MARGARET (DOREEN) GUSDAL (COEY)

Condolences & Memories (5 entries)

• I really can't explain how different life has been without Grandma Doreen present. The minute I'd walk into Grandma's front door I sensed a feeling of warmth and comfort. Grandma Doreen always had the best choice of words that brought out the best in everyone in our family. I will never forget my beautiful Grandma who taught me strength and so much more in my life. - Posted by: laura laidlaw (granddaughter) on: Jan 02, 2014

• August 30, 2012 A Tribute to Doreen September 7, 1934 – August 26, 2012 I’M DOREEN’S DAUGHTER-IN-LAW. WELL TECHNICALLY, HER EX-DAUGHTER-IN-LAW. BUT WHILE THAT MAY BE MORE CORRECT TERMINOLOGY, IT WOULDN’T REALLY BE ACCURATE. BECAUSE FOR 28 YEARS, DOREEN HAS INCLUDED ME AS A PART OF HER CLOSE FAMILY CIRCLE. AND AS YOU KNOW, THAT’S A PRETTY BIG CIRCLE. DOREEN AND AL HAVE BEEN BLESSED WITH A LARGE BROOD – SIX CHILDREN, THEIR SPOUSES, THIRTEEN GRANDCHILDREN -- ALL AGES AND SIZES – AS YOU CAN SEE UP HERE IN THE FRONT PEWS. NOT TO MENTION DOREEN’S NIECES AND NEPHEWS, HER EXTENDED FAMILY, THE MANY FRIENDS AND OTHERS WHOSE LIVES SHE HAS TOUCHED. YEP, IT’S A PRETTY BIG CIRCLE. BUT DOREEN HAD BIG ARMS … BIG ENOUGH TO EMBRACE EVERYONE ... WITH ROOM TO SPARE. ROOM FOR ONE MORE AT HER DINNER TABLE, ANOTHER GUEST AT THE PARTY, ONE MORE GRANDCHILD... AND ONE MORE… AND ONE MORE … WELL, YOU GET IT. LIKE HER MOTHER BEFORE HER – GREAT-GRANDMA COEY – GRANDCHILDREN WERE THE FOCAL POINT OF DOREEN’S LIFE AND HER LOVE. IN FACT, THAT PRETTY MUCH SUMS UP THE ESSENCE OF THE DOREEN I’VE KNOWN FOR ALMOST THREE DECADES. FOR DOREEN, FAMILY WAS EVERYTHING. NOTHING MATTERED MORE. OF COURSE, FAMILY HAS GROWN LARGER AND LARGER OVER THE YEARS. AND SO TOO HAVE FAMILY EVENTS. DOREEN’S ANNUAL GREY CUP PARTY WAS ALWAYS ONE OF THE BIGGEST – AND BEST – EVENTS OF THE YEAR. A WONDERFUL, WACKY, HUGE GROUP OF FAMILY AND FRIENDS – LAIDLAWS, WHITELAMS, MACKENZIES - AND OF COURSE MORE GUSDALS THAN ANYONE COULD COUNT… KIDS ALL OVER THE PLACE, LAUGHTER EVERYWHERE AND ALWAYS, ENOUGH FOOD TO FEED A LARGE VILLAGE. AND THAT WAS NOTHING COMPARED TO SOME OF THE CHRISTMAS AND BOXING DAY CELEBRATIONS. FROM THE BIG HOUSE ON RADCLIFFE ROAD TO THE ONLY-SLIGHTLY-SMALLER FAMILY HOME ON ACADIA BAY – A GET-TOGETHER AT DOREEN AND AL’S WAS ALWAYS A MEMORABLE TIME. BECAUSE TO DOREEN, FAMILY WAS EVERYTHING. AND THAT WAS ALWAYS EVIDENT WHEN SHE BROUGHT HER FAMILY TOGETHER. DOREEN ALWAYS HAD ENOUGH ENERGY TO BE AMONG THE LAST TO GO TO BED AND THE FIRST TO BE UP THE NEXT DAY. SHE DIDN’T WANT TO MISS A SINGLE MOMENT. BECAUSE TO DOREEN, FAMILY