Margaret "Mickey" Kathleen (McLellan) Dingley

Margaret was born and raised in the Sydney area of Cape Breton. She was predeceased by her parents, John William MacLellan and Gladys Greenwell MacLellan, sister Elizabeth Hoenan and brother Hugh. She is survived by her sister-in-law Alice McLellan of Falls Church Virginia; nieces Margaret McLellan (Ali Mohamed) of Silver Spring Maryland, Ann McLellan Holton (John Holton) of Whidbey Island Washington; Catherine McLellan (Luke Whitesell) of Toronto Ontario, nephew James McLellan of Phoenix Arizona, great nephews Hakeem Mohamed of Boulder Colorado and Alex Mohamed of Boston Massachusetts, and godchildren Janet Fotheringham of London Ontario and David B Smith (Danuta Woronowicz) of Edmonton Alberta, and numerous cousins.

A bout of tuberculosis as a schoolgirl left Margaret grateful for the good health she was to experience for the rest of her long and full life. After completing high school at Edgehill School for Girls, Margaret eschewed university and worked in various clerical and secretarial positions in Montreal and Victoria, and eventually settled in Toronto. Her 1950 marriage to dashing Scottish sea Captain John Dingley ended in divorce in 1960. Margaret then returned to the Maritimes, settling in Halifax in the late 1960’s, and found her niche when she became editor of the publications unit of Dalhousie University’s Institute for Public Affairs in the mid 1960’s, a post she held through the Institute’s glory years of the Africville study up until her retirement in the mid-1980’s.

Margaret was one of those people who could have done – and did, excellently - just about anything she wanted. Her enquiring mind gravitated not only to thoughtful interest in politics, economics, literature and the arts but also to leisure pursuits in home and auto repair, needlecraft, gardening and her beloved word and number games.

She enjoyed many lifelong friends of all ages and métiers in Canada and beyond its borders. In retirement she travelled the world with friends, enjoyed the symphony, her reading club, tai chi, swimming at the Wagwoltic, volunteering at Spencer House, and attending Maritime cultural events. She loved to walk , continuing to trek up to five miles at least a few times a week well into her early nineties.

Our unique and fiercely independent Mickey Dingley is already missed by those of us who called her aunt, sister, godmother – and dear friend.

In lieu of flowers, donations can be made to Spencer House Seniors Centre, Cove Guest House (Sydney Cape Breton), Hope Cottage, Neptune Theatre, Phoenix Youth Foundation, the NS Lung Association or a charity of the donor’s choice.

Family and friends are holding an informal Zoom session to remember Margaret on Sunday, January 31 at 2:00 pm Atlantic Standard Time. Anyone interested in participating should contact [email protected] to get an invitation and the link.