Mary Holmes
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Mary Holmes (nee Kirwen) was born March 25, 1942 to Mary and William Kirwen in Nottingham, England. Mary had an older sister (Elizebeth) and a younger brother (Bill). Mary grew up mainly in Nottingham and also accompanied her parents to live in Malawi, Africa for a time. It was in Nottingham that Mary met her future husband and life long partner, Gary.
Gary and Mary were wed on September 25, 1968 in Nottingham and welcomed their first son (Nigel) February of 1969. Later that year Gary moved from Nottingham over to Grande Cache, AB Canada to begin a new career in the local coal mine that had started up. Mary and son soon followed in November of 1969. In September of 1970 they welcomed their second son, Jason who was the first of the family to be born in Canada.
The family moved to the Crowsnest Pass (Coleman) AB in 1973. In 1980, the family welcomed their first daughter, April into the family. They remained in Coleman until 1986 when work brought the family back to Grande Cache. Other than a 3 year move back to Nottingham, Gary and Mary made Grande Cache their home for the remainder of their years.
Gary, sadly passed away from illness while on vacation to visit family in England April 22, 2012.
Mary survived her lifetime love for another 12 years and passed away peacefully on June 17, 2024.
Mary was a kind hearted soul and was always concerned with others wellbeing. She made a lasting impact on those that knew her and is sorely missed, especially her family.
Forever in our hearts.
Love you Mom.