Obituary of Judith Ellan Braithwaite
Judith E. Braithwaite (nee Noonan) passed away peacefully at the Lanark Lodge in Perth, Ontario, on Wednesday, November 29, 2023 at the age of 82 and after a long journey with Alzheimer’s.
Judith was born in Regina, Saskatchewan on April 26, 1941. She was survived by her beloved lifetime love and husband of 63 incredible years, George Douglas Braithwaite.
Judith was the cherished mother of Ian Braithwaite, Barbara (Ken) Williams and Shawn Braithwaite. She was a much loved grandmother to Barbara’s children Jennifer (Andrew Pyne) Rivest, Samantha (Dan) Morton, Stephanie (Rick Boulanger) Rivest, Madison and Shawn’s daughter Hailey. She was also great grandmother of Elliot and Logan Morton. Judith was predeceased by her sister Sally of Nanaimo, BC, her brother Denis of Victoria, BC and her parents, Walter and Evelyn Noonan. She is survived by many beloved nieces and nephews.
At the age of six her family moved to Victoria, BC where they made their home for many years. Judith was a natural athlete, excelling in basketball, volleyball and track & field, in her youth. Judith met George at Sea Cadets as she blazed the trail for women, joining the Navy League Wrennettes at the age of 13 yrs. They soon became quite a “thing”, spending time together in the Sea Cadets and they married a mere 6 yrs later, on May 27, 1960, when Judith was 19 and George was 22 and a Sub. Lt. in the Royal Canadian Navy. They wasted no time starting their family of 3 children and then travelling the world and living in Victoria, Halifax, Toronto, Ottawa and England. What an adventurous life they led, travelling across Canada and the US every time they moved and to so many places, satisfying Judith’s thirst for travel and adventure, including Germany, Spain, Portugal, Canary Islands, Turkey, Greek Islands, Belgium, France and all over England. As a Navy wife, Judith became the Manager of their home and the lives of their children, supporting George through his career serving Canada as a Naval Officer. Their partnership was built on love, trust and respect and boy, did it work for them. Judith was a quilter and seamstress; she volunteered for the Special Olympics and in latter years she invested in her passion for cats by breeding and showing Russian Blues for more than a decade. She shared her artistic talents with her granddaughters, Jenn, Sam and Steph, who have the best memories of doing crafts with Grannie, watching movies, cooking at the farm and sewing all kinds of creations! Hailey loved her Grannie for making pancakes, keeping the treasure box fun and switching up the contents regularly and repeatedly watching the movie “Tangled”, mostly because Grannie loved the horse - Maximus.
Judith & George’s life together was enchanting and blessed with so many wonderful times. They leaned on each other through all of life’s ups and downs, offset each others’ strengths and shared a passion in their relationship that knew no bounds. She was such a loving and devoted mother, who was always there when you needed her.
Our thanks to the loving and caring of staff at Lanark Lodge for their exceptional care for Judith these past few years.
A celebration of life service will be held at Blair & Son Funeral Home, 15 Gore St. West, Perth on Saturday, January 20, 2024 starting at 1:00 for a visit and photo/video display with family, followed by the service at 2:00, with a Reception afterwards, on site. Cremation has already taken place.
In lieu of flowers and in memory of Judith, donations may be sent to the Alzheimer’s Society of Canada.
