Jean Buchanan

Jean Buchanan; Olive Jean Buchanan was born Feb. 23, 1913, the youngest child of the late Alex and Elizabeth (Yake) Buchanan. She greatly admired her oldest sisters, Luella (Arthur) Drummond and Evelyn (Tim) Dyce and was a bit in awe of her brother Alex (Mamie) Buchanan. Her play years were spent with her sister Elva (Herb) Eady and lots of cousins and neighbours who attended S.S. #8 Egremont school. Later, she lived in town during the week when she attended Mount Forest District High School. While Jean attended MacDonald Hall at Guelph University, she lived with Evelyn and Tim. She sometimes took responsibility for Rolf and Marilyn (Dyce) Arden who were little children at that time. At least one summer was spent at a cottage on Sunnyside Beach, near Meaford, where Evelyn and Jean stayed with the children while Tim taught during the week at Guelph University. Jean often said she did not need to have children of her own since she had three nieces and five nephews. Although Jean graduated as a dietitian, she never worked in this field. Instead she traveled, working in large holiday resorts in the United States and The Bahamas. Jean loved warm weather and lived for several years in Florida and California, also visiting the Hawaiian Islands. For some time, Jean earned her living with her art; painting beautiful scarves etc. When she decided that she needed to seriously prepare for her retirement years, Jean returned to Toronto and worked as an independent bookkeeper for several small businesses. At age 65, Jean retired and returned to live in Mount Forest. Jean enjoyed becoming reacquainted with former high school friends and joined in many community activities. She and her friend, Sandy McPhail, had lots of happy times together. Sandy provided a vehicle for transportation and Jean provided delicious meals, including picnics. In her latter years, Jean lived in Meaford. She enjoyed having flowers on her apartment patio and felt she was gardening for the first time. She loved colour and saw beauty in many places. Throughout her years, Jean was a seeker of spiritual truth. She was open to new ideas and sought spiritual guidance through study and quiet meditation. She enjoyed stimulating discussion with like-minded individuals and was a life-long learner. Perhaps this was the reason she always seemed so young. On reflecting about her life, Jean was pleased with her decisions. She felt she had taken interesting opportunities and had no regrets. She once said she would have liked to see more of her own country, Canada, but then quickly added if she done so she would have missed other wonderful adventures. Jean was greatly loved and respected by three generations of nieces and nephews. She touched their lives in beautiful ways and left them with many warm and wonderful memories. Thank you, Jean, for enriching our lives with your special presence.