January 27, 1937 - January 14, 2025
In loving memory ~
Surrounded by love, Audrey passed away peacefully in her Cranbrook, BC home, just shy of her 88th birthday. Audrey was a walker her entire life and rarely missed her daily walks - her children remember having trouble keeping up with her from an early age. A sun lover, Audrey enjoyed warm days tending her gardens and sitting on her deck listening to birds and the sound of her waterfall.
Audrey was born in Arcola, SK and moved to Winnipeg at the age of 5 with her mother, Elsie Butt, and her two sisters, Wilma and Marlene, after their father died in January 1943. The girls returned to Saskatchewan during the summers when school was out and Arcola was the place Audrey always considered home. As a teenager, she was a member of the Manitoba Youth Orchestra and played the violin.
In 1957, when Audrey was 20, she was anxious to have an "adventure" and moved to be with her sister's family in Fort William, ON. She got a job immediately at Canada Car & Foundry working with punch cards in the aircraft parts department. Not long after moving in with her sister Wilma and her husband Nick, she answered the door on Halloween night to find her future husband on the doorstep calling out "Halloween Treats". Don (Donald) had come over to meet with Nick, who was his boss from work. Don was so enamoured with Audrey that he called her up later and asked her out to their first date to a company holiday dance. A quick romance turned into marriage for the two of them on August 30th, 1958 in Fort William. They built a family of 7 in a modest home before moving to Terrace, BC on December 29th, 1967.
While Don worked as a forester, Audrey raised their children and later became a dental assistant. In 1985, she purchased The Fabric Boutique, where she and Don worked together; Don in the office and Audrey with customers and teaching sewing. Audrey was an expert sewer and always made all her own clothing, but it was here where she discovered her love of quilting.
After Don's passing in 1996, Audrey moved to Cranbrook, BC, with her youngest daughter, Joan, and grandsons. She embraced her new community, making close friends and becoming president of the Cranbrook Quilters Guild. She remained active as a quilter almost to the day she passed. Audrey shared her Cranbrook life with her daughter Joan and son-in-law Clayton Murrell, often cheering them on at rodeo events. After their tragic passing in 2018, Audrey found comfort when her eldest daughter, Jane and family joined her in 2020. She took great pride in living independently in her beloved home, surrounded by family and friends.
Audrey always had a healthy, can-do attitude. A practical, common sense, courageous, comforting and compassionate person to the end, she thought the best of everyone. She was a successful business owner, quilter, seamstress, dental assistant, chinchilla wrangler and devoted mother of five.
Audrey will be deeply missed by her children, grandchildren and great-grandchildren:
Greg (Vanessa) of Vernon BC, grandchild Samantha (Adam), great-grandchildren Reid and Rory, grandchild Darby (Aaron) great-grandchild Sutter.
Doug (Elsie) of Burnaby, BC
Jane (Frank) of Cranbrook BC, grandchildren, Peter, Tara (Patrick), great-grandchildren Parker & Cohen, grandchildren Carter, Cassidy (Brett), Jaydin, Elijah & Kaelin
Rick (Cindy) of Vernon, BC, and grandchildren Sam (Bryce), Kyle and Kera
Grandchild Aaron (Hayley), great-grandchildren Aubrey & Grady, grandchild Andrew (Tasha), great-grandchildren Shaide & Felix
Predeceased by:
Parents Ralph and Elsie Butt, sister Wilma Green (1977), loving husband Donald MacKinnon (1996), daughter Joan and son-in-law Clayton Murrell (together in 2018).
At Audrey's request, there will be no Celebration of Life. Her remains will be placed beside Donald in Terrace, BC. In June, her children will gather in Vernon, BC, to honor her life and share cherished memories.
