Margaret Joan Brick, after a lengthy battle with cancer, passed away peacefully Sunday morning August 25, 2024 at Dulcina Hospice at St. Marguerite Manor in Calgary with her husband Bob by her side. She is predeceased by her son Laurie Leigh, her mother Lois Kloster and her father Earl Stewart, infant sisters Lois and Louise. She is survived by her husband Bob, daughter Michelle (Vince) and 2 grandchildren Alissa and Tyler, siblings Eleanor, Kenney, Stanley, Tony and their spouses, along with numerous nieces, nephews, cousins and an expansive extended family and friends.

Joan was a daughter, sister, wife, auntie, mother, grandmother, cousin, friend and caregiver. But none of those titles can adequately describe what she meant to those of us fortunate enough to have felt her love. Her enormous presence leaves a void it is impossible to overstate. Joan was delightfully loquacious and spoke enthusiastically with a joyous, free flowing laugh. She was a fountain of knowledge, history and opinions and was endlessly fascinated by people. Family, friends, historical and significant world figures all captured her attention. She cared deeply for the well-being of all people and enjoyed speaking at length about the human experience.

For a half century she was a nurse. Yet, as much gravity as that word already encompasses, she characteristically redefined it. She cared for people so profoundly, nursing wasn’t just a career for her, but her defining trait. She had an abundance of love for family and friends but just as much for strangers in need. Her doors were fixed open to anyone who found their way to her front step. A meal, a safe space, a bed, an ear to bend or a shoulder to cry on, she provided all that and so much more. In time, many of those strangers became dearest family.

Her boundless love extended to animals in the same way. As many dogs and cats benefited from her abundant compassion and generous spirit as did humans. She couldn’t tolerate any creature being in need, suffering or lacking in care. There was always the capacity to love one more and the resources to provide whatever they needed. From very early on, Joan loved anthropology and theology. Her bottomless reserve of compassion found roots in this curiosity about our nature, spirituality and the origins of our humanity.

It is impossible to think of Joan without books coming to mind. Her house was filled from floor to ceiling and corner to corner with hundreds, maybe thousands of books. She would often pull out a book in mid-sentence and open it to a relevant passage. If there was a book that made her think of you, it found its way into your collection. Many of us have books on our shelves with her name written in her distinct handwriting along the edge of the pages. There is a matrilineal tradition of researching and preserving our family history and Joan followed in the footsteps of her grandmother and Aunt Bea before her. She spent countless hours reading books, pouring over historical records, manifests, birth and death

certificates. She was in her element digging through historical archives and wandering through graveyards tracing our ancestors back across four centuries.

Born in North Battleford, Saskatchewan in 1948, she was honoured by her Métis heritage and was a sensitive student of the complicated history of our nation’s Indigenous peoples and how our own family history wove its way through that story. She would eagerly share what she’d learned to ensure her many nieces, nephews and cousins understood where they came from and how that history created a foundation for who we are today.

Joan was very proud of her father’s service in World War II and his remarkable contribution to Canada’s war effort. Her insatiable desire for understanding fueled her research and the participation in her dad’s military reunions over the years. She tirelessly ensured we would never forget his personal sacrifice and commitment to the historic joint Canadian/US special forces unit in which he served.

Joan was an exceptional woman who chose a life of service providing for the needs of others. To the very end, she gave of herself whatever she could, without expecting anything in return.

We will miss her dearly, but she will live on in all the lives she enriched through her care and attention. No one in our family was untouched by her love. Beyond that, she positively impacted more lives than we will likely ever know through her work, her participation in various groups and simply the way she moved through the world, talking with whomever would spend a moment with her. Her intuitively charitable nature, and innumerable acts of generosity, will ripple across generations. We love you Joan, we thank you and we will never forget you.

Condolences for the family can be made at www.eternalmemoriesfuneral.ca  Arrangements were entrusted to Eternal Memories Funeral Service & Crematorium – Trevor Watts Funeral Director.

• Date : 2024-10-07
• Location : Calgary, AB