Margaret Ann Murphy

Margaret Ann Murphy (nee Beattie), 92, of Toronto, Ontario, passed away on 15 December 2022 at Michael Garron Hospital due to complications from a fall. She leaves behind her loving husband of 68 years, Allan Roy Murphy. She is survived by their son, Bob, and his wife Beverly, grand daughter Robyn and husband Nick, grand son Andrew and wife Shalta, as well as great grandchildren Marlow, Wilson, Fraser and Cooper. She was the sister of John Beattie and aunt to his children, Karen and Brian. She was also the sister-in-law of Marjorie Turnbull ( nee Murphy ), deceased, and aunt to her children, Scott, Davidand Mark . Peggy was predeceased by her beloved daughter, Lynne. Peggy was born to parents Frederick Beattie and Margaret Beattie on 17 June 1930 in Hamilton, Ontario. She attended High School at Bishop's College School in Sherbrooke, Quebec and went on to study at McMaster University in Hamilton, Ontario, graduating with a Bachelor of Arts Degree - and a fiancé. Mom was on the cheerleading squad at "Mac" and Dad was a rising football star, "imported " from Toronto to bolster the flagging University team. Family legend has it, they were set up on a blind date, each believing they would be going out with somebody else. Fortunately, initial disappointments were short-lived. When Al's professional football career with the Hamilton Tiger Cats ended prematurely due to injury, they packed their young family off to Dad's hometown of Toronto, where family connections led him to a career in the automobile sales industry. His burgeoning business contacts and Peggy's deep family ties would shape their world. Sunday dinners during Fall, Winter and Spring rotated regularly between our home in Etobicoke and those of our Murphy and Beattie grandparents - but in the summertime, Peggy packed us up and headed to The Cottage. She loved Ahmic Lake, in Magnetawan, Ontario and spent every possible moment there - beginning as soon as we could drive on the dirt road in May until the snow began to fly in October. She and Al often took close friends to celebrate New Year’s at the lake, and Mom took countless photos of them snow shoeing, cross country skiing and carrying on. Peggy loved the cabin and the lake, but most of all, she loved the people. She was intensely proud of the fact that our family and our extended diaspora of cottage relatives, friends and neighbours have returned faithfully to enjoy Ahmic Lake for seven generations, and she passed that deep sense of belonging to a larger, special community on to her children, grandchildren and great-grandchildren. Peggy and Al excelled at having fun! They hosted countless parties at High Rock - impromptu, invited, casual stand up, fancy sit down, cocktail, dinner, breakfast, brunch, Murder Mystery themed ( fitted with a ready supply of crazy wigs and outlandish hats hanging in the back hallway) - but mostly they were just really good at enjoying LIFE . Mom was an avid entertainer and did her best to utilize every single dish and glass plus myriad pieces of heirloom and garage sale cutlery in the place (attested to by the usual suspects who were often conscripted to Kitchen Duty after the fun was over) - and being a self-styled "Depression Baby”, Peggy never met a leftover she couldn't find some culinary use for. Peggy did the holidays up right, too. We alI have great memories of the ornate festive scenes she set with intricate table decorations and little toys and candy for the kids. She was a firm believer in the importance of family traditions and dinners and photos ( lots of photos ) . Because of her we have an enviable collection of photo albums including baby albums for every member of the family, and commemorative, autographed guest books stretching back for generations. We strive to continue this invaluable tradition today, and greatly appreciate that she did this for our family throughout her life. With daughter Lynne's sudden death at age 15, Mom went into an emotional tailspin. In the ensuing years, she pursued an eclectic search for meaning that encompassed the gamut of Christian scripture and Eastern philosophies as well as Yoga, Meditation, Spiritualists, Mediums & Messages. Seeking to fill her time with useful pursuits, Peggy undertook a variety of volunteer and paid positions where she could help others. As a Travelers Aid worker at Toronto International Airport, she lent a hand - and an ear - to myriad itinerant strangers trying to navigate through that busy terminal. Perhaps her greatest adventure was accompanying a very young Inuit girl on a return trip post-surgery from Hospital in Toronto to Moose Factory, on the shores of Hudson Bay. Ironically, that trip occurred by train - not plane - over several days and was made even more challenging by the full-body cast of her young charge who spoke no English and could not walk. As a mentor at the Etobicoke Girls' Residence, which was funded by the Anglican Diocese of Toronto, Peggy helped teenagers who had run away from troubled homes and had endured various forms of addiction and abuse. Several of those girls maintained close ties with Mom long after they had "graduated " from EGR. As a Tour Guide for The McMichael Canadian Art Gallery, home to the work of Canada's renowned Group of Seven artists, Peggy was able to relish and replenish herself daily in the natural beauty and unbridled spirit of the Canadian North, which was exemplified by the Collection. A favourite piece of hers was A.J. Casson's celebrated Anglican Church of St. George the Martyr in Magnetawan - which also happened to be Mom’s chosen church-away-from-home during her extended stays on Ahmic. Peggy was always fiercely proud of her children's accomplishments and seldom missed an opportunity to regale everyone she knew ( and others ) with what was going on - and on - in our daily lives.That tendency only escalated with the arrival of Grandchildren, Robyn and Drew. She made a lot of time for them at the cottage to go for picnics at Fairy Dell or up the waterfall at Old Man’s Creek, or to dig diligently for the errant marbles careless faeries might have left behind near the cottage. A sleepover at Grandma's would not be complete without playing the same “egg trick” on poor unsuspecting Grandpa Al. Every Sunday, Peggy would serve him an empty egg shell in a little porcelain cup and he would break it open only to discover that the children had tricked him once again. In true Peggy fashion, her dearest treasure in recent years was a custom made throw cushion festooned with silk screened photos of her great grandchildren - a prized possession that never failed to elicit a favourable mention on every visit. Peggy's fervent wish of 50 years, to be reunited with Lynne, was finally granted last week. A private family service will take place at a later date on Ahmic Lake. In lieu of flowers, please consider a donation to the Magnetawan Watershed Land Trust https://www.mwlt.org/donate

Margaret Ann Murphy

December 15, 2022