she was a member she participated in

most activities. I think though she will probably best be remembered as the BEAN Lady. She and her friends spent many hours purchasing, packaging and selling beans for bean soup. In doing so they raised

quite a bit of money for the church.

Applewood Landmark

In 1977, Dot’s life took a radical turn. George passed away suddenly at the young age of 60 from an aneurism. After several months she decided to carry on with the plans they had made together. She sold the house in Mississauga and continued with the purchase of a condiminium in Applewood Landmark.

The 29 years she spent there were filled with family, and friends. She had 5 grandchildren. Lynda and Bill Schneider had Jayne, Michael and Lesli while Dale and Danny Bowers had Rob and Sheri. She was always there for them when they needed her (or a place to stay for a few months). As well she had 5 great grandchildren: Hope, Madelyn and Andrew Schneider, and Aidan and Griffen Bowers.

Dot also had many friends in the building. They would get together for dinners, to go to the theatre together, go out for lunch. As well she was a volunteer at Queensway hospital for over 20 years.

Dot and George had beeen going to travel the world. And so with some of her friends she did just that. China, Australia, New Zealand, Hong Kong, Thailand, Great Britain, Norway, Europe, Panama Canal – each trip recorded in her travel diaries and in her photographs.

In 2006, Dot made the decision that it was time to move into a retirement home. She had broken her hip the year before and at the age of ninety felt that she needed the security of retirement living with the assisted care option available when she would need it. Towards the end of her long life she had severe arthritis and it was difficult and painful to move around. Her body may have been failing but there was nothing wrong with her mind. She was still keeping her financial journal up to date and balancing her cheque book up to November. On Friday morning January 10, 2014 she quietly passed away in her sleep