In loving memory of Elizabeth Anne “Betsy” Rymes
Feb 25th 1936 – Jan 27th, 2024

Betsy Rymes, matriarch and magnificent ‘tour de force’, died on January 27th 2024, after a stroke, at the age of 87. She was predeceased by her husband, Thomas Kenneth (“TK”), their son John Matthew and her sister, Marjorie Morse. She is lovingly remembered by her son Paul (Jennifer) and Mackenzie, Wilford and Johnna, her daughter Carolyn (Tom Pedersen) and Jennifer, Charlotte, David and great-grandson Jimmy, her daughter-in-law Cindy (Teddy Lupili) and Abraham, Justus and Isaiah, her sister Geraldine Black, and her nieces, nephews, grandnieces and grandnephews. Also mourning Betsy’s passing is a parade of dear and cherished friends across the country – from Winnipeg, to Ottawa, to Toronto, to Prince Edward County in Ontario and to Sidney, B.C., as well as in places she visited across the globe.

Betsy was born in Winnipeg and spent most of her summers with a large and treasured extended family at a rustic collection of cottages at “Stephenson’s Point” near Winnipeg Beach. At sixteen years old, she went to the University of Manitoba to study history and – on a blind date – met her husband-to-be, T.K. Rymes. Together they decamped to McGill University, and then the University of Oxford, where they enjoyed academic life before settling down in Ottawa to raise three children (often by Betsy simply raising her famous left eyebrow). While her husband began his life-long professorship at Carleton University, Betsy earned a second BA degree in Psychology and then later, a Master’s degree in Public Administration focusing on health care. During those years, Betsy also – after working for years with good friends and fellow activist-moms and sympathetic doctors to petition the government to fund a pediatric hospital in Ottawa – served as the Chair of the Board of the Foundation for that hospital – the Children’s Hospital of Eastern Ontario (CHEO). In addition, Betsy (and TK and Cindy) spent five years fund-raising for and raising awareness of ALS after their son John was sadly diagnosed with the disease. Betsy finished her career by working as a policy writer for The Correctional Service of Canada and the National Parole Board – a job with a perk she greatly enjoyed: it allowed her to criss-cross the country, visiting all the “best jails”, while happily visiting extended family and friends at the same time.

Betsy loved family get-togethers, spending time outside, and dining with friends. This favourite trio came together (heralded by joyous cries of “pelicans”) every summer for over 20 years at Willowbank, a family cottage on the shores of Lake Winnipeg – where Betsy and TK along with Uncle Moishe and Aunt Gerry fed and corralled a crew of six semi-feral children – their own three, and Betsy and TK’s wonderful nieces, Dorian, Gillian and Martha – giving them all remarkable summers of freedom and room to roam, as well as promoting lifelong bonds of friendship between the two families and their relations at the “Point”. Betsy also loved traveling, music, birds, bridge, Hearts, ‘Double’ Solitaire, Mexican Train, Mahjong, birding, knitting, art, the animal world (pets too!), sunshine, bird-feeding, Australia, jigsaw puzzles, her garden (all gardens!), good cheddar, dry sherry and old movies – but, most of all, she cherished her family and friends. She was a woman of remarkable strength, philanthropy, loyalty, humour, intellect, insight, kindness, and directness. Betsy lived a life of grace, balance, service, laughter and kindness to others, and quietly expected others to do likewise. She set a true course. She was greatly loved and respected. She is, and will be, profoundly missed.

The family would like to thank the staff at Sidney All Care Residence and at Amica Beechwood Village for their care and kindness over the past few years. As per Betsy’s wishes, there will not be a funeral service. In lieu of flowers, donations in her name to Doctors Without Borders/Médecins Sans Frontières (www.doctorswithoutborders.ca), the Canadian Wildlife Federation (www.cwf-fcf.org/en/) , or to a charity of your choice would be gratefully appreciated. Online remembrances are welcome here: www.victoriasimplycremations.com