The Reminder is making its archives back to 2003 available on our website. Please note that, due to technical limitations, archive articles are presented without the usual formatting.
Dorothy Gillies December 5, 1915 - November 2, 2003 Surrounded by loved ones, Dorothy Nellie Gillies passed away peacefully on November 2, 2003 in the Flin Flon General Hospital. Dorothy will be sadly missed and fondly remembered by her son Gordon (Betty), grandsons Marc, Paul (Heidi) and Michael, all of Minneapolis, MN, granddaughters Debbie (John) Bailey, Connie (Doug) Holubec of Flin Flon, MB, great grandchildren T.J. and Caitlin Bailey, Luke Holubec, Brady and Ben Gillies, son-in-law Tom Baird of Flin Flon, MB, sister Marge Henry of Abbottsford, BC; brothers Chip (Edith) McKeen of Edmonton, AB, Art (Edna O'Brien) McKeen of Osoyoos, BC, sisters-in-law Alice Gillies and Grace Gillies of Prince Albert, SK, Lucie Gartner of Red Deer, AB, and Nora Huland of Cobble Hill, BC, and many loving nieces and nephews. Dorothy was born on December 5, 1915 in Prince Albert, SK to Robert (Bob) and Mary Louise (Minnie) (Byrne) McKeen. She spent her early childhood and attended school in Stanleyville, SK. In 1932 Dorothy married Gus Gillies and they moved to Flin Flon in 1936. She was employed at the Co-op and the Ladies Smart Shoppe. Dorothy was also a member of the Lion L's and TOPS for many years. Dorothy took great pride in her daughters, Delores and Doreen, and supported them in their many accomplishments over the years. She was also an avid sport fan. She enjoyed watching baseball and especially curling, both live and on T.V. But her greatest love was watching Gordie play hockey for the Flin Flon Bombers, never missing a home game in four years. Dorothy demonstrated an incredible passion for life and true devotion to her family. She was predeceased by her husband Gustav (Gus) in 1992; daughters, Delores (Baird) in 1995 and Doreen (Parker) in 2003; parents Bob and Minnie McKeen, sister Mary Philpott, brother Gordon McKeen, son-in-law Jim Parker, and niece Bonnie Henry. Mom, Granny, Dorothy and Auntie Dode will always be in our hearts and live forever in our memories. Funeral services were held on Saturday, November 8, 2003 at 2:00 p.m. from St. Ann's Roman Catholic Church with Fr. Denis Bourbonnais, OMI as celebrant. Ushers were Ken Reader and Bill Hanson Jr. Memorial register was attended by Bea Reagan and Fran Gagne. Singers were Cindy Fahie, Bill Hanson Sr., and Bill Hanson, Jr. accompanied by Mark Kolt. Following the service, lunch was served in St. Ann's Parish Hall by the Catholic Women's League. Cremation has taken place. A private interment will follow at a later date. If friends so desire, memorial tributes may be made to the Multiple Sclerosis Society and Cancer Society. Dadson Funeral Home was entrusted with the arrangements. The eulogy was given by her granddaughter Debbie Bailey. EULOGY FOR GRAN: When I was younger my grandmother told me she wanted to be remembered by something she had read in a newspaper. I asked for an explanation. She retold the story of how she too, wanted to be remembered for something written at the top of her obituary; the line that is drawn between her date of birth and the date of her passing. Not that those weren't important, but she explained, she wanted the greatest things in her life to fill the space that the hyphen takes between those two dates. She has lived a rich life in her 87 years and so I believe she has achieved her wish. Dorothy McKeen was born in Prince Albert, Saskatchewan on December 5, 1915. She met my grandfather, Gus Gillies, and they were married on December 28, 1932. They moved from the farm to Flin Flon in the spring of 1936, bringing with them their two little girls: my mother, Dolores, and my Aunt Doreen. Later, in Flin Flon, Dode and Gus became the proud parents of a third child, a son Gordie, born February 1941. Dorothy, or Dode as she was known to many friends and family, got down to what she knew how to do best - making a home, raising her kids, and creating friendships. There wasn't a lot of spare cash as they moved from the time of the Depression to the time of the Second World War, but being in style was important to Dode; so what they couldn't buy she sewed or crafted and when it was complete nobody knew it wasn't store bought. The girls were dressed in fashion and Gordie was the cutest little toddler with his sailor suit and his shoes that she polished every single night without fail. Shortly after this time she began her life long career as a clerk. She was a long-term employee of the local Co-op store and while working there she became an avid recreational curler as well as a hockey mom. Now, many of us are dedicated to our boys' hockey games, but how many of us would let our sons practice their slapshots against the kitchen door? My grandmother did; and somehow got her girls to believe it was necessary for Gord to do this and therefore their duty as "good sisters" to scrub the scuff marks off the kitchen door every Saturday morning. Without anyone really thinking about it, she taught her children to become fiercely