To view the funeral service and committal click
on the following link.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pSLe9c575c0&t=16s
To view the video tribute click on the
following link.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eE192fBHFOo&t=1s
Due to the current Covid-19 restrictions announced on Sunday,
the visitation that was scheduled for Tuesday April 27th has been
cancelled.
The funeral service will be private and for immediate family
only as well as the interment and Legion service.
Taylor, Merle Winnifred
(née McIntyre) passed away April 22, 2021, leaving behind a
large circle of loved ones who have been enriched by their connections
to her. Merle was born August 2, 1923, in LaRiviere, Manitoba, the
third child of the late John Sidney and Pearl (Bass) McIntyre. Growing
up on a prairie farm in the 1920s and 30s instilled a profound love of
farming and the productivity of the land, as well as, a love of
creativity and hard work that stayed with her until the very end.
Merle was also a proud veteran of WWII. She enlisted in the RCAF at
the age of 19 and trained as a wireless operator. She was so skillful
at Morse code that she was posted to Saskatoon to train aircrew as
part of the British Commonwealth Air Training Plan. While in service,
Merle met and married Fred Taylor. After the war, they settled on a
farm in North Lochaber, Nova Scotia, where they raised a family of
five boys and many bountiful crops. Besides caring for the dairy cows
and rows of strawberry plants, Merle believed deeply in contributing
to the health and well-being of any community she was part of. She was
a longtime member of Lochaber United Church and Legion Branch 59,
Antigonish. She was actively involved and volunteered with too many
organizations to list, but some examples include: The
Women’s Institute, Lochaber Community Development
Association and its predecessors, Eastern Nova Scotia Exhibition,
UNICEF, Cancer Care Nova Scotia, Nova Scotia Amateur Radio
Association, Highlander Curling Club, Northeastern Christmas Tree
Association (she was the first woman to be inducted into the Nova
Scotia Christmas Tree Growers Wall of Fame), and the Lochaber Sylvan
Lakers. In later years, she made hundreds of patchwork comforters
using her venerable manual Singer sewing machine. These quilts and
comforters went to needy families or were sold to raise money for
charity. When not working, Merle would often be engaged in some kind
of competition. There were years at the curling club where she
participated in as many as five different leagues. She was a gracious
loser, but often won. She was a multiyear champion of the annual NSARA
contest for HAM radio operators where her impressive skill with Morse
code was on full display. She was also "Canner of the Year"
several times at the Maritime Fall Fair, making her preserves, jams
and pickles well-known across the county. Merle very much appreciated
athletic excellence in others. When the rowing club came to Lochaber
Lake, she became an avid supporter and served as surrogate grandmother
to many members of the university rowing team who would stop for a hot
bowl of hamburger soup and fresh rolls after practice. Merle was
predeceased by her parents; her husband, Fred Lewis Taylor; and her
siblings, Marjorie, Elsie, and Kenneth. She is survived by her
brother, Raymond; sons and daughters-in-law, Alexander (Sandy) and
Roberta, Lloyd and Anita, Keith and Julia, Sidney and Barbara, James
and Kim, and former daughter-in-law, Heather MacKeen, along with
fifteen grandchildren and twenty nine great-grandchildren. Many
nieces, nephews and their families will also miss her dearly along
with the wide range of friends of all ages who came to view Merle as a
valued mentor, confidant, and pillar of the community. Her door was
always unlocked and a delicious meal was somehow always on the stove
and ready for anyone who came to visit. A private funeral service for
immediate family only will be held on Wednesday at 2 p.m. in Lochaber
Community Centre with Rev. Meredith Marple officiating. Interment and
Legion service for immediate family only to follow in Murray Cemetery,
South Lochaber. Family flowers only please. Memorial donations may be
made to Lochaber Community Centre or Canadian Cancer Society. Social
distancing protocols must be followed and masks are mandatory. Funeral
arrangements are under the dignified and compassionate care of G.W.
Giffin Funeral Home, 17545 Highway 316, Country Harbour. On-line
condolences may be made at: www.gwgiffin.com.