Mary POAPST

POAPST, Mary Elizabeth (nee Scott), PHD Dr. Mary Elizabeth Poapst, devoted wife, mother, family member and friend died March 31, 2018 at Kensington Gardens Nursing Home in Toronto. She was 91. Daughter of the Rev. R.B.Y. Scott and Kathleen Scott (Cordingley), Mary was born in Toronto and raised in Montreal. In 1948 she earned a B.Sc. degree from McGill University where she met her husband, the late Jamie Poapst. The two were married in 1949 and moved to Ottawa the following year where sons Jim and Geoff were born. In 1956 the couple moved to Toronto with Jamie's appointment to the Rotman School of Management. There they completed their family with the arrival of daughter Penny. With Toronto as her principal residence thereafter, Mary and her family enjoyed a memorable year in Woking, England in 1963/1964. A forerunner of her time, Mary returned to school at the University of Toronto in her mid 40s. Specializing in endocrinology, she earned an M.Sc. in 1973 and a Ph.D. a decade later. Through the 1980s and into the 1990s, Mary taught at the University of Toronto Faculty of Medicine where, as a Research Associate under the leadership of Dr. George Steiner, she helped break important ground in arterial sclerosis and lipid research and presented papers at conferences in Canada, the US and Europe. In anticipation of retirement, Mary and Jamie built a country home in Georgeville, QC on property that Mary's father had purchased at the outset of WW II. For Mary, "Georgeville" was the sentimental family home it was the ever-lasting meeting place for her entire family as well as for many friends who shared her Montreal roots. To Mary's delight, her brothers John M. Scott and Gavin Scott (deceased 2008) also became residents of Georgeville following their respective retirements. Mary will be remembered by the many friends and colleagues she welcomed and entertained at her home. To her broader family, she was the centre of joyous occasions and the leading light in times of difficulty. To those who knew her well, she provided a gift of unsurpassed loyalty, kindness and wisdom. Mary leaves her children Jim (Nancy), Toronto, Geoff (Kathryn May), Ottawa and Penny, Toronto, her granddaughters Andrea, Los Angeles and Lucy, Ottawa as well as her brother John (Janet) and sister-in law Nancy Drury, both of Georgeville. The family wishes to thank Connie (Concordia Bolingot) for her devotion and loving care of Mary for many years and the wonderful staff at Kensington Gardens Nursing Home. A special thanks to Julianna whose care and love were a great comfort to all of us during Mary's years at Kensington. A memorial service to celebrate Mary's and Jamie's lives will be held this summer in Georgeville, Quebec. If desired, donations in Mary's honour to the Alzheimer Society of Canada or a charity of your choice would be appreciated by the family. Condolences may be forwarded through morleybedford.ca