Sheila Mary Castle was born in Waterloo, Ontario on December 4th, 1929. She graduated from Kitchener-Waterloo Collegiate and continued her studies at the University of Toronto’s Victoria College, where she received a Bachelor of Art’s degree specializing in Household Science.

She met her husband, John Castle, at the downtown YMCA during a Bridge class, which he taught. They were happily married for 33 years. Together they shared the happiest of times with their three children at their cottage in Huntsville, first on Lake Jessop and then two succeeding cottages on Fairy Lake. There were also summers camping and fishing through northern Ontario.

Out of university, Sheila worked as a secretary for Kate Aiken, who was the author of a variety of popular cook books and host of a CBC radio show. After taking time to raise her children, Sheila worked at the Ontario Science Centre from the day it opened its doors in 1969, coordinating all the school visits to the Centre. She finished her career as an administrative assistant with an insurance broker. She was a very crafty lady, delighting people with her craft creations. She was active in charities such as the Heart and Stroke foundation, and the Canadian Cancer Society, and was an active member of her church throughout her life, first in the United Church and later in the Anglican Church.

For over 30 years, Sheila lived with Alzheimer’s. But with her passing, our mother shook off the bonds of Alzheimer’s and found peace and freedom surrounded by the angels of God. To any who knew her, even when Alzheimer's ravaged her body and mind, she was sweetness and light. The last weeks and months (even years) were full of challenges and often tears, but her indomitable spirit and character saw her come back from the brink so many times. With a profound sense of relief, her ordeal ended quietly on a sunny Sunday afternoon.

She is predeceased by her beloved husband John Castle, her parents Mary Irving and Mel Snider, her brother Donald Snider, and sister-in-law Mary Snider.

She is survived by her children: John Castle (Deborah Castle, pre-deceased), Mary Jean Elliott (Bruce Elliott), and Robert Castle; her nephew, Jamie Snider; her grandchildren, Heather Elliott (Ray Critch), Lindsay Elliott (Alexander Fitzgerald-Black), Kimberly Elliott, Tracy Elliott (Vincent Faust), Erin Elliott, Christian Tse, and Ryan VanderMaas; her great-grandchildren, Maverick Elliott-Black, and Reid Critch.

This beautiful woman, our sweet mother, will be loved and missed always.


In lieu of flowers, the family invites you to make donations to the Alzheimer Society of Canada:

https://alzheimer.ca/en/take-action/make-your-donation-today