Kathleen B Mamelka

Kathleen Byrom (Bromley) Mamelka was born on April 21, 1924 in Bolton, Lancashire, England and died on Dec. 8, 2016. She was raised in nearby Ashton, Preston, Lancashire by Edgar Thornhill Bromley and Phyllis (Rawsthorne) Bromley.

Her loving sister Susan (David) Foulkes of Chester, England and family will miss her greatly. She was predeceased by her brother David (Phyllis) Bromley in Kendal, England and her sister Jean (Lothar) Weber in Rodney, Ontario. Brother-in-law Lothar Weber will miss their telephone conversations and cross-border visits. Her cousins Richard (Mary) Horrocks and Susan (Graeme) Horrocks and families in England will remember her family stories with a smile.

Kathleen nursed wounded World War II soldiers in Middlesex Hospital in London, England. She survived Hitler's Blitzkrieg bombing of London in 1940-41. She met and married George Mamelka (a Polish soldier) in England after the war, had their first child, Paul, and then came to Canada in 1952 on the Empress of Canada ship. They raised 9 children in Oshawa, Ontario, Canada. She maintained her nursing career during that time, occasionally working part-time at the Oshawa General Hospital. In 1972 they moved 7 of their family to St. Clair Shores, Michigan where Kathleen lived for 44 years until her death on Dec. 8, 2016. George predeceased her in August 2003. His relatives in Poland, brothers Janusz (Urszula) Mamelka and Girard (Basia) Mamelka and many nieces, nephews and cousins will miss Kathleen."

Kathleen had an inquisitive mind and pursued knowledge all her life. She loved to read books on every topic imaginable, but had a particular fondness for mysteries, especially by authors such as Agatha Christie, P.D. James, and Dorothy Sayers. Among her favorite TV shows were "Columbo", "Murder She Wrote" starring Angela Lansbury, and Masterpiece Theatre. She also enjoyed music, particularly classical music and opera, and playing the piano. She could discuss history, politics and the arts for hours, and had an encyclopedic knowledge of old films, BBC dramas and the theatre, Shaw and Shakespeare in particular. With her love of language, she was unbeatable at Scrabble, and enjoyed games of all kinds, which were the highlight of many family gatherings. She taught her children the joys of intellectual curiosity and independent thinking, and encouraged them to follow their dreams wherever they led, even if that sometimes took them to faraway places. "It just gives me an excuse to travel to visit them!" she'd say.

Her 9 children and their families are globally dispersed and will dearly miss her wisdom, advice, loving support and strength of character. Paul (Charlene Blohm), Barbara Stead (Bill Parish), Susan (George) Vella, Mary (David) Guinane, David, Jane (Tom) Nevin, Patricia, John (Terri Soon) and Peter (Colleen) will share fond memories and stories she told with everyone.

She has 14 adoring grandchildren - Jessica (Parish) Bland, David and Alexandra Vella, Brittany Guinane (Blake) Epperson, Devon and Nathan Guinane, Mike (Amanda Dow) Nevin, Tom (MaryAnn Hicks) Nevin, Anjuli and Adam (Heather Beaty) Flamer-Caldera (Patricia's), Lauren (Jeff Gomez), Angela, Anthony and Arianna Mamelka (Peter's family) as well as 4 great-grandchildren, Shane and Chase Dow, Evangeline and Abigail Bland.

Her nieces and nephews Helen Bromley, Hilary ( Bromley) Stephenson, Maggie (Bromley) & Phil King, Stephen & Alex Foulkes, David & Jane Foulkes, Philip Weber & Daphne Symeonides and families will all miss their Auntie Kathleen.

Kathleen's body has been cremated and the family plans to hold a "Celebration of Her Life" in early 2017, followed by a memorial in October 2017.

In her memory, please donate to your favourite medical or environmental research foundation to aid future generations.