Mary Ann O'CONNELL

O'CONNELL, Mary Ann (nee McCLOSKEY) 1940 - 2017 On Thursday, August the 3rd, after a life of service and caring for others, Mary Ann has returned to God. She was a compassionate wife, mother, grandmother, sister, nurse and friend. She was loved and respected by everyone who knew her. As a devout Roman Catholic, she made a difference in this world. She married Fergus O'Connell in 1965 and they recently celebrated their 51st anniversary, a true testament to their love and commitment. She embraced motherhood with the arrival of their son Mark. Her wisdom was passed to her daughter-in-law, Tara, and her two grandsons, Matthew and Ryan allowed her the joys of being a grandmother. Mary Ann was the eldest daughter of Michael L. McCloskey and Mary Irene Markham and she grew up in the small farming community of Maidstone, Ontario with her brother Michael and sisters Agnes, Catherine and Barbara and enjoyed a close relationship with them all. After the family moved to Toronto, she attended Loretto Abbey, graduated as an R.N. from St. Michael's Hospital and went on to acquire a Diploma in Public Health from the University of Western Ontario. She then began a lifelong career of service to the sick and elderly. She was with the St. Elizabeth Visiting Nurses, The Victorian Order of Nurses in Montreal and made her greatest contribution working in Home Care Discharge Planning at St. Michaels and many of the downtown Toronto Hospitals. As the big sister her focus expanded to include all sixteen nieces and nephews in the extended family. She will forever be remembered for sending a birthday card each year; for baking all the dessert for every family gathering and for organizing both the singing of Happy Birthday and the family group photos of us being together. The cottage was Mary Ann and Ferg's go-to place for more than 30 years. It was the location for numerous anniversaries, reunions, birthdays and quiet weekends just catching up with family and friends. Everyone has a favourite cottage story centred on the hospitality and fun they experienced there. Mary Ann had many wonderful friends that she met with on a regular basis. Her friends from Loretto and nursing school became as close as sisters to her. She was part of numerous bridge clubs, travel ski groups, a beach-walking group and had a love for the theatre and symphony. Together with Ferg she loved to travel and visited friends all over the world. She has made this world a better place in which to live. She is gone from our sight but she will not be forgotten. She has left us an example of how we should love and relate to one another. Let us thank the Lord and be grateful that we knew her. The funeral Mass will be held at St. Gabriel's Passionist Parish on Wednesday, August 9, 2017 at 10:00 a.m. In lieu of flowers, and as Mary Ann would have preferred, a donation can be made to "Sleeping Children Around the World". www.scaw.org