WAS EVERYTHING. THAT WAS IN NO SMALL PART DUE TO THE FACT THAT DOREEN ALSO LOVED A GOOD PARTY. THERE HAVE BEEN LOTS OF THOSE … INCLUDING AMAZING MEMORIES MADE AT THE FAMILY COTTAGE ON EAGLE LAKE NEAR VERMILION BAY, ONTARIO. A PLACE DOREEN ENJOYED SO VERY, VERY MUCH. OF COURSE, SHE ENJOYED IT EVEN MORE AFTER THE CONSTRUCTION WAS FINISHED. YOU KNOW …. THE CONSTRUCTION TO ADD A LARGE NEW WING WITH SIX BEDROOMS, SO SHE COULD HAVE HER ENTIRE FAMILY ALL AROUND HER IN THE CITY AND AT THE LAKE. BECAUSE FAMILY WAS EVERYTHING. DOREEN’S CARING KNEW NO LIMITS. AS A LOVING WIFE TO AL AND MOTHER TO SIX CHILDREN, SHE ALSO TOOK CARE OF HER MOTHER AND FATHER, MARY AND ARCHIE COEY, FOR MANY YEARS WHEN HER PARENTS LIVED IN A SUITE IN THE FAMILY HOME ON RADCLIFFE ROAD. AND YOU COULD TELL – DOREEN LOVED HAVING EVERYONE THERE - THREE GENERATIONS UNDER ONE ROOF, A FULL-TIME JOB AND STILL – DOREEN MADE IT A HAPPY HOME FOR EVERYONE. BECAUSE FAMILY WAS EVERYTHING. AFTER GREAT-GRANDPA COEY PASSED AWAY AND WHEN EVENTUALLY GREAT-GRANDMA MOVED INTO THE PERSONAL CARE HOME IN ST. NORBERT, IT WAS A BIG CHANGE IN DOREEN’S LIFE. BUT FOR HER FAMILY, SHE DID HER BEST TO MAKE SURE NOTHING REALLY CHANGED TOO MUCH. IT JUST MEANT SOME OF THE FAMILY GATHERINGS TOOK PLACE AT GREAT-GRANDMA’S NEW LODGINGS, WHERE DOREEN STILL SAW TO IT THAT EVERYONE WAS FED AND HAPPY AND LOVED. IT SEEMS TO ME DOREEN WAS ALWAYS AT HER VERY BEST WHEN SHE WAS CARING FOR AND ABOUT OTHERS. AFTER DOREEN RETIRED AND SHE AND AL MOVED FROM RADCLIFFE ROAD TO ACADIA BAY, DOREEN FOUND WAYS TO ENJOY EVEN MORE TIME WITH HER FAMILY. AFTER ALL, BEING SO CLOSE TO ACADIA JUNIOR HIGH AND FORT RICHMOND COLLEGIATE MEANT GRANDCHILDREN COULD COME OVER FOR LUNCH AT NOON HOUR! (AND WASN’T THAT JUST THE MIRROR IMAGE OF GREAT-GRANDMA, WHO DID THE SAME THING FOR HER GRAND-KIDS.) OF COURSE DOREEN HAD ONE OR TWO INTERESTING LITTLE QUIRKS, AS WE ALL DO. ANYONE WHO HAS LISTENED TO DOREEN TELL A STORY KNOWS THAT SHE HAD A SPECIAL WAY OF EXTENDING THE STORY LINE TO INCLUDE AN INCREDIBLE NUMBER OF DETAILS AND LITTLE NUANCES. SURE, SOMETIMES IT TOOK AWHILE TO GET TO THE POINT… BUT THAT WAS ONLY ONE OF THE MANY THINGS THAT MADE HER SO SPECIAL. AND I NEVER WITNESSED IT MYSELF, BUT I HEAR SHE MAY HAVE HAD A LITTLE BIT OF A TEMPER. BACK WHEN DOREEN WAS A YOUNG MOM DEALING WITH SIX – YES, SIX CHILDREN – THE “BIG SLIPPER” KEPT THE KIDS IN LINE. OR SO THEY TELL ME. I SUSPECT THE SLIPPER NEVER SAW ANY REAL ACTION. WELL, OKAY, MAYBE DEAN. BUT YOU KNOW, A SLIPPER HAS A SOFT “SOLE.” JUST LIKE DOREEN. A SOFT SOUL AND A LOVING HEART – DESPITE THE OCCASIONAL, AND MIGHT I