Barbara Land

With great sadness, we announce the passing of our beloved wife and mother, Barbara Anne Land (née Murphy).

Barb was born in Saint John, NB on May 10, 1948, the middle child of Cliff and Audrey Murphy. She grew up with older sister Gwen and developed her mom skills early, practicing on her younger brother Rick.  She fondly remembered summers spent in a bathing suit from morning until night because she seldom emerged from the lake where she taught herself to swim.

Her love of children led her to teacher’s college and a job at a school for deaf children.  Never one to shy away from a challenge, she learned enough sign language to communicate with her students and took great joy in teaching them to read.

At 22, she married David Land – a commitment which only deepened over time, and has remained steadfast for 55 years.  Barb became a mother in the mid-1970s, birthing two children in rapid succession, her son Derek (Jacqueline Scott) Land, and daughter Alicia (Gord Zajac) Land.  She left teaching behind to devote herself fully to her babies, gamely packing up the little ones and moving across the country as Dave’s career demanded.  They made their home in St. John’s and Winnipeg before settling in Mississauga for more than 20 years.  Having grown up with salt water on her skin, she felt land-locked in the suburbs and was delighted to retire to a condo overlooking Lake Simcoe in Barrie with the freedom to travel the world.

Aside from an experimental stint as a folk singer in her youth, Barb preferred a supporting role to the spotlight.  She cheered her family on with a contagious confidence in their abilities.  A relentlessly practical and industrious woman, she was unafraid to tackle hands-on home improvements, homemade Halloween costumes, and fearlessly teaching two teenagers how to drive. She loved strong, black coffee and unpretentious wine. Committed to home cooking and baking, coupon-clipping, and general frugality, when confronted with an overpriced item in a store she would respond disdainfully, “I could make that.” And she could.

After a lifetime spent caring for others, the tide shifted in 2016 with her diagnosis of Lewy Body Dementia.  Deepest thanks to the many doctors, nurses and personal support workers who have cared for her with kindness and compassion throughout the progression of her disease, in particular the staff at Mill Creek Care Centre in Barrie.

She passed on April 11, 2025, with her family at her side.  In a final act of generosity, she willed her body for research and organ donation, followed by cremation.  Her loving husband will keep her ashes close until they can be joined again with future final interment in the family plot in their hometown of Saint John. As she always felt, “Maritimers eventually end up back home.”

She is survived and dearly missed by her husband, children, and five grandchildren (Alastair, Quinton and Daria Land, and Griffin and Marrok Zajac), as well as her brother and many nieces and nephews.

In keeping with her ever-practical wishes, Barb preferred to be remembered privately and without ceremony.  Should you wish to honour her memory, she would direct any charitable donations to Alzheimer’s research or Mill Creek Care Centre.