NASH – Ada Elizabeth Phillips

Died peacefully at home in Montreal on the 30th of November, just over six years after her husband passed away. Born in Adelaide, Australia in 1927, she attended the Woodlands Church of England Girls’ School and entered local society as a débutante before studying nursing at the University of Adelaide and being named a gold medallist upon her graduation. In 1949, she sailed with her sisters to London where they were received at court and took up residence with their uncle. There, she met Peter whom she would marry in 1951 and live with for 60 years until his death in November of 2011. Vivacious and inquisitive, Bette was as happy as an Australian could be in England and evinced little enthusiasm about moving to Canada, which Peter ultimately persuaded her of. They arrived in Toronto in 1953 where they had their first two children and three years later moved to Montreal where the family continued growing. While having left paediatric nursing in London, Bette remained committed to helping the vulnerable for whom her compassion matched the indomitable spirit she reserved for those closest to her. She had a long volunteer career at the Douglas Hospital where she served on the board of directors, having become President of the Women’s Auxiliary and where she worked tirelessly for years. She would care for others in many ways, including in her role as First Directress of the Fulford Residence where she cultivated an environment of respect and decorum for its elderly female occupants. Foster children and ex-convicts respectively resided in and visited our house. She manifested her love for all children, bonding with terminally ill youngsters at the Montreal Children’s Hospital into her eighties while showing unbridled affection to her descendants. Bette was in many ways a living contradiction, combining exuberance with self discipline and spontaneity with pragmatism. She brought to Canada her love of tennis and swimming, although she would forever miss the ocean. She found medicinal qualities in Chablis and martinis, but she was often uninhibited in her expression without such infusions, particularly on the subjects of politics, social justice and the stock market. Her minor indulgences aside, Bette was a beautiful, faithful and dignified lady to her very end on earth and expected her offspring to adhere to her high standards of conduct. She is survived by her children: Sarah (m. Michael), Jane (m. Ray), Anne (m. John), and Ted (m. Nancy), her grandchildren, Alex (m. Siri), Lizzy (m. Alex), Andrew (m. Kate), Amy (m. Joe), Katie (m. Ben), Holly (m. Gio), Emily (m. Brian), Josh, James, Abby, and Benjamin as well as her great grandchildren, Piper Elizabeth, Elijah Declan, Travis Brian, Hunter John, in addition to another great grandson and two other great granddaughters. Our heartfelt gratitude to caregivers Souad (d.), Bliss, Theresa, Senait, Thelma, and Nolie. A service will be held at Saint Peter’s Anglican Church of which Bette was a devout member for 62 years. It is located at 900 Laird Boulevard, Town of Mount Royal, QC, H3R 1Y8 at 10:30AM on Saturday, February 3rd; the Reverend Chris Barrigar will preside. In lieu of flowers, memorial donations may be made payable to the McGill University Research Centre for Studies in Aging (MCSA), 6825 boul. LaSalle, Montréal, Québec H4H 1R3.