Imelda Cunliffe Keech

The Cunliffe Keech families sadly announce Imelda’s passing on Friday October 24, in her 87^th year, at the IOOF Odd Fellow & Rebekah Senior Home in Barrie.

Imelda was born in New Acadia, Prince Edward Island and was the loving wife of William E. Cunliffe (predeceased) & Harry C. Keech (predeceased).

She was predeceased by her parents Alphonsus & Monica, & siblings Gloria, Sherron & Gerald.

She was a loving mother to Bill (Heather), Audrey (Eli), & Lorne (Susan), & step daughter Marilyn (Bill); a dear Grandma/Nanny to Jennifer (Mike), Amanda (Tim), Kathryn (Nick), Melanie (Mikaela), William Jay “BJ” (Katrina), & Shelby; and a delighted great grandmother “GranNana” to Alexandria, Eva, Violet, Luke, Jack, Leo, William, & Eloise.

She is lovingly remembered by in-laws Warren (Sherron), Linda (Gerald), & Barbara (Walter), and numerous nieces and nephews.

Imelda was a beloved mother, grandmother, great grandmother, aunt, and friend whose warmth & kindness touched everyone who knew her. She will always be remembered for her bright smile, positive attitude, and strength as she navigated the many challenges life presented her.

Imelda left PEI at the age of 17 and moved to Toronto where she met and married William and started her family. Family was extremely important to her. While in high school in PEI she informed the nuns that her goal in life was to be the best wife and mother she could possibly be, and she fulfilled that goal and has left an amazing legacy of family behind. She loved organizing events and gatherings for family and friends. Every birthday and holiday were celebrated as a family event and everyone was expected to attend. She was an amazing cook and there was always room at her table for “extras”, so our holiday events always included many friends. They were all considered “family”. She was an amazing seamstress and in the early years she made all her own clothes, including some stunning gowns and dresses. She was always impeccably dressed, complete with earrings, necklaces, brooches, hats etc. She was a “classy lady”.  Widowed at the young age of 45, she went on to meet and marry Harry. They were very much in love and they had 8 wonderful years together before she lost him to illness.

Imelda loved to travel and enjoyed many Caribbean cruises, an Alaskan cruise, a Panama Canal cruise, and many other trips in Europe and North America with a variety of friends. She also enjoyed a wide assortment of music and theatre.

Imelda was a former employee of Canada Life Assurance Co.

She was a faithful and devoted soldier of the York Temple and Bowmanville Salvation Armies. Since moving to Barrie, she has enjoyed attending Sunday service at the Burton Avenue United Church.

Special thanks to the wonderful, kind, and compassionate staff of the IOOF Senior Home, who have cared for Imelda over the past 6 years. She was very happy there.

She will be forever loved and deeply missed.

A memorial service for Imelda will be held at Burton Avenue United Church, 37 Burton Avenue, Barrie, Ontario on Monday Nov. 17 at 1pm, with reception to follow.
There will be a livestream of the service at   https://www.youtube.com/@burtonaveunitedchurch/streams

In lieu of flowers, please donate in her memory to the IOOF Odd Fellow & Rebekah Seniors Home (IOOF.com), the Salvation Army (salvationarmy.ca) or the Burton Avenue United Church Memorial Fund (burtonavenueunited.com).