Shirley Elaine Gordey, resident of Grande Prairie, AB, formerly of London, ON, passed away on Tuesday, May 14, 2019 at the age of 82 years.

Shirley was born in Seaforth, ON on January 8, 1937. She was raised in southern Ontario, spending memorable summers at the farms of her many aunts and on the beaches of Huron County. She especially loved the beaches of Grand Bend.

She left high school to attend the Windsor Business College and worked at the head office of London Life, in London, ON. On August 3, 1957, Shirley returned to Windsor and had a first date on the beach with Paul Gordey, and after a short courtship, they married on April 19, 1958. In 1961 the family moved to Sexsmith, AB so Paul could farm with his dad. Shirley worked in the family owned grocery store/coffee shop and did the books for Paul’s new construction company.

Mom had an incredibly bright, creative mind and was content and happy spending time on her own. She loved exploring the world of books and was drawn to creative outlets like painting, music, and painstaking crafts like paper tole. Always a detail person, she documented her life in daily journals until the day before she died. Her organizational and planning skills were alive and well until the very end with her weekly couponing and shopping lists that often became a scavenger hunt to complete.

Mom suffered from depression and anxiety in her adult life, long before it was understood or accepted. She shared her struggles to help teach her children about resilience and these misunderstood issues. Happily, in the last 10 years she enjoyed positive mental health - she was free and we got our mom back. Her quick wit and optimism made it so easy to enjoy every moment with her.

She will be sadly missed by her “girls”: Mona Rowland (Blaine), Kim Gordey (Patrick) and Lisa Desgagne (Paul); grandchildren: Christina Pawluski (Vince), Clinton Rowland (Vanessa), Sarah McDonald (Jared), Stefan Desgagne (Brittany), Danielle Desgagne (Daniel), Josh Desgagne (Brooklyn), and Mya O’Donoghue; as well as numerous great-grandchildren.

She was predeceased by her husband Paul Gordey, mother Helen Kirkby, father Lew Kirby, younger sister “Betty Lou” Malone, and her dog Dusty.

A Memorial Service will be held on Saturday, June 1, 2019, at 11:00am, at St. Paul’s United Church in Grande Prairie (10206 100 Ave.).

In lieu of flowers, memorial donations may be made to the Canadian Cancer Society (200, 325 Manning Road NE, Calgary, AB, T2E 2P5).

Special thanks from the family to the caring staff of The Gardens. She loved her home there because of each and every one of you.