Smith, Marilyn Eileen
Nov. 11, 1953 – June 4, 2026
Died peacefully in her sleep, in her 73rd year, at home near Almonte, Ontario, where she lived since 1997 with brother Ward, Andrea, Sidney and Izzy. Born in Saint John, New Brunswick, to Mary (née Totten) and Walter, second eldest and eldest daughter of ten children. Predeceased by parents, brothers Brian (Patricia), Ernie (Yvonne) and Calvin, sister Colleen (Cornell) Rowe and nephew Stephen. Survived by younger siblings Ray (Sheila), Bonnie, Cheryl (Brian) Jones, Ward (Andrea) and Connie; nieces Mary, Anne (Chris) MacPhee, Jill (Blair) Fink, Sarah, Krissy and Izzy; nephews Mike, Bruce (Elizabeth), Adam and Sidney (Sabrina); great nieces Faith, Madison M, Keera, Madison F, Chloe, Brianna, Hazel and Florence; great nephews Mitchelle, Dom, Neo, Jacob (Sara), Christian, Riley, and Ryder; and great-great nieces Sophia and Arabella.
Sometimes in our lives we all have pain
We all have sorrow
But if we are wise
We know that there’s always tomorrow
Lean on me, when you’re not strong
And I’ll be your friend
I’ll help you carry on
For it won’t be long
‘Til I’m gonna need
Somebody to lean on
– Bill Withers, 1972
Let me build my own coherence, then find myself in the space of oneness.
What we resonate with, there we find ourselves.
– Suzy Miller
Marilyn’s presence was an invitation to connect. Marilyn is remembered as ‘a happy smiling soul’, ‘a bright light on a cloudy day’, ‘one of a kind’, ‘an amazing person’, ‘so much fun’, ‘not afraid to be her genuine self’, ‘just magnificent’ and ‘an angel for sure’. Marilyn’s participation with everyone at the Almonte day program with Lanark County Support Services, at Special Olympics and with respite folks, was at the center of her happiness and joy. Marilyn was deeply cherished and will be missed by family and all her many friends.
Marilyn was known for her enthusiasm, caring consideration, love of gatherings to celebrate, her favorite color red & maxing outfits with red, florals and cute animals, fun & games, arts & crafts, pursuit of literacy & numeracy, gifts of artwork, helpfulness & teamwork, exploring paths & trails, fishing & picking wild strawberries, strumming her guitar & belting out her improv songs across the field, dressing up in costumes & surprising people, giving speeches of gratitude and blessing & sharing what meant the most to her. Marilyn embraced adventure, with only a few exceptions, as she felt uneasy with heights (no gondola rides) and wobbly footing (floating docks and escalators). Marilyn loved tasty food, especially burgers & fries, lasagna, ice cream and coffee time.
Marilyn’s gentle kindness, sense of mischief and fun-loving nature created many bonding memories with multiple generations of family, as the ‘older sister’, first with her own siblings, then again with nieces and nephews, and again with great nieces and nephews.
Marilyn grew up with her family, immersed in the activities on their dairy farm and developed a love of animals, gardens, nature and the boisterous atmosphere of a large family. Marilyn enjoyed year-round at-home fun with family, like softball, volleyball, cards, board games, and crokinole. Marilyn learned by example and participation, the importance of nurturing life, the rewards of persevering through tasks, and connecting through play, fun and rest. In 1986, Marilyn escaped the nighttime housefire that destroyed their family home, thanks to the heroic efforts of sister Connie. Marilyn lived with her parents until mom, Mary, died suddenly in 1995.
Marilyn then spent two years in an unrelated family home placement in New Brunswick. In 1997, brothers Ward and Brian helped Marilyn leave that situation, after niece Anne shared concerns about Marilyn’s well-being. Andrea and Ward brought Marilyn to Almonte, Ontario to live with their young family, Sidney and Izzy. This decision was made, thanks in part, to guidance from neighbor Louis Frenette.
Brother Ernie, from Calgary, spent many vacation days renovating Andrea and Ward’s home to create a bedroom for Marilyn, and address needed home repairs. Marilyn became the family ‘seeker’ enthusiastically hunting for and finding our lost items, like keys, a phone, or sunglasses, as well as spotting four-, five- and six-leaf clovers and keeping an eye out for everyone’s well-being. Marilyn willingly took on her share of household tasks, taking pride in washing dishes, hanging laundry on the line, folding clothes, harvesting vegetables and more. Marilyn enjoyed creating hand-made banners to decorate for special occasions like birthdays and seasonal celebrations. Marilyn’s years of accumulated family life experience endowed her with wisdom that she gently shared at trying times.
Marilyn integrated into the Lanark County community over the years, coordinated by Andrea, with wonderful talented guidance, first liaised by Louise Jacek, then from so many others in the local social services support and volunteer network.
LCSS staff and programming enabled Marilyn to explore and blossom into her talents, develop her expressiveness and make many connections. Marilyn joined the LCSS Almonte day program in mid-March 2000 and treasured the memories from all her experiences with them. These included: Just Good Compost employee-of-the month bucket washer, weekly volunteer spots at The Hub, Almonte Country Haven, Almonte General Hospital greeter and gift shop attendant, box folding for local pizza and doughnut shops, paper shredding, The Mills clean team, Community Gardens care team, Gathering Grounds Café trainee. The amazing LCSS staff organized group trips to Walt Disney World Florida, The Calgary Stampeded, The Island PEI, Kingston Busker Festival, Saunder’s Farm, Butterfly Show, Park Omega. The weekly programming included Zumba, Lunch Club, crafts, games, library visits, bowling, swimming, wave pool and in-house guest visits with therapy dogs, Parrot Partners, Little Ray’s Reptiles, live musicians and artists.
Apart from day program, Marilyn looked forward to Thursday outings with Sandra Angell and ‘the gang’ for Special Olympics T-Ball / Bowling, weekend tournaments, bingo, movie nights, dances and drives to see seasonal light displays and the tulip festival. Marilyn enjoyed weekly respite companionship with Colleen Skjaveland (sewing, puzzles), with Marguerite Duchemin (varied activities) and the Therapeutic Riding Program. Tuesday evenings Marilyn was a regular at Special Olympics Basketball at Almonte and District High School, facilitated by Barb Shail and Barb Galway.
Marilyn felt so proud of her participation, recognition and achievements, which included the Special Olympics 2011-12 Mike Kyle Memorial Trophy. All tallied, Marilyn earned 2 trophies, 6 medals, 55 ribbons and 36 certificates from a variety of sporting, volunteer and skill development activities. In 2025, Marilyn earned her 10 Year Long Service Volunteer Award from the Almonte General Hospital.
Marilyn was welcomed for vacation get-aways with niece Anne & Chris MacPhee and their family in Kingston, and with sister Cheryl & Brian Jones in Riverview, New Brunswick. Marilyn enjoyed day and weekend respite visits with staff and friends at Mijiwam Group Home, Suzan and Reg Kemp’s farm, and summer times at Grippen Lake Camp.
Many heartfelt thanks go out to all these folks, for your circle of caring and support over the years. You enabled Marilyn to contribute to community and to accumulate a rich experience of life, full of friendship, fun, adventure and personal growth.
A Celebration of Life for Marilyn will be held in the coming weeks.
In honor of Marilyn’s memory, donations may be made to Lanark County Support Services- Almonte, in lieu of flowers.
Condolences & Tributes: www.crgamble.com
