06/14/2026
Mary Judith Mackay Obituary
Our beautiful, hilarious, kind, joyful, gentle, mischievous Mary passed away peacefully, with family by her side, on Saturday June 13, 2026 after a mercifully short battle with pancreatic cancer, at the age of 64.
Mary was predeceased by her twin sister Meg (2004) and her father Gordon (2010). Mary will be greatly missed by her mother Catherine, her sister Heather and her brothers and sisters-in-law Jamie and Gabriela, Gord, Keith, Rob and Rhonda and Andrew; her nieces and nephews Chris, Vanessa (Bill), Scott (Sarah), Emily (Roger), Derek (Natasha) and Alex (Nicole); and by her great-nieces and nephews Logan, Maddie, Sophie, Myles and Ellie. Mary will also be greatly missed by her dear friend Anne Dawson Russell and by Cui Zhang and the residents and staff of Lincoln Lodge, Vineland, her home for the last 23 years.
Despite the many challenges that life gave Mary, she was an incredibly positive person with a real zest for life. She graduated from St. Mary’s High School in Kitchener and held a diploma in Culinary Arts from Lougheed College. She worked as a chef’s assistant at the Stampede Ranch in Guelph for many years. Mary loved her family deeply and never forgot a birthday - her birthday cards always arriving early. Her great passions were knitting, rug hooking, swimming, sticker-by-number books, “window shopping” (any man in uniform) and general “shenanigans”. Her passing leaves an immeasurable gulf for many.
Thank you to Mary’s many support workers from Lincoln Lodge, and the Community Homes for Opportunity, Homes for Special Care and RecFit programs who did so much to enhance her quality of life. Thank you also to the palliative care team at the Marrotta Family Hospital, St. Catharines for their compassionate care of Mary in her last days.
Funeral liturgy will be held at 10:30 AM on Wednesday, June 17, 2026 in the chapel of the Henry Walser Funeral Home, 507 Frederick St, Kitchener with a reception to follow. Private interment.