Community activist.
Born at Three Rivers, Quebec on 21 May 1932, she was the first child of Marion Watson (1907-2003) and Wilfred Staynes (1901-1981). In 1955, she married businessman Christopher Henry Flintoft (1927-1986) of Montreal, and they went on to have nine children. After her husband was asked to establish an office in Winnipeg for the Montreal firm McDonald Currie (now Price Waterhouse), they moved to Winnipeg as a young couple, and once their last child was of school age, she became an active community volunteer and a participant in many charitable organizations and events.
In 1969, she joined the St. Agnes Guild at the Winnipeg Children’s Hospital. Over the next 37 years, she filled various executive positions, including Guild President (1993-1994), Fall Festival Chairman (1994), Shop Chairman (1996), Guild Council Chairman (2001), Peter Pan Club member (1995-2005), Children’s Hospital Book Market Chairman (1997-1998), Children’s Hospital Research Foundation Board member, and first Vice-President/Guild Liaison. In 1997, she received the Children’s Hospital Research Foundation Teddy Award in recognition of her contributions to pediatric medical research.
Always enjoying being involved in the education of children, she volunteered her time at Grosvenor School, River Heights School, and Kelvin High School, as well as driving sports teams to and from practices, games, and events. She served as Girl Guides Leader at St. George’s Anglican Church for four years. As a member of the Winnipeg Symphony Orchestra Committee, she spent many hours as the coordinator of school field trips to the Centennial Concert Hall.
She also enjoyed the family cottage at Minaki, where most years she did not leave the island retreat from the time of her arrival at the end of the school year to departure on Labour Day weekend.
She died at Winnipeg on 17 October 2006.
See also:
Historic Sites of Manitoba: Whitla House (72 Kingsway, Winnipeg)
Obituary, Winnipeg Free Press, 20 October 2006.
This page was prepared by Lois Braun.
Page revised: 11 November 2022
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