Eula Raymond

RAYMOND, Eula Gloria, died peacefully on July 6, 2023 in Halifax. Born in Watt Section, NS in 1926, she was the daughter of the late Howard and Eldora Verge. Eula was predeceased by the love of her life, her husband Phil, who passed away in 2013. She is survived by her sons Paul (Diane), Andy (Carmel), and John, all of Halifax; her daughters, Jane (Kimron Shapiro), of Birmingham, UK, and Mary Preston (Keith), of Halifax; by her grandchildren Phil Raymond, Danielle Sanford (Richard), and Nick Raymond (Kate Shepherd), Duncan Raymond (Jessica Hutchings), Madeline Darby (Dylan), Emily Blyan (Deon), and Heather Hunter (Cal), Abi Shapiro (John O’Shea) and Eric Shapiro (Katie Stratford), Matthew Preston, Andrew Preston (Diane Poole), Laura Preston, and Scott Preston (Caroline Anderson); and by three great-grandchildren. She was predeceased by her brothers Maurice and Elmo and her sisters Edith, Vera, and Gladys.

Eula grew up attending a one-room schoolhouse in Watt Section before moving during the war years to Halifax and living with her sister Edie’s family while attending Queen Elizabeth High School and then Dalhousie University, where she joined Alpha Gama Delta and graduated with a BA in 1948. At Dal, Eula met Phil, and after a Sadie Hawkins dance to which a girl asked a boy, Eula and Phil were a couple forever. They were married in 1950, moved to Montreal, and raised four children there before returning to Halifax in 1963. Then things got busy. John was born, Eula worked part-time at Kings College, Phil acquired full ownership of Scotia Equipment which became Parts for Trucks, and Eula joined him at the company as it began a period of rapid growth. Those busy years filled albums with photos of travel, social events, and family gatherings. Together, Phil and Eula were active members of All Saints Cathedral and Armdale Yacht Club and were long-time advocates for the intellectually disabled. After retiring from work, Eula gave extra time to her role as grandparent. She and Phil were blessed with 13 grandchildren, who called her “Doody”, a nickname first given by her niece Sharon. At her home in the city or the cottage in Seabright or by phone and email across time zones, Doody was always present in her grandchildren’s lives.

Eula kept active, kept learning, kept ready to lend an ear. She had a special ability to connect with people of all generations and backgrounds, and her example of patience, kindness, and selflessness inspired all around her. For the people in her family, including the families of her nieces and nephews, and the friends she treated as family, that inspiration will live on.

Cremation has taken place. Visitation will take place Friday, July 14th, 2-4 PM and 7-9 PM at J.A. Snow Funeral Home, 339 Lacewood Drive, Halifax. Funeral service will be held Saturday, July 15th, 11 AM at the Cathedral Church of All Saints, 1340 Martello Street, Halifax. A private family interment will take place in St. Andrew’s Anglican Cemetery, Watt Section.

Eula was never too busy to share a smile or a greeting, and her family wishes to thank the staff of her residence of Summer Gardens and the staff of Sobeys on Queen Street for sharing their smiles and greetings with her. In lieu of flowers, memorial donations may be made to Prescott Centre, 3430 Prescott Street, Halifax N.S. B3K 4Y4