Mary Jane Moreno

MORENO, Mary Jane (Jean) September 22, 1921 - September 27, 2017 Five days after celebrating her 96th birthday with all her family, our Jean, much loved wife, mother, grandmother, and great grandmother, passed away peacefully at home. She is survived by, and will be lovingly remembered forever by, husband Dick, children Margaret (David) Humphries, Pat (Bud) Moreno-Lamb, Richard (Miranti) Moreno, brother Archie Shiel of Scotland, grandchildren Lisa (Helmar) Prael, Martin Humphries, Rick (Ruth) Humphries, Hayley Lamb, Andrew and Cecilia Moreno, great grandchildren Matthias Prael, Sonja Prael, and Rory and Ross Humphries, and many nephews and nieces including Estela (Roberto) Dosil of Vancouver. Born and raised one of seven children in Edinburgh, Scotland, lovely young Jean joined the WAAF during the War. Shortly thereafter, she met future husband Dick in Harrogate at a dance at the Hotel Majestic in 1944. Dick, who had come from Argentina to join the R.A.F, was instantly captivated by the young Scottish lassie. In 1948, Jean went off to Argentina to marry and start the second stage of her adventurous life. Settling outside the town of Bariloche, they raised their three children on a thirty acre lakeside property nestled in the Andes. On Sundays, friends would show up uninvited for Jean's well known afternoon tea and scones; uninvited because Jean had no phone for her twenty years in the Patagonia! Friends just knew that they would be made welcome. Jean had left the modern city life of Edinburgh for a very different life, a life in a world of long ago and far away. Reaching her forties, and with children of high school age, another move seemed in order. In 1968, Jean and family came to Victoria to start another adventure. She founded the Edinburgh Tartan Gift Shop on Government Street and later the Scottish House of Tartans in the Empress Hotel. After retirement, Jean and Dick traveled extensively in Europe, the British Isles, Mexico, South America, and the United States. Her wonderful Sunday dinners for decades were Jean's way of keeping her ever expanding family united. Jean loved her family and in return, was loved back by them all. She was kind, warm, interested, interesting, athletic, and adventurous. She was a lady in every sense of the word and will be sorely missed by all. A service will be held at the Knox Presbyterian Church, 2964 Richmond Road, on Saturday, October 7th, at 1:00 P.M. Reception to follow. In lieu of flowers, please consider a donation in her name to the Heart and Stroke Foundation.