ADD – TOTALLY UNDERSTANDABLE – USE OF THE BIG SLIPPER WHEN REQUIRED. UNTIL THE END, DOREEN PUT THE NEEDS OF OTHERS BEFORE HER OWN. SHE HAD MANY BURDENS TO CARRY THIS PAST YEAR, AMONG THEM THE LOSS OF HER BROTHER, LAWRENCE IN JANUARY. IT WAS A DEVASTATING BLOW FOR DOREEN AND FOR LAWRENCE’S FAMILY WHOM SHE LOVED SO MUCH. AND AS MOST OF YOU KNOW, AL CONTINUES TO DEAL WITH SOME SERIOUS HEALTH CHALLENGES. THE PAST YEAR WAS VERY HARD FOR BOTH OF THEM. BUT TRULY, DOREEN ALWAYS PUT AL’S WELL-BEING AHEAD OF ANY CONCERN FOR HERSELF. DOREEN LOVED GOD AND THE CHURCH. HER FAITH WAS STRONG. AND IT CARRIED HER WELL THROUGH LIFE. REGARDLESS OF THE CHALLENGES AND SORROWS SHE FACED, DOREEN WAS ALWAYS ABLE TO SMILE, TO FIND JOY IN THE LITTLE THINGS. THINGS LIKE WATCHING AND ENJOYING THE SUMMER OLYMPIC GAMES EARLIER THIS MONTH AND SPENDING TIME AT THE “NEW” FAMILY LAKE RETREAT IN BUFFALO POINT. BUT ALWAYS, SHE WORRIED ABOUT AL, HER CHILDREN AND HER GRANDCHILDREN WITH LITTLE THOUGHT FOR HERSELF AND HER NEEDS. BECAUSE TO DOREEN, FAMILY WAS EVERYTHING. WORDS CANNOT EXPRESS HOW MUCH DIFFERENT LIFE WILL BE WITHOUT HER. BUT HER FAMILY – HER WIDE, EXTENDED FAMILY AND CIRCLE OF FAMILY FRIENDS – WILL ALWAYS BE STRONGER BECAUSE OF HER VALUES, MORE CARING BECAUSE OF THE LOVE SHE SHARED AND ALWAYS CONNECTED BECAUSE OF HER INFLUENCE. AFTER ALL, FAMILY IS EVERYTHING. AND THAT IS THE LEGACY DOREEN LEAVES FOR US TO CONTINUE IN HER MEMORY. WE MISS YOU SO MUCH ALREADY, DOREEN. MOM. GRANDMA. AUNTIE. FRIEND. AND WE WILL LOVE YOU AND KEEP YOU IN OUR HEARTS FOREVER - Posted by: Barbara Lawton (DAUGHTER-IN-LAW) on: Oct 04, 2013

• Doreen was a always a pleasure to work with. Carrol & I enjoyed our annual visit last December at the Department Christmas party. She will be sadly missed by us. Our deepest sympathy Carrol & Neil Longmuir - Posted by: Carrol & Neil Longmuir (Worked with Doreen at the UofM) on: Aug 31, 2012

• I was so sorry to hear of Doreen's passing. She was several grades ahead of me in school and I absolutely adored her -she was so very very kind to me -a lovely person-would always lend me her crayons -probably just an excuse for me to go and see her. You had a beautiful wife and mom. - Posted by: Alice Pettitt McInnes (Attended school in Russell) on: Aug 29, 2012

• As a ten year old, I remember thinking that my brother Allan had married the most beautiful girl in the world. As time went on I learned that she was beautiful both inside and out. There was always a smile and a warm welcome from Doreen. She will be missed. - Posted by: Wendy Allison-McCulloch (Sister in Law) on: Aug 29, 2012