McPhail, Edna Rachel Eliza. It is with great sorrow the family of Edna McPhail announces her passing on February 8th, 2004 at Brandon Regional Health Centre.

Edna was born to parents Edward R. and Isabella Matthews on July 6th, 1918 at Cromer, Manitoba. Raised on the farm, she developed a particular fondness for creatures of the wild and was especially interested in gardening. Canning and preserving were only a couple of Edna's many talents, and she built up a reputation for turning nature's bounty into delectable concoctions.
She married Norman McPhail on October 25th, 1939, and the happy couple farmed in the Butler region for seven years. Son Ken was born on June 10th, 1942, and the arrival of daughter Lindley on March 13th of 1946 made the family of four complete. Three months after Lindley was born, the McPhails moved to Brandon. Edna worked as a payroll clerk at Kresge's, Dayton's, and Pugh's. After a many-faceted and varied career, she enrolled in Brandon University, and graduated with a two degrees, a Bachelor of Education and Bachelor of Arts. During her lengthy career in education, Edna developed one of the first Special Education programs in the Brandon School Division and took great pride in the many accomplishments of her students. Curling was a major passion in her off-hours, and she was proud to be on the rink that won the provincial championship in the mid-1950s. She relished the many summers her family spent at Clear Lake, and treasured the lifelong friendships fostered through her more than 50-year affiliation with Brandon's First Presbyterian Church. Edna served as superintendent of the First Presbyterian Sunday School for 18 years and served many years on the executive of the Heather Club. In her later years, as ill health took a toll on her independence and mobility, she still savoured the natural world around her. She delighted in the antics of the hummingbirds outside her window, and coaxed many extra weeks of bloom from the sweet peas and other flowers taking root on her apartment patio. Her greatest treasure in life was, of course, her family, about whom she bragged endlessly. Her children and grandchildren had no greater champion than their mother and grandmother, and all will miss her boundless enthusiasm and never-flagging support. Edna was predeceased by her beloved husband Norman, sister Norma Barkley, brother David, brother-in-law Norman Barkely, and nephew G.E. (Bev) Barkley. She leaves to cherish her memory her devoted children, son Ken McPhail (Diane Nelson), daughter Lindley McPhail (Denis Morin), and four grandsons: Kevin and Craig (Noreen) McPhail, and Jeremy and Mike Borotsik.

Funeral Service will be held at First Presbyterian Church, 339-12th Street, at 2 p.m. Thursday, February 12th, 2004. Rev. Dale Woods will officiate. Interment will follow in the Brandon Cemetery. Because the use of a special bed made Edna's last days much more comfortable, the family respectfully requests that, in lieu of flowers, donations in Edna's memory be made to the Brandon Regional Health Authority's A Bed for You, A Bed for Me fund-raising campaign.

Expressions of sympathy may be forwarded to memorieschapel@mts.net. Arrangements are with Memories Chapel & Pre-Planning Centre, 727-0330. Memorials
Bdn. Regional Health Centre Foundation, or "Bed For You, Bed For Me"