In loving memory of Beverley Joan Cairns (nee Woolmer).

November 23, 1930 - August 18, 2022

It is with sadness that we announce the death of our mother, Beverley Joan Cairns (nee Woolmer), on August 18, 2022, in Hawkesbury, Ontario. She was an elegant, passionate person who saw life in brilliant colours, fought for her vision of what the world should be, and remained fiercely independent until the very end. Her life spanned a great arc, from a Catholic-infused childhood in Montréal, to years as an expatriate in Africa and Europe, to her final decades in Elora, Ontario, where she became known and respected for her community engagement. All of this was underpinned by her belief in the paramount importance of family, and the critical role of aesthetics, and was sustained by the strength that she drew from the Quebec family cottage she loved with all her heart. Here she retreated to replenish herself every summer, and here she spent her final days.

Beverley was born in Montréal, Québec, to Henry (“Harry”) Woolmer and Estelle (“Estie”) Cloutier. Her early years were spent in an extended family home in Outremont, followed by a move to Hamilton, Ontario at age 14. Throughout her life she remained strongly influenced by her upbringing in a bilingual, multi-generational family, her Catholic schooling at Notre-Dame-de-Bon-Secours, and her difficult hospitalization for polio as an adolescent.

She attended the University of Western Ontario, where she met her future husband, John Cairns. In 1951, after her year at l’École des Beaux-arts de Montréal, the couple married, setting sail the next day for Tanganyika, where John had taken an administrative post. During seven years in Tanganyika, she encountered overlapping East Indian, Arab, and tribal cultures and became aware that the world may be seen through many different lenses. Her two eldest daughters, Sandra and Lisa, were born at this time – a period which seemed surrounded, in her subsequent recounting, by a golden haze.

Returning to Canada in 1958, she was introduced to the Québec property her parents had acquired for the extended family. This sprawling riverside log home became her lifelong sanctuary, assuming an almost mythical quality. The next four years were spent in Ontario, where twin daughters Stephanie and Eva were born. In 1962, inspired by happy memories of Tanganyika, the family moved to Eastern Nigeria. Two years later, her son, Graeme, was born.

In 1966, the family returned once more to Canada. However, the plan to settle there was interrupted when, in 1968, John was offered a position with UNESCO in Paris. The prospect of living in Paris was overwhelmingly attractive – walking the same streets as so many famous artists, savouring the history that imbued every stone, giving the children a French education – and so the family moved to France.

In 1974, the family came back to Canada for good. Inspired by beautiful historic homes in Europe, John and Beverley undertook a laborious and years-long, hands-on renovation of a derelict stone house in the heart of the village of Elora. This was their home for the rest of their

lives and, along with its curated wildflower garden, perfectly expressed Beverley’s artistic vision – even when it came at the cost of comfort or practicality. During these years, an intertwined bond was formed with Allegra and Riel, Sandra’s children, whom she helped to raise in Elora. As her family responsibilities diminished, Beverley became increasingly involved in the Elora community. She engaged passionately with heritage designation, architectural conservancy, and the arts, all the while reinvigorating her own artistic pursuits with a focus on sculpture.

Saint Francis of Assisi was close to her heart. Beverley’s guests were sometimes treated to the sight of mice dashing across the kitchen floor and the sound of squirrels scurrying in the attic. She insisted that these creatures not be excluded from their (and her) home, waving away concerns of disease or property damage. She loved water; she amazed her children in the last months of her life by shimmying over the high lip of a snowed-in hot tub – despite tremendous frailty – to immerse herself in delightful liquid warmth. She was an indefatigable and hardy traveller, enjoying herself all-the-more if “gracious” accommodation could be arranged. Until the very end she regularly reminded her children that she would happily rent a villa in Italy with them or join them for a jaunt to Thailand. Nothing gave her more pleasure than a late, candlelit dinner at a well-laid table, with plenty of wine and conversation, preferably outdoors - and, over the years, she devoted many hours to producing such feasts for family and friends. Beverley’s lifelong intellectual curiosity was an example to us all. Although often appearing dogmatic, over time she quietly revised many opinions that had been strongly voiced. No day was complete without a “sundowner” – usually a stiff gin and tonic – and we toast to you now, Beverley, in recognition of the many gifts you gave us.

Beverley was predeceased by her parents, Harry and Estie Woolmer, husband, John Crawford Cairns, and sister, Shirley. She is survived by her five children: Sandra, Lisa (Woody), Stephanie (Eric), Eva (David) and Graeme, six grandchildren: (Allegra (Dave), Riel (Melissa), Rowan, Sebastian, Lyra and Anders and four great-grandchildren: Isaac, Calian, Kwaya, and Luca.

A memorial celebration will be held in Elora, Ontario in late November.

The family acknowledges with gratitude the community support without which Beverley’s vision of independence and life on her own terms would not have been possible.

Those wishing to donate in memory of Beverley may consider two organizations dear to her heart:
TradeAid UK (https://tradeaiduk.org/)
and the Elora Fergus Arts Council (https://eloraartscouncil.ca/).

Gael Ellis