Daisy Ida (Brown) Burke

The end of a true pioneer life at 93 years.

Mom was raised in Vermilion Bay, ON, in a 2 storey log home – no running water, no electricity, no indoor plumbing – travel was by dog team and snowshoes in winter and by foot at all other times. Cooking was done on a wood-burning stove which also heated the home, wood cutting was a daily chore.

Mom was the oldest of 5 kids – one girl and 4 boys – Grandma said you wouldn’t know there were 4 boys in the house until Daisy got in the mix – she was a bit of a troublemaker. Daily life was survival – hunting and fishing for meat, picking every kind of edible berry and large gardens grew necessary vegetables to be canned for winter. Mom carried this way of life till the end – she shot her last deer for the dinner table at 84 years old – and did the last canning of her garden produce at 92 years old.

Mom was a nurse trained by the Gray Nuns at St. Boniface Hospital in Winnipeg. She worked in Ingersoll then returned to work in Kenora at St. Joseph’s Hospital. Although she tried to serve in war time, she was half an inch too short – she only reached 4ft 9.5 inches and the cut off was 4ft 10 inches. Mom, having been brought up hunting, would do so to supplement the dinners at the hospital and it was on the return of one such hunting trip that Stan (dad) first saw Daisy. She was walking down Main Street after hunting in Longbow area with her .22 rifle under one arm and a huge rabbit swinging from the other. Stan told his boss he had just seen the woman he was going to marry, carrying one of the biggest rabbits he’d seen – he knew he would never go hungry with her by his side. They were married in 1958 – a true team for over 40 years until Stan’s passing in 2004. She lived on alone and kept their home as she always had - right to the end.

Daisy leaves her memories behind in family – daughter Beverley (Dick), grandsons Adam (Kailee) and Spencer (Alysha); son Steven (Tamara and AJ) and granddaughter Tasha. Very special to Daisy was that she lived long enough to know and love her great grandchildren, Addyson and Lucas.

Mom saw amazing things develop and advance during her life, but she stayed true to her simple roots – family was everything and everything was done with love. She supported neighbours and friends and strangers when needed, in whatever way she could. Sharing of what she had was done without hesitation.

At mom’s request cremation has taken place and a private family gathering will take place a little later. Dad was waiting with mom’s fishing pole baited and they’ve gone fishing.

When you think of Daisy, a smile of remembrance is all she would want. She was a sweet lady with a bit of mischief in her eyes, who walked this earth with true grace and dignity and left it a little better than it was.