CONSTANCE MARY PIKE

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CONSTANCE MARY PIKE

(nee SCOBIE)

July 20, 1929 - April 23, 2024

Surrounded by all her children and grandchildren Connie quietly slipped away at her home in Peterborough, Ontario after a sudden decline in her health. She was in her 95th year. She was born on July 20, 1929, in Rosetown, Saskatchewan - ‘The Heart of the Wheatbelt’ to Scottish immigrants Colina McIntyre and William Scobie.

Connie is survived by her children, Catherine m. Eric Wiebe (Caledon, Ontario), Terry m. Sohee Kang (Bowen Island, BC) and Zainab (Peterborough, Ontario) and her grandchildren Angus, Nuruddin, Connor, Nasruddin, Halimah, Sean, Abdul-Hakim and Dylan. Connie was predeceased by her husband of 66 years, Charles in 2019 and all of her brothers - Lewis, Colin, David, and sister Anne.

As a young girl, Connie loved tap dancing and appeared in local talent shows on the Prairies. She had her eyes on the bright lights of New York City, but her mother wouldn’t hear of it! Growing up in the Depression she remembered men, out of work, often visiting her home in search of a hot meal. Colina never turned anyone away as long as they performed a small chore such as chopping some wood or pulling weeds. Her parents lived up to their reputation as hard-working, thrifty Scots. That generosity of caring and empathy remained core values of Connie throughout her life. In 1939 the Second World War broke out. Her older brother Lewis enlisted in the R.C.A.F. and became a Sergeant Pilot who tragically died during a training mission in England. He was only 22. Connie studied piano and continued playing throughout her life, preferring boogie woogie and modern music to classical pieces. She loved music and sang in choirs.

Chuck and Connie met in 1950 at a skating party in Vancouver on a Friday the 13th, when Chuck was studying Engineering at UBC and Connie was in Nursing at Vancouver General Hospital. They married in September 1952 and subsequently moved across Canada for Chuck’s employment with the Canadian Pacific Railway starting in Regina and continuing to Winnipeg, Schreiber, Toronto, Montreal (Head Office) and finally back to Winnipeg.

Connie was always up for a new challenge, and in her 40s learned to golf at the Royal Montreal Golf Club. She returned to school at John Abbott College in Ste. Anne de Bellevue, Quebec and excelled -- later having to cut short her studies as she opted to travel with her husband for business. At age 83 she made a hole-in-one on the 12th hole at the Peterborough Golf and Country Club.

In 1992 Chuck and Connie retired to Peterborough, Ontario. They enjoyed playing golf and travelling as well as being closer to their children, grandchildren, and Connie’s beloved sister Anne. In their lives they travelled extensively all over Canada, the U.S., Europe, Asia, South America, the Caribbean, Australia, and New Zealand, playing golf or enjoying cruises.

Always elegant and vibrant, Connie shone as a hostess. Her grandsons have requested her recipes and she always had a new one, which her family were only too happy to test. She was a timeless beauty outdone only by her empathetic caring nature and her unconditional love.

Connie’s idea of perfect happiness was, “Good health, those I love around me and making a contribution towards others’ happiness and well-being.” Her warmth and grace were evident even at the end as she made sure to tell her grandchildren how enriched and better her life had been having had them in it.

She will be dearly missed.

A Celebration of Life will be held at a date yet to be determined. We will notify friends and family.

As published in Winnipeg Free Press on Jul 13, 2024, Jul 13, 2024