Korinek, Shirley Alice nee Jeffery
Born: Louth Township, Ontario: January 26, 1936
Died: Fonthill, Ontario, December 18, 2021
It is with great sadness that we announce the death of our beloved mother and grandmother Shirley Alice (Jeffery) Korinek. Devoted wife of the late Fred Korinek for 56 years; mother to Dr. Valerie Korinek (Simonne Horwitz) of Saskatoon and Kimberley Korinek, CPA (John Barrett) of Toronto. Much loved grandmother of Thomas and Daniel of Saskatoon; and Jack, Hilary, Jacob, and Ken of Toronto. Beloved sister of Joyce Richardson (Reg Tufford), and aunt of Jeffery Richardson (Sandra) and Christy Van Dyk (Gary). Predeceased by her parents Alice and Harry Jeffery.
Shirley grew up in Louth Township, now St. Catharines, into a loving family and had great memories of family, community, musical and church activities. She was a member of 4H, raising prized banty chickens, a talented piano student, involved in glee clubs, choirs, community skating, theatricals and dances. Some of her fondest memories were of those years, her friends, her siblings, family pets, teachers and parents. Her family vacationed in York, Maine, and those were memorable annual trips. Mom was involved in her parent’s dairy, Jeffery’s Diary, and well known on the various routes-Port Dalhousie, Vineland, Jordan. She loved working with her parents in this capacity.
Shirley graduated (Grade 13) from the St. Catharines Collegiate Institute in 1954 and subsequently attended Hamilton Teacher’s College. She drove a group of fellow students from the region and regaled us with stories of those commutes in her VW bug. Mom was a brilliant teacher, she taught elementary school in St. Catharines for a decade. Kindergarten was her favourite, and she was an admired teacher, still receiving cards from students, families and colleagues well into her seventies. In 1964, Shirley made a bold move, meeting Fred Korinek, a businessman from Toronto, and in 1965 they married, and she moved to the Kingsway area of Etobicoke. There she turned all her talents to mothering and homemaking. She was devoted to Valerie and Kimberley, involved in the Kingsway Women’s Club, Kingsway Lambton United Church, and in school trips at Branksome Hall, in addition to all the girls’ activities. Throughout those active family years in Toronto, Mom remained devoted to her widowed mother in Niagara, making weekly trips in her gold Camaro with her miniature poodle Pierre at her side. Together, our family enjoyed many happy years in the Kingsway and at the cottage in Wasaga Beach.
In 1985 Mom and Dad moved back to the region, first to a beautiful farm on the Niagara escarpment in Vineland, and then in 1999 to their beloved home in Fonthill. In 2001, when her grandchildren began to arrive, Mom was thrilled and immediately embarked on many knitted outfits, cooking, visiting, doing crafts, reading to them (complete with trips to Fonthill Public Library to stock up on books) and above all following their exploits, activities and passions. We have literally hundreds of photos of her surrounded by grandchildren, reading, talking, and totally engaged in their lives. Her passions for the Montreal Canadians, family genealogy, the Royals, stories of the region, heirloom recipes, sing songs around the piano, and trips to Florida were amongst many things Mom shared with her grandkids. Mom also loved travelling to visit her grandkids and daughters, she travelled frequently to Saskatoon, Toronto and Georgian Bay for memorable family visits. She returned from her last trip « out west » in October 2021.
Mom realized the important things in life were family, love, time together, and making special memories. Her daughters spoke to Mom every day, and were in Fonthill every week, to try to fill the tremendous void left by our Dad’s passing in May 2021. She was, quite simply, the heart of our family. Unfortunately, time was no longer on Mom’s side. Having fought three cancer diagnoses, the fourth bout proved too much even for a person as strong and brave as our mother. She died with her beloved daughters at her side after a brief hospitalization. We are grateful that until those final days she was able to live in her home as she wished. Our family wishes to thank the incredible nurses and staff at the Welland Hospital for their loving care. A private visitation and funeral will take place at the Pelham Funeral Home, Fonthill. Those who wish to view the service may do so via live stream by going to the PELHAM FUNERAL HOME Facebook page on Tuesday December 28th beginning at 11 am, please log on by 10:50 am. Burial will follow at Victoria Lawn Cemetery in St. Catharines. As an expression of sympathy, donations may be made to Covenant House, Toronto, or to the Mouth and Foot Painting Artists (www.mfpacanada.com ) Online condolences may be shared at www. pelhamfuneralhome.ca
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Saturday December 18th 2021
Nos plus sincères sympathies à la famille et aux amis de Shirley Alice Korinek Jeffery Saturday December 18th 2021..
Décès pour la Ville:FONTHILL, Province: Ontario