Willow Ingham

Our dear mother, Willow passed away peacefully on Monday, December 16, 2019 at the age of 97 years. She will forever be loved and appreciated by all those who knew her. Loving wife of the late George Austin Ingham (August 2000). Cherished mother of Jane Thompson (John), Brian Ingham (Carole), Wendy Mitchell (James) and Scott Ingham. Grandmother of Tanya, Kevin, Matthew, Andrea, Laura, Blake, Victoria, Sarah and Gordon. Great-grandmother of Jesse, Liam, Alida and Marilla. Predeceased by her brother Roy Bain. 

Willow had a long, wonderful life as a daughter, sister, wife, mom, grandmother, student, teacher, world traveler, athlete, nature-lover and as a friend to many especially her children. Born and raised in Sudbury, she spent her summers cruising the upper Georgian Bay shores or racing up and down the black rock hills behind her house. She excelled in the classroom, on stage, the tennis court or the hockey rink. (See mom, captain of the Victoria College women’s hockey team while an English major on scholarship at University of Toronto.) Mom met George there and they married in 1947. Over the next thirty years they raised four loving children. Whether supporting her family, keeping in touch with friends, staging the weekend trip to “the family cottage on Six Mile Lake”, world traveling, playing tennis, bridge, scrabble, mom was always fully engaged. She was a member of church, school and community associations such as the Britannia Yacht Club, Probus, and Canadian Federation University Women. A personification of life-long learning, she was a voracious reader, making copious notes on (and sometimes even in) the books she read. Though a champion tennis player into her late seventies, she will mostly be remembered for her quick step, tremendous intellect, spry wit and the alacrity with which she would break into a related song, verse or quote. Strong-willed, sometimes sassy, always sensible, interested, interesting, generous and very funny, Willow remained a true mentor to her children and partner to her husband. She was indeed so bright, so full of life and so beautiful inside and out, like a resilient willow in winter.

A memorial service will be held this spring in Midland Ontario, the date and place to be announced. Interment to follow at Pinecrest Cemetery, Ottawa, ON. In Memoriam donations may be made to the Reaching for Rainbows Foundation at reachingforrainbows.com.

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