CLARKE, Anne Coady
The Cape Breton Post, September 23, 2017
Age 93, of Cape Breton, passed away peacefully on September 8th, 2017 at the Inverness Inverary Manor with family members by her side. She was born in Birch Grove, Nova Scotia on April 16th, 1924. She was the youngest child of Jane (nee Hayward) and Josiah Clarke who emigrated from Newfoundland. Her siblings include: Hannah (1912 - 1970), Mary (1913 - 2009), Walter (1915 - 1960), Hugh (1920 - 1974), Gladys (1922), Andrew (1923).

After her father died in a 1927 mining accident in Glace Bay, Anne stayed at Bairncroft Orphanage before being adopted by George and Lexie Coady of Margaree. She grew up alongside their son Judson before attending teachers' college in Truro. In 1944 Anne married Philip C. Buchanan (1920 - 1998) of Kempt Road, Richmond County. Later in life she met and married Spurgeon J. Webber.

She began her teaching career in one-room schoolhouses in Loch Lomond and Grand Anse prior to the family moving to Cornwall, Ontario in 1962. She worked with adult learners on the Mohawk / Akwesasne Reserve, Cornwall Island, then at St. Lawrence College.

Returning to Nova Scotia after retiring, her quest for learning continued. Her philosophy of "I can't see just sitting back and letting the world go by" led her to graduate from Mount Saint Vincent University in 1991 with a certificate in Gerontology. Anne was also the recipient of the McGrath-Baird Prize in Gerontology for her combination of academic achievement and community involvement.

Countless lives have been touched through her volunteer work which included involvement in Bethany United Church, Halifax. In 1996 Anne was the recipient of the prestigious Province of Nova Scotia Remarkable-Senior Award 'For the remarkable way she leads her life through Volunteer Service'.

She will be dearly missed by her children: Mervyn George Buchanan (Sandy), Calgary; Philip Kevin Buchanan, Edmonton; Judson Walter Buchanan (Robin Lynn), Campbellville, Ontario; Wendy Jane Zechman, Edmonton; Leslie Anne Buchanan, Halifax. Her grandchildren: Aaron, Ryan, Karen, Iain, Brooke, Sean, Robin, Holly, Katherine, James, Kyle, Lexie, Jessica, Julia. Her great grandchildren: Kaitlyn, Meghan, Kaylie, Madison, Landon, Hudson, Claire, Mia, Claudia, Lachlan. She will also be missed by her nieces, nephews and many friends.

The family wishes to acknowledge and sincerely thank Leslie Anne Buchanan and her family for taking care of Mum for so many years. Special thanks also to the dedicated and supportive staff at the Inverary Manor - Sunrise Villa, where Anne resided for the past three years. On-line condolences may be posted at: www.arbormemorial.ca/en/atlantic-sackville/obituaries Donations may be made to your charity of choice. A memorial service and reception will be held in the Spring of 2018 in Black River, Richmond County.

Note: Josiah Clarke was the son of Henry Clarke and June Parsons from Newfoundland. According to his death registration at www.novascotiagenealogy.com he was born in Newfoundland on March 10, 1879. He died on August 28, 1927 in the Glace Bay General hospital as a result of a fall of stone in a coal mine in Glace Bay. He was buried on August 30, 1927 in Greenwood Cemetery in Glace Bay. He was married on December 19, 1910 to Isabella Jane Hayward. Josiah was from Carbonear and Isabella was from Fortune Bay.