Our most cherished mother, grandmother, great grandmother, and great great grandmother has passed away at Golden Dawn Nursing Home, Ontario Thursday, July 24, 2026 in her 103rd year, peacefully ending a rich and active life filled with loving family, great friends, much laughter, music, dancing and travel. Gloria leaves behind her three children, Carol Henning, Bill McNair (Barb) and JoAnne Bates (Lenn), ten grandchildren, twenty-two great grandchildren, and 7 great great grandchildren. She is predeceased by her seven siblings, and her parents Pearl (nee Dool) and Arthur Cook. Her first husband, Harvey McNair, passed away in 1983, her son, James Allan, in 1988, and her second husband Roy Baillargeon, in 2015. At seventeen, Gloria moved from her home in Sudbury to Miller Lake, as a new wife and mother, beginning a life on the farm where she and Harvey raised their four children. Her family was afraid for her to be so far away, in a home without electricity or indoor plumbing, but she saw it as a great adventure, and loved her life on the Bruce. Gloria was an active member of her community for many years. She served on Lindsay Council and on the Canada Parks Commission, working tirelessly to ensure local residents and their livelihoods were protected from the demands of the Niagara Escarpment Commission. Following her marriage to Roy, Gloria enjoyed many winters in Florida and summers in Tobermory. They traveled extensively and enjoyed cruises throughout the Caribbean as well as travels through Europe. She became very involved with the Royal Canadian Legion when they later moved to Cambridge, as a member of the Ladies Auxiliary, as well as the branch. Gloria, in her eighties, volunteered with Meals on Wheels, delivering weekly meals to the ‘elderly’. She also prepared meals for one of the local senior centers and served on the board of her condo. After Roy’s death, she made the decision to return to the Bruce, and has always been a staunch (fierce!) advocate for her fellow residents at Golden Dawn. Gloria served as president of the Residents’ Council for several years, and always felt strongly that she, who had her voice, should use it to help those who no longer had theirs. And she did. Gloria will be forever missed and loved by her family, her friends, and her community; her love for her family, her inner strength, her zest for life, and her lifelong interest and concern for both local and global issues are an inspiration to the large family she leaves behind. She will live in our hearts forever. Family and friends are invited to remember and honour Gloria’s life at the Royal Canadian Legion, Branch 202, Lion’s Head, on Thursday, July 30, 2026 from 1:00 p.m. – 3:00 p.m. Memories will be shared at 2:00 p.m. Gloria would love it if you celebrated her in sparkles, sequins or cheerful colours. Arrangements entrusted to the GEORGE FUNERAL HOME, Wiarton. Interment Eastnor Cemetery. Expressions of remembrance to the Lion’s Head Hospital c/o Bruce Peninsula Hospitals Foundation would be appreciated. Messages of condolence may be sent to the family through www.georgefuneralhome.ca
