MAVIS EGAN (THOMAS)

Adjust Text Size: A+ A-

MAVIS EGAN
June 24, 1931 - February 20, 2022

Peacefully on the morning of February 20, Mavis Egan (nee Thomas), beloved mother of Frances (husband Robert), Martin (wife Karen) and Sean (wife Cathy), and grandmother to Glennys, James and Francis, passed from this life to be reunited with her husband Dermot and others who have gone before her.
Mavis was born to Cyril and Frances Thomas in Carmarthen, Wales on June 24, 1931. Given that she lost her father when she was just five years old and he was only 31, and that her mother died at 43, her children feel blessed that Mavis lived past her 90th birthday. Mum grew close to her stepfather Bill Walters, who was influential in the ultimate decision to emigrate to Canada. An only child, she cherished her cousins, particularly Margaret Lee, whom she missed intensely. After her children were grown, Mum travelled back frequently to Wales to see Margaret.
Mavis met Dermot, an Irishman working temporarily in Wales, at a Carmarthen dance when she was 20 years old. After enduring a pre-internet long-distance relationship, Mum and Dad were married on October 17, 1953 in Carmarthen. She immediately joined him in Belfast, Northern Ireland. Daughter Frankie was born in July 1954 and in April 1957 the young family made the decision to follow Bill Walters to Canada. Son Martin was born in Sarnia, Ontario in 1958 and son Sean in Toronto in 1961. In 1969, the family moved to Winnipeg.
Mavis cherished her time as a stay-at-home mum. She often shared warm memories of Wales, baked Welsh Cakes, and decorated her home with Carmarthen market pictures as well as a growing collection of Welsh Love Spoons. We kids may forever be attempting to recreate Mum's wonderful but now lost recipe for curried lamb.
As the family grew older, Mum stepped back into the working world and was employed in the payroll departments of CNIB, Wilson's Office Specialty and finally Manitoba Department of Natural Resources, from where she retired in 1991. She enjoyed the camaraderie of the workplace and cherished mentoring younger co-workers.
Mum had an excellent sense of humour, was kind and generous and guided by her faith. She was a beautiful knitter, a passionate reader of mystery novels and enjoyed golf and curling. She loved to shop and lunch, especially with old friend Rene Day. Mum loved to travel and shared fond memories of trips to the UK, Florida, Greece, Israel and Egypt (with Sean and family) and Canary Islands and Paris (with cousin Margaret and her extended Welsh family).
Mum was a loving grandmother and enjoyed babysitting whenever given the opportunity to do so. She could often be heard bragging about her children's and grandchildren's accomplishments.
Until mobility issues set in, Mavis was a devoted member of Saint Ignatius Parish and looked forward to coffee sessions with the 'Chicken Delight Gang' after daily Mass.
Mavis will be dearly missed by her children and grandchildren, her sister-cousin Margaret and numerous nieces and nephews in Wales and Australia (who know her as their beloved "Aunty Strawberry") and her special pal June Woodward, with whom she shared granddaughter Glennys and enjoyed many movie nights and Sunday family dinners. Thanks to Iva Wilson, with whom she shared grandsons, James and Francis, for her friendship through the years and who, along with June, kept in phone contact during these COVID times.
The family would like to thank the staff of the Kildonan Care Centre, as well as the Poseidon Care Centre, Concordia Village and Manitoba Home Care, for the attention and care they provided to Mum as her health declined over the last three years.
A Funeral Mass is to be scheduled in the future. In lieu of flowers, donations may be made to St. Ignatius Parish or the Canadian National Institute for the Blind.

KLASSEN FUNERAL HOME
204-338-0331
Condolences may be sent to
www.klassenfuneralhome.com

As published in Winnipeg Free Press on Feb 26, 2022