Odd years the Doris Sweeney Memorial Scholarship will be awarded to a student in the Forestry Program with a high GPA first choice female. