Certain
people come into our lives and make a huge difference.
When my
children were small I put an advertisement in the paper for a ‘nanny’ to come
into the home and mind them. I received a call from a woman with a French Canadian
accent and spontaneous laugh. Her questions about the children told me she was
the right person for us.
Cecile
treated my daughters like they were her grandchildren and they in turn loved
her like their grandmother. She walked
them and the neighborhood kids to school. An extrovert, she quickly knew most
of the teachers and parents and many of our neighbours, people we didn’t even
know.
We have so
many happy memories of Cecile.
She was
never in a rush to leave at the end of a long day. She took the time to tell me
verbatim everything the girls said and what they did each day. Her husband would sit patiently reading a
paperback in the car for sometimes an hour waiting for her.
She and her
family loved to shop. If one of the
girls requested something for their birthday or Christmas in a certain colour
or with a certain character on it they always found it. They would find the
rare few things with ‘Stefanie’ spelled correctly, something no one else
managed to do.
She played
to lottery, always buying tickets and usually winning a few dollars every now
and again. I lived in fear she would win the jackpot and leave us.
She loved
to eat and had a healthy appetite, despite her petite size. Having been born in
New Brunswick she enjoyed seafood. She and her family frequented the restaurant ‘Red
Lobster’. They had their own table and
all the staff treated them like family.
We have a spice jar with 'Cinnamon Sugar' hand written on it by Cecile. She made lots of
special treats for the girls.
Cecile
passed from this world on February 19, 2014.
We will never forget her and will always be indebted to her and all she
did for us as a family, not just our daughters.
 |
| Andrea, Stephanie Harries, Cecile and Stefanie - July 2007 |
