Barbara Mary Corkery
October 6th 1931 –
December 13th 2011
But O for the touch of a vanished hand, And the sound of a voice that is still!
Barbara Mary Corkery passed away on December 13, 2011 in Jubilee Manor at the age of 80.
She was born October 6th, 1931 in the city of St. Helens in Lancashire England to Captain Arthur Litherland OBE and Ellen Noblet Litherland. The youngest of three children, she studied physiotherapy in nearby Liverpool and upon graduating, worked at the Providence Hospital in St Helens. This is where she met Patrick Corkery, a recently qualified doctor from Ireland whom she decided to marry. This marriage would last 54 years. She was raised Anglican but became a Catholic like Patrick and it was her faith that sustained her in her long illness.
They were married in 1957 and had two children, John and Bridget. They made another significant decision in 1966 and decided to emigrate to Canada and started anew in Lloydminster and then Edmonton, Alberta. Patrick continued to practice medicine and Barbara physiotherapy but her real passion was golf. Always an athlete, as her trophies attest to, she and Patrick played golf at every opportunity. The competition was fierce as she occasionally bested him but it was always friendly.
In 1983 they left the prairies and moved to St John, New Brunswick and Barbara was back by the ocean again. They spent many happy years there, especially after Patrick retired, going to concerts, playing golf, and travelling back to England and Ireland to see family. However, at some point Barbara knew not all was well with her health and insisted they move closer to their children, John resides in Calgary and Bridget with her husband Michael Grace and three boys, Gavin, Adam and Neil live here in Nelson.
So in 2005, they moved back west and finally settled in Nelson. Unfortunately, this is where her eyesight began to fail which robbed her of three of her favorite pastimes, driving, reading and working on her original needlework designs. Eventually, Alzheimers disease began to take hold and prevented her from playing golf. Throughout everything, she found solace in her faith and her family and we remember her as beautiful and strong.
The family would like to thank, the medical community, the Catholic parish, Broader Horizons, and the Alzheimer Society. We would especially like to note the wonderful care Barbara received at Jubilee Manor, and the support provided by her neighbours.
The funeral was held at the Nelson Cathedral on December 16 and the interment will be announced at a later date.
Thank-you all.
Funeral arrangements were under the direction of Thompson Funeral Service Ltd. On line condolences may be expressed at www.thompsonfs.ca