Margaret F Copeland

Margaret Ferguson Copeland left the world a darker place when she slipped away from us on July 20 2023.

Margaret was born in Doncaster, England on April 27, 1931, the seventh of eight children born to Alice Claxton Ferguson. Margaret's father James Carnagie Ferguson was a Geordie born in Stockton-upon-Tees, Durham, England.

She married her beloved husband Frank Laurence Copeland on January 19, 1952. The couple left war-ravaged England in 1957 to start a new life in a new land. They settled in Edmonton to raise their three children, Jane Alison (Douglas), Lynne Elizabeth (Gerard) and John William Richardson (Sarah).

Margaret and Frank retired to Vancouver Island in 1986. In Qualicum Beach they crafted a home that was the embodiment of their lives together and their love of each other- seated in nature, full, exuberant, welcoming, brimming with hope and life, plans and dreams, strengthening and growing in time. Margaret created a home full of memories and a garden that spilled over with color and greenery. A cozy kitchen decorated with family pictures and a wall in which the heights of all the children and grandchildren were scratched in pencil.

She had a fondness for children, singing along to happy music, gardens and gardening, flowers, foliage, and nurturing and caring for the people and the things she loved. Although her illness robbed her of many memories, her emotion center remained intact. Margaret never forgot her people- her family and friends and always greeted their arrival with a beaming smile of recognition and a fond welcome. And she never forgot her husband Frank, the enduring love of her life, who predeceased her. She spoke of him wistfully and asked for him until the day she died.

Margaret was kind, caring and selfless to the very heart of her being, as truly good as it is possible to be. Sweet natured to her very core, her true character was not diminished by her ill health. She remained cheerful, truly kind, and utterly selfless to the end of her days. Because of the devoted efforts of daughter Lynne, who fought like a lion for her care, Margaret was able to remain at home throughout her illness.
Margaret is survived her by her sister Rose Purdy, her three children and five grandchildren.