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It is with profound sadness that we must announce the sudden passing of Pat at home on Friday, January 23rd, shortly after her 74th birthday. Beloved wife of Ian Roy Jonasson for over 50 years, she was the loving mother to Kirstin (of Tucson, Arizona), Karina (Peter Schaubs) (of Perth, Australia), Andrew (of Ottawa), and Nicholas (Monika Antczak) (of Melbourne, Australia). She will be greatly missed by her four grandchildren, Sam Jonasson, Ingrid and Jonas Schaubs and Elka Jonasson. Born in the Australian rural town of Yarrawonga on January 7th, 1941, Pat was the second daughter of John James (Jack) Daly and Eileen Patricia (Pat) Corboy. She was preceded in death by her parents and two of her sisters, Mary Seabrook and Angela Beswick. She is survived by her brother, Michael Daly, and her sisters, Jacqueline Henry and Christine McMahon. Her love of family and her never-ending devotion to home were formed by a country upbringing in simpler times. The values that her parents taught her forged a beautifully positive and optimistic perspective on life: compassion for others, stoicism in the face of adversity, and a deep appreciation for the blessings of good fortune that came her way, in whatever form. Pat chose a career in nursing, beginning at St Vincent�s Hospital in Melbourne. Her effortless kindness and generosity of spirit became the hallmarks of a lifetime spent helping others in their times of need, both in Australia and in Ottawa where she made her home from 1969. She touched thousands of lives, professionally as well as personally, and it is a testament to the wonderfully cheerful and unfailingly caring woman that Pat was that she made many, many lifelong friends. Pat and Ian were married in Melbourne in 1964, and later settled with their young family in Ottawa. There she raised four children who knew her to be loving, wise and unfailingly available whenever she was needed. Alongside Ian, she created a safe and endlessly educational environment for her kids, emphasised by her love of theatre and dance, music and history, science and art. Together, Pat and Ian showed that it was possible to share with their children the vital ingredients that kept them devoted to each other for over fifty years of happy marriage: loyalty, trust and truth. And fun, always fun. Hers was a dignified, keen and agile mind, combining a fascination for life with curiosity for its mysteries. Hers was a happy and peaceful soul, spiritually full and relentlessly good-humoured. Pat never permitted herself to be bored, or ungrateful, or spiteful. Her nature simply wouldn't allow it. Instead, she chose to set for us an unforgettable example: that life is for living and love is forgiving. Pat will be forever loved, and eternally in our hearts. May she rest in peace. |
