Alminta Edith Mary (Butler) May

Passed away peacefully October 26, 2022 at Hospice Vaughan after several months of declining health. She happily celebrated her 100th birthday and always said she never expected to live this long!

Born in Brownsburg, QC to parents Lilian and Harold, she moved with them and her younger brother, John (all predeceased), first to Montreal at the age of 13 and then to Toronto when she was 16. Working first at De Havilland Canada, then Divadale Hospital, and then The Department of Veterans Affairs prior to marriage, she met John May (predeceased) on the train returning from visiting friends in Stratford, Ontario in 1950. They were engaged in 1951 and married in 1952.

Alminta was a kind and caring person with a positive outlook on life. She was an extremely social woman who charmed the doctors, nurses, and PSWs right up to the end. She worked for many years as an elementary school secretary at both Cartwright and Ancaster Public Schools and was beloved by staff and students alike, seen as everybody’s “Mom” in the truest sense of the word. Her trip home from work via TTC buses usually resulted in a story about “the nicest man (or woman) I met today”, which we always teased her about.

Left to mourn her loss are her children Christopher (Nikki), Peter (Tracy) and Martha (John Burnet), and grandchildren Janine (Ian Huth), Karen and Bradley (Bryna) May, as well as step-grandchildren Jessica (James Dunlop) and Rebecca. Great grandmother to Alexandra, Hailey, Jayde, Kaitlyn and Lauryn and step-great grandmother to Isla, Aubree, Everett and Eli. Special ‘Auntie Al’ to Kate Butler and Michael Butler (Christine Hughes). “HM” to Janet (John) Weidendorf. Extended family including her kissin’ cousins Bradley, Martin, Robert, John, and Paul and her many friends, especially ‘Sis’ Betty Secker, Lois Thornton, Bev Sneyd and Karen Savoie. She will be missed more than she could ever know and would be embarrassed by all these accolades!

Special thanks to the kind and caring staff at Hospice Vaughan, who made her last days peaceful and comfortable. Thank you also to Drs. Jason Skeete and Trevor Morey. Finally, a huge thank you to her exceptional PSW, Kana Silvano, who made such a difference in all of our lives!

Funeral service to be held at St. Philip’s Anglican Church, 31 St. Philips Road, Etobicoke on Saturday, November 12 at 1 pm with reception to follow. The family requests that in lieu of flowers, donations be made in Alminta’s memory to Hospice Vaughan .