Lillian Jones

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Born in Grandview, Manitoba, Lil grew up with two brothers, Sam and Cy and her sister Phyl. They were 8, 6 and 4 years older than she was and she said she felt at times like an only child.

Her father barbered and fixed radios to bring in money and her mother kept house. She attended school in Roblin until Grade 12 and then moved to Toronto where she lived with her sister and some flatmates.

One of her flatmates was working at a bank and was able to get her a job working in the savings department where she learned the basics of bookkeeping; having never been in a big city bank before it was a culture shock to her.

During the war you had to go to a certain place that was what we would today call a centralized job hub. Lil was sent to BA Oil Co. at King and Yonge St. The job was working in dividends. She stayed there for three years and then moved to Commercial Credit Finance Co. on the 2nd floor of the Park Plaza hotel and became assistant department head of accounting. She continued to work there for just over sixteen years until she was married.

She met Bryant, the love of her life through a mutual friend while living in Toronto. They met at a Christmas party when one of the guests asked how her MG was running. She told him it needed an overhaul, as British cars usually do, and the guest knew just the person to introduce her to, her future husband Bryant; they married 8 years later.

Bryant had completed his master’s degree in industrial engineering and he then worked for CN Rail in Montreal. They began looking for a home there but at the same time Bryant was offered a teaching opportunity at Ryerson Polytechnical Institute in Toronto so he and Lil stayed in Toronto. They had 2 children, Karen and Andrew. In 1972 Bryant decided to begin work on a PhD in Engineering Education and the family ended up commuting between Toronto and Morgantown West Virginia for several years.

Sadly Bryant passed away from cancer in 1976 before completing his doctorate. Lil was heartbroken but worked tirelessly to look after her 2 children and the home. She threw herself into activities at Rexdale Alliance Church helping with activities, teaching Sunday school and providing baked goods to any and every event. She was a fixture in the church for many years.

Sadly she began to experience cognitive decline and needed to move to a long-term care home where she lived until her passing.

Here are a few words she left us with:

1. Eat well, get exercise and walk a mile a day. Don't just eat, sleep and watch TV. Your muscles will be gone in a short time.

2. I took flying lessons at the Toronto Island Airport but did not have enough money to take more than one a month. So I had to quit, but my great desire was to fly a plane.

3. If I would live my life over again, I would like to be a missionary. When I was very young I had a great desire to go to South America and help the children.

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