Joan Fisher (nee Bedson) passed away peacefully at the age of 90 on Wednesday February 15, with loved ones holding her hands and softly playing a guitar by her bedside. In the final weeks of her life, she reminisced and spoke fondly of growing up in Toronto (where she was actively involved in swim team, downhill skiing and horseback riding) and her numerous pets over her lifetime (including Bomber, her street-car riding terrier, Buffy, Kinsey, Snoopy, Petie, Bogie, Ginger, Matouk, Morris, Lady and even her baby squirrel Digit). Joan loved animals and her house was often treated as the local humane society, always ready to take in an animal in need.

Joan was a relatively quiet person who courageously just got on with things. She married Grant Fisher in 1954 and always said her greatest accomplishment was being a mom to her 3 kids (Grant, Ronda and Tracey). She was a working mom, who enjoyed her many years as an Executive Assistant and then as a Real Estate Agent, but also loved to cook, bake and sew matching outfits for her girls, and always made sure dinner was a family time with a homemade meal on the table. Although money was tight, we never went without and she made sure we had fun and fond memories from road trip vacations (pre suv days, so it was 3 kids, 2 adults and a dog in a tiny Chevy Vega), picnics at Conservation Parks (where we learned to drive long before we were legally allowed), camping (complete with leaking canvas and poison ivy), cottage rentals (with worm hunts, fishing and night adventures), and boat trips on Georgian Bay (at times rather harrowing in our small boat)…our vacations were never fancy but they were always fun.

When her husband of 47 years passed in 2002, she carried on in their home in Collingwood, golfing and playing bridge, and then joined her son and 2 granddaughters Alex and Cole, in Lefroy, until her knees could no longer carry her…she had 2 knee replacements in 2007, stoically doing her physio and taking pride when her Dr. said he had football players that cried and complained more than her.
Although she was quite nervous about the move, in 2008 she came to Montreal to begin a new chapter, close to Ronda, her son-in-law Carl and granddaughter Kendra, settling in to an apartment in Pointe Claire Village, where she made new friends by joining Senior groups and playing golf, bridge and bingo. She adopted her beloved older dog Kinsey and enjoyed long walks through the village and various lakefront parks, where they would meet up with their regular 2 and 4 footed friends. When her 4 legged partner in crime Kinsey passed in 2017, she made the move to the Villa Beaurepaire where the team and residents gave her a new lease on life. In January 2020, her quiet determination and courage carried her through and helped her heal from a double mastectomy at the age of 87. Then, ironically, Joan got into her best shape during the pandemic, when every day, rain or shine, she walked with her daughter and granddog Jasmine, exploring her neighbourhood and enjoying the boats and birds on the lake,

Although her last month was a difficult one, we focused on and succeeded in getting her out of the hospital, which allowed her final weeks to be filled with love from her 3 kids, many visits (and even a private violin concert) with her granddaughter Kendra and her fiancé Oli, lots of love licks from her grandpup’s Jasmine and Jenga, many flowers, meals and well wishes from many friends, and a few visits with her special friend Leslie, which were thankfully made possible by Joan’s “third daughter” Margo. There is never a good time to leave this life, but there can be a good way, and we believe that Joan’s denouement was as peaceful as it gets: no pain, suffering or distress, surrounded by love and feeling gratitude for her long and meaningful life.

The family would like to extend a heartfelt thank you for the compassion and outstanding support from the Palliative Care Team from the Lakeshore Hospital, the West Island CLSC (Mandy) and NOVA (Dominique), which made her home care possible, comfortable and peaceful. And also to the Villa Beaurepaire for making Joan’s last five years so enjoyable.
In lieu of flowers, if you would like to make a donation in Joan’s memory, please consider NOVA (https://www.novawi.org/), Animatch (https://www.animatch.ca/) or A Horse Tale Rescue (https://ahtrescue.org/en/).
A celebration of Joan’s life, with an open house/drop-in, will take place this Sunday February 19 in the dining room at Villa Beaurepaire, 23 Fieldfare, Beaconsfield, from 1:00-4:00. Entrance through the side door via the parking lot.