MARY ELIZABETH McCREEDY

It is with heavy hearts we announce that on April 25, 2016 Mary Elizabeth McCreedy (nee Roos), age 90, formally of Concordia Village Winnipeg, passed away peacefully while at Concordia Hospital. 

Mary was pre-deceased by her three brothers Eric, Olaf and Bob; two sisters Margareta and Elsie; stepson Blythe (Idie) and first husband William Bishop. She is survived by her husband James Allen McCreedy; son Mark Bishop (Alice) with grandchildren Michelle (Jared), Chantal, Erik, Charles (Shalla), Ashley and Julianne as well as great-grandchildren Sienna, Peyton and Taiya; stepdaughter Wilma Webb of Surrey BC with grandchildren Glenn (Karen), Laurie (Jack) and Sharon (Randy). Mary had a special place in her heart for her extended family of stepson Ken McCreedy (Carol) with grandchildren Jamie (Jackie), Kendra (Mike) and great grandchildren Matt, Dayson, Karson, Kenzie, Ryler; stepdaughter Roslyn Sutley (Glen) with grandchildren Alana (Henry), Nadine, great-grandchildren Emily, Alex, Bradley (Gabbi) as well as great-great-grandchild Juliette. Mary always thought of her niece Lisa Roos as a daughter and loved her very much.

We feel great sorrow in the passing of Mary and yet we have great joy in celebrating her life. We will remember that she lived a full and complete life. Mary had a great love for her family and friends and played an important role in their lives. She especially enjoyed her five plus years at Concordia Village with old and new friends both residents and staff. Whenever Mary’s name would come up invariably the comment would be “what a lovely woman”.  She possessed many good qualities. Mary was caring, compassionate, kind, warm, generous, thoughtful, spirited and affectionate. Yet in this joy there is sorrow that we will never see her again; have her guidance, caring and love; see that beautiful smile; that infectious laugh; or experience that wonderful yet sometimes quirky sense of humour.

Mary was born in 1926, which was one year after her mother and father immigrated to Canada from Sweden. Her mother, Inga Roos was very artistic and was a draughtsman in Sweden while her father was an ironworker originally from Finland. Mary attended Lord Selkirk, Prince Edward and Lord Wolsley schools.

During her first marriage to William Bishop she worked in the family grocery store on Henderson Hwy and later the restaurant on Portage Avenue (Chatterbox Grill). Mary was always interested in taking on new challenges. She took courses on sewing and later began teaching “Stretch and Sew” in Winnipeg and Portage la Prairie. During this endeavor she wrote a book on sewing called Kwik-Knits. Given her artistic flair Mary took courses on pottery and eventually began teaching her own pottery classes. During these years Mary worked as an executive secretary for McLeods and then Manitoba Hydro.

Mary loved a challenge and was not afraid to tackle anything.  Although she was very experienced in different art media she wanted to learn new techniques and was happy taking art lessons at Concordia Village. She also spent many hours using a computer and tablet to send emails and research various topics.

Mary was an excellent and graceful five pin bowler and excelled in league play. She was poetry in motion on the lanes. In her later years she transferred her skills to lawn bowling. Mary was passionate about golf and enjoyed teaching her son the finer aspects of the game. She loved golfing with Al and her friends, especially at Fantasy Lake and Transcona Golf Club. She stated months ago that she was looking forward to golfing this summer. From an early age Mary loved playing cards and especially bridge. Rumor has it that she had shares in “The Shopping Chanel”, “Franklin Mint” and possibly the Club Regent Casino”. Even though Mary was busy with her “shares” she still had time to do crosswords, play bingo, exercise on the Wii game system and participate in Concordia Village activities. Everyone who knew Mary commented on her love of jewelry. To her it was not an accessory but a necessity. Mary loved a good joke and was always sending new ones to friends and family. Although she was fiercely independent and stubborn at times she loved everyone and always tried to make them smile.

Mary enjoyed many good times throughout her life and was the happiest with the love of her life, Allen.

In accordance with Mary's wishes, cremation has taken place. A celebration of Mary’s life will be held at Concordia Village, 1125 Molson Avenue in the Garden Café which joins building I and II, Saturday May 7, 2016, commencing at 1:00 p.m.

Special thanks to Dr. Martin and the staff of Concordia Hospital especially the nurses Cindy, Jillian and Osmond.