A cloak much stronger than the storm – the love of a parent for a child. Our wonderful mother, Gladys Rose Snelling, returned home to God on May 18, 2023, at age 95, to join her loving husband, Allan (together since age 17), who died on July 10, 2021, and her beloved sisters (Olive and Sybil), mother and father (Darius Vincent Sedore and Myrtle Eliza Abram), and many dear friends. Born January 17, 1928, in the town of Belhaven, Ontario (North Gwillimbury), Gladys’ early years were spent in Mount Albert, where her parents ran a general store and later in Cedarbrae, near Brown Hill and Newmarket, on a farm next door to her paternal grandparents (Walter and Nancy Abrams). All her life, Gladys was an iron-willed, unstoppable, fireball. At a too serious line dance class: “LET’S JUST HAVE SOME FUN.” One word describes her: JOY. “Tiddley” loved life: always up for a challenge and some fun, she loved to dance, loved to learn, loved music, movies, fashion, and theatre. Gladys formed fierce, close friendships for life. She was a star on the tennis and volleyball courts and on the cross-country ski trails, and in the pool for diving and synchronized swimming. Until their late 80s, Gladys and Allan were regulars in the gym most mornings at the Ajax Community Centre until COVID closed the gym. Gladys was a student nurse at age 16 in Toronto. She became an assistant head nurse at Toronto’s SickKids Hospital on graduation. She was a champion of women’s equality rights. At age 25, she was one of the first nurses’ union stewards in Scarborough. Gladys married Allan at age 25: he was a fireman and she was an emergency ward nurse – in Scarborough, until retirement. In retirement, Gladys’ (and Allan’s) many friendships and volunteer efforts were recognized as Gladys (and Allan) were centrally involved at St. Paul’s United Church. Together, they spent hours every week on major projects. She loved nursing and children, so she (and Allan) took on the huge job of running a breakfast and snack program for school children, a blood donor clinic in Ajax and volunteered at Accettone Funeral Home and at Scarborough’s Black Creek Pioneer Village. Gladys was a gifted, energetic person who rarely sat idle: she read, did Sudoku and completed crosswords until the day she died. At age 64, she learned the arts of crochet and cross-stitch, completing 20-plus major pieces requiring up to 9 months to complete, that she bequeathed to family and friends as her legacy of dedication and patience. Gladys was our model for living life fully, bravely, gracefully and with dignity. Gladys, a beloved mother and friend to many, will be greatly missed and never forgotten. With love, from your children: Anna, Elizabeth, Julie and Scott; grandkids: Kiara, Sarah, Frances, Susan, Amanda, Remi and Emily (Bea); great-grandbabes: Iris and Rose; as well as Glady’s friends and family: Diane, Tom, Valerie, Dana, Kim, Ellie, Liana, Larry, and many more. Funeral service July 8, 2023 at 11 a.m. at St. Paul’s United Church Ajax, to be followed by a Family Memorial July 9th, to lay our parents, Allan and Gladys, to rest. Condolences and memories may be shared with the family: [email protected]
Published on June 17, 2023
