Marion Jean McGregor

Marion Jean McGregor, age 78, passed away peacefully at the Ottawa General Hospital in the company of her family on December 20, 2019 after a long battle with cancer. She was born on June 16, 1941 and grew up on her family's farm just north of Brandon, Manitoba. Later she attended both Brandon University and the University of Manitoba from which she graduated with a Bachelor of Arts Degree in 1963. After graduation she started work at the Selkirk Psychiatric Hospital, beginning what was to be a long career of helping people as a social worker. She returned to university in 1985 to obtain a Bachelor's degree in Social Work from Lakehead University, something she did while working full-time. During her life, Marion lived and worked in many different places in Canada including Brandon, Winnipeg, Thunder Bay, Prince Rupert, Toronto, Victoria and Ottawa. She had deep love for all things Canadian and the great diversity of our country. In fact she began her retirement after many years with the Government of Ontario in 1999 with a coast to coast road trip that took her from Toronto to Newfoundland and back across Canada all the way to Victoria, BC where she settled in for 11 years. In 2010 she moved to Ottawa to be closer to her daughter, son-in-law and grandchildren. In her retirement, Marion was finally able to indulge her interest in travel and made many interesting trips around the world, including Egypt, India, Iceland, Scotland, England and many spots in Europe and the Caribbean. She very much enjoyed making these trips with some of her dear friends and family members. To those who knew her, Marion will be remembered for her strength and independence, her smile and humour, her love of reading, music, travel, family and friends. Since the birth of her grandchildren she took particular joy in watching them grow up and in being a large part of their lives. In this way her presence is and will be sorely missed. Marion is predeceased by her parents Wilfrid and Florence (Turnbull) McGregor of Brandon. She is survived by her daughter Jennifer (Corey), her grandchildren Samantha and Connor and her brother Jim (Elaine). A visitation and funeral service followed by a reception starting at 1 pm will be held on January 8 at McEvoy – Shields Funeral Home, 1411 Hunt Club Rd., Ottawa. Marion will be laid to rest at Beechwood Cemetery in Ottawa in a quiet family ceremony on January 9. In lieu of flowers, donations in her memory may be made to the Canadian Wildlife Federation one of Marion's favorite charities.