Businessperson, community activist.
Born at Winnipeg on 2 April 1938, daughter of Evelyn May Booth (1904-2003) and George Iliffe (1900-1967), after receiving a BA degree from the University of Manitoba, she was hired to teach at Souris Collegiate, arriving in 1959. She married local pharmacist Ralph Whitfield in 1960 and subsequently had four children, while managing the family businesses. A keen local historian, she played a key role in saving heritage buildings from demolition, resulting in establishment of the Hillcrest Museum and The Plum Museum and Tea Room. She was a founding member of the Southwest Trails Association for Regional Tourism (now Tourism Westman), was an active supporter of the Souris Figure Skating Club, and taught music at Souris schools. In 1968, she introduced Brownies to Souris and led Girl Guides, Cadets, and Sparks for the next 36 years. In recognition of her community service, she received a Queen Elizabeth II Diamond Jubilee Medal (2012). She died at Souris on 15 December 2022 and was buried in the Souris and Glenwood Cemetery.
Obituary [Evelyn May Iliffe], Winnipeg Free Press, 17 May 2003.
Obituary, Winnipeg Free Press, 31 December 2022.
Obituaries and burial transcriptions, Manitoba Genealogical Society.
This page was prepared by Gordon Goldsborough.
Page revised: 31 December 2022
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