Obituary of Mabel Irene Rowland

Our mother, Mabel Irene Rowland, died January 1 2010 at the age of 89 years. Mom lived in Moncton, New Brunswick for the past four years, after living all of her previous years in southern Ontario, having been born in Sidney Township, Ontario. Mom’s parents were Reverend Thomas and Annie Wallace, her father having been a minister for the United Church. Mom had four sisters … Ruby Beare of Port Perry, Hilda Alexander of Sutton, Grace Couch of Newcastle, and Elsie Shearer of Oshawa; and Mom had three brothers … George Wallace of Belleville, Clayton Wallace, and Douglas Wallace of Port Perry. With the exception of Ruby, all of Mom’s siblings have predeceased her. Mom’s second husband, who died in 2003, was Al Rowland. Our father, Gerald Mattice, died in 2006, and we are the children of Mabel and Gerald … Sandra Mattice of Bedford, Nova Scotia and Wayne Mattice of Riverview, New Brunswick. Mom had two grandchildren, two great-grandchildren, and many other family relations and friends. The highlights of Mom’s life were threefold. Before marriage she served in the Royal Canadian Air Force as a Corporal, having been stationed on Canada’s east coast and in Ottawa. In spite of the tragedy of WWII, the camaraderie that she experienced in the Air Force remained always important to her. Even in recent years when we would be out for a walk, we would still practice the military march as if we were her recruits. At Mom’s request, the Last Post will be played at her funeral service in recognition of her military service. We, Mom’s children, were the most important part of her married life. Her want for our happiness and well-being remained always the centre of her life. And music was an integral part of Mom’s entire adult life, including playing in bands and volunteering her gift of piano and accordion playing for all kinds of social events. Even when she could no longer make music, she never lost the musical beat in her soul. Mom’s music was the source of much joy for many people. We offer our heartfelt appreciation to the caregivers and residents of Mount Royal Eldercare for the enduring compassion and friendship shown to Mom during her four-year residency. We are also very thankful for the recent support of ProTem Health Services who provided a warm and caring home environment during the last two months of Mom's life. A private cremation service was held in Moncton, and a memorial service will be held at Newtonville United Church in the spring with interment at the Lakeview Cemetery in Newtonville Ontario.