MURIEL (BETTY) LEONARD

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MURIEL (BETTY) LEONARD 1928 - 2015 Betty passed away peacefully at the St. Norbert Personal Care Home on Saturday, September 12, 2015. Betty was predeceased by her husbands Clifford Sherris and Tom Leonard, daughter Jane, brother Lorne, and sister-in-law Norma (Don). She is survived by her daughter Cathy (Terry), granddaughters Bryn, Caitlin (James), Holly (Gavin), great-grandson Isaac, brother Gordon, sister-in-law Adrienne, brothers-in-law Wes (Eunice) and Bud (Louise), and many nieces, nephews and cousins. Betty was born in Belmont and spent her early years in Cartwright, MB. There she helped her family with their creamery business after graduating high school. Her dream of becoming a nurse came true when she graduated in 1951 at the Winnipeg General Hospital. During her training, Betty helped evacuate polio patients in iron lung machines into boats during the flood of 1950. After graduation, Betty nursed in Prince Edward Island on the air force base and in clinics along the Maritime provinces, Maine and Massachusetts. She returned to nurse in hospitals in Cartwright and Killarney where she met and fell in love with Clifford Sherris. They were married in 1953. Betty and Cliff had two daughters, Cathy and Jane, and eventually settled down in Winnipeg. Betty nursed part-time at Riverview Hospital and actively volunteered at St. Paul's Anglican Church, where she taught children and joined the Women's Auxiliary Group. Betty and Cliff enjoyed traveling with their daughters to visit family and friends in Cartwright, Killarney, Minnedosa, Edmonton and Prince Edward Island. When Cliff passed away in 1968, Betty continued to nurse full-time at the Winnipeg Clinic and Shrine Hospital while simultaneously caring for her two daughters and elderly mother. In 1972 Betty married Tom Leonard and helped him to raise his three children. They later relocated to Surrey, BC. In Surrey, Betty nursed at Surrey Memorial Hospital as the Head Nurse of four wards in the geriatric unit. When Tom passed away in 1981, Betty retired from nursing in 1989 and moved back to Winnipeg to be closer to family. Betty enjoyed reading, corresponding with friends and family and attending special events with her family. She lived in River Heights for 25 years before moving to the Rosewood in 2014 and her final home at the St. Norbert Personal Care Home in 2015. Thank you to the wonderful caregivers and nurses at Briarwood House at the Rosewood, St. Boniface Hospital and the St. Norbert Personal Care Home. An interment service will be held at 1:30 p.m. on Friday, September 18 at Thomson "In the Park". Food and refreshments will follow at St. Paul's Anglican Church. In lieu of flowers, donations may be made to the Canadian Cancer Society.

As published in Winnipeg Free Press on Sep 16, 2015