Local residents are remembering Elizabeth O'Connor as a literacy advocate and passionate defender of human rights.
A retired school teacher who grew up in Ireland, O’Connor passed away Nov. 13 at Hospice Huronia in her 89th year.
After retiring from 40 years of teaching and beginning to live full-time in Midland, O’Connor volunteered with the town’s Seniors Council and chaired it for three terms helping to inspire seniors and studying the gaps in services.
Longtime friend Diane Greenfield says O’Connor did everything quietly and compassionately and left her mark on everyone she met.
“Her love of reading and libraries made her a committed team member for 22 years to the Library Garden Tour that raised money for area libraries,” Greenfield explains.
O’Connor’s love of reading and strong sentiment that books could serve as instruments of change was evident when she participated in the second annual Midland Reads debate that saw participants outline the merits of a book that attempts to break barriers.
As she discussed the book Intolerable by Canadian journalist Kamal Al-Solaylee, O’Connor recalled bringing a group of students for a summer camp in the Yukon.
“And I knew nothing about summer camps, but we muddled through it and had an absolutely amazing experience and were invited back the year after,” she notes.
O’Connor goes on to discuss the many barriers she has broken in her own life.
“Religious barriers, family barriers, social norms that I grew up in a very restricted small-town in Ireland and it’s all been very positive,” she explains. “I’ve learned a great deal.”
And up until last year, O’Connor also taught English as a Second Language to newcomers in the Midland area so they could get jobs and assimilate into the local community.
O’Connor, who also travelled extensively, lived in several countries when she was in service to the church, including France, Switzerland and Nigeria before moving to Canada and eventually settling in Midland.
Throughout her life, she was a strong advocate for peace, social justice and civil liberties.
Starting in 2002, O’Connor became an active member of Peaceworks where she worked to shine a light on diplomatic alternatives to war.
“She wanted there to be permanent landmarks to recognize and encourage people to think of good actions and peace in the community and in the world,” Greenfield tells MidlandToday.
“That resulted in the construction of two beautiful landmarks that will become part of her living legacy: The Peace Pavilion on the Penetanguishene waterfront and The Peace Garden Resting Place on the Midland waterfront.”
Fellow Peaceworks member Pat Taylor says O’Connor’s presence will be greatly missed.
“She was so well-informed on the daily goings-on of the world,” Taylor says, noting O’Connor regularly wrote MPs to express concerns and advocate for a better nation and world.
“She knew what was needed and did it. She was willing to work for justice and help us better understand. She had a passion we depended on.”
An avid gardener and animal lover, O'Connor was also involved with the Stephen Lewis Foundation Grandmothers to Grandmothers campaign.
Local chapter president Cathy Pelletier describes O’Connor was a “force of nature in her own quiet way.”
Adds Pelletier: “She was a consistent supporter of our events including our most recent and largest annual fundraising event - the African dinner in October."
A visitation for O'Connor is slated for Thursday at noon at Nicholls Funeral Home in Midland with a memorial service in the funeral home's chapel an hour later.
