Jessica RIDDELL

RIDDELL, Jessica (Jess)
Passed away suddenly and unexpectedly, but peacefully, on June 13, 2012 at the age of 87 at the Wakefield Hospital, a short drive from the cottage home which she greatly cherished, and where she had spent her final day. Beloved and devoted wife of Gordon Riddell for 64 years; beloved mother of David Riddell (deceased), Ros Macdonald and Alan Riddell, and much loved grandmother of Isabel Macdonald and Rachel Macdonald. She is survived by her brother, Richard Lambert. Jess was born in Chelsfield, England on September 17, 1924 and moved to Canada at the age of 13. She attended Barnard College in New York and then received her B.A. in Sociology from the University of Toronto (Trinity College). Jess and Gordon enjoyed a long and exciting career together in the Canadian Foreign Service, serving in Athens, London, Cairo, Senegal and Thailand. On each of these foreign postings, Jess played an indispensable role in assisting Gordon's diplomatic work. She took a keen interest in learning about the local geography, history and culture of those countries and in volunteer work to assist those in need, including most notably the creation, and running, of a medical dispensary for people devoid of proper medical care. After retirement she obtained her M.A. in Counselling from St. Paul's University and then established a small and successful counselling practice, from which she derived great satisfaction and purpose. During this period she also became passionately interested in the work of C.G. Jung, and in the interpretation of dreams as a means to achieve self-understanding. She was firmly committed to what Jung described as the inner journey towards individuation and greater consciousness. For many years, she was an active member of the C. G. Jung Society of Ottawa and founded and ran its library. She was devoted to caring for her family and for her beloved cottage home at Lac St Pierre de Wakefield. Jess threw herself ardently and whole-heartedly into improving and beautifying her cottage home, which she and Gordon constructed 50 years ago, on a beautiful point of land jutting into the lake. She loved to landscape, and to build stone and log terraces, which will long survive her passing. For the past 50 years she laboured enthusiastically to turn that cottage, and its surrounding woodland, into a spiritual haven for her family. It was there, in the place which she most loved, that she happily spent the last few weeks of her life. Friends are invited to visit at the St. Laurent Chapel of Hulse, Playfair & McGarry, 1200 Ogilvie Road (Aviation Parkway), on Friday, June 29th from 12 noon to 2 p.m. and 7 to 9 p.m. A service to celebrate her life will be held in the Chapel on Saturday, June 30th at 2 p.m.