protective of each other and all that was "family". Having her parents, a sister and three brothers, their spouses and all their families here in Flin Flon meant "family" encompassed a lot of people. Dode was devoted to them all. In the early fifties the Gillies branch of the family moved from Ross Lake to the newer subdivision of East Birchview. The house on 83 Norma was painted and latticed and repainted. It was landscaped, the yard was enlarged, furniture reupholstered all under the master crafting hands of Dode. She worked tirelessly at her job, as well as for her family, and on her yard and garden. Her girls got married (to boys who were almost perfect, don't you know!) and her first grandchild came along. Dode was so dedicated to her family that she thought this arrival of the new generation was the time she must retire. After all, she thought, grandmothers didn't work and she wanted to be there if she was needed to help with the new baby. She left her job at the Co-op and she hated not working, not being on Main Street and feeling the pulse of the town, but if Dolores and the new babe needed her, she'd be there. In a year or so she decided the new little family could make it and Dode went back to work. Many will remember Dode or Dot as she would often be called now, as the ever helpful clerk at The Ladies Smart Shoppe. During the first few years of her employment here, Gordie was married. He and Betty had three boys: Marc, Paul, and Michael, and Del one more daughter, Connie, and her list of grandchildren was complete. Dot found she could handle her job at "the store", her larger family, baking treating for the neighbours and still have time to join the Lion L's service organization. She became president of her service club and worked hard at their many community efforts. She also joined TOPS in this era of her life and told me not too long ago that in the 35 years she was a member she only ended up gaining 3 pounds! She met many ladies in both these groups that would become life long friends. Dot worked at the Smart Shoppe until she truly retired from work outside her home. My grandparents moved to the Legion Jubilee Residence in 1990. She would be called Dot by the residents there who would soon become like a second family to her. Living here in the security of such good and kind friends, Gran survived Grandpa's passing and thrived in their care. She became involved in the tenants association at the Residence and was so proud of in how grand a place she had her home. Long before their move to the Residence, Dode began having her whole little family for Sunday dinner and we all came to love the tradition that brought us together even after the move to 229 Green Street. Along with these weekly meals there was the monthly Sunday supper gathering with her extended family. Even though this was a tradition started by her parents, Dode continued weaving us all together in the rich tapestry that is "the McKeen Family." Somehow she would make a request for the family to get together and they would all put aside time in their busy lives to do as she asked. It was passed down from mother to daughter and father to son - if Dode asks - do it! At first I thought she had some special power, but in my adult years I realized the reason that everyone in the family did what she wished was because most often she stood behind each one of them, supporting them however she could. So it was a small thing to do the things that pleased her. Thus she became the matriarch of the family. Not just watching and doing in her own children and grandchildren's lives, but her brothers' and sister's family too. Wishing and wanting for all of us a life and a future even more fulfilling than her own, nurturing in each of us our own sense of self. She was a self-esteem booster extraordinaire! She truly believed in each one of us. There was Tom who could sing like an angel, Doreen who knew every bit of etiquette there was to know, Betty who in her quiet, gentle way could solve any problem, Art Dixon with his gift of eloquent conversation, Shelley with her skill to turn any task into a masterpiece, Scott with his sense of humour which could, for Dode, only be equalled by Marc's sharp wit. There was Connie with her business finesse, Michael with his eye for cleanliness (which she truly believed was next to Godliness), T.J. with his tall good looks and quiet nature that sent her heart aflutter, Brady with his baseball expertise and Ben with his love for soccer. There was Caitlin with her eye for art and Luke with his open, earnest love for her that brought a smile to her face each time she saw him. I haven't mentioned everyone as it could take all day, but you get the idea of how highly she thought of her family, each and every one. And I don't think I'm out of order when I say that each one of us saw in her a special little bit of perfection. We wouldn't be who we are as individuals without her and we wouldn't stand so tightly as a family if it hadn't been for her. So today we celebrate the life of our matriarch and we thank her for her belief in all of us, not just her family, but her community as well.
