Who am I to write Mary’s story?

Thirty years ago I moved to Ottawa as a young mother and wife. I didn’t know or care too much about my ancestral connection to the city and only came to know it in later years as I researched city archives for Ordinary Mary.

Mary Loretto’s grandfather, Martin Flynn, is sitting in the middle of the black and white photograph below. He is my great, great Grandfather. Thanks to the spark generated by my grandfather and uncle’s memoirs, the more I heard about my Irish rooted family’s immigration to Ottawa, their beginnings in the lumber industry and the role the Upper Ottawa Valley played, the more astounded and highly curious I became.

Then I began to hear about Mary Loretto from Ottawa people who had been born and raised in Pembroke. Bombarded with stories about her effect on peoples’ lives, I knew I needed to discover who she was. Once I did, I knew what I had to do—share her story with you as well as the surprising unanticipated bonus of finding my own roots, homeland and mentor.

That is why I am writing her story. I hope you enjoy it when it is completed and until then, enjoy the photos and blog posts about Mary’s life and times. 

Mary and her beloved sister Dorothy in their last resting place. St. Columba’s Cemetery in Pembroke, Ontario, Canada. Note: Mary’s birth year is in error. She was born in 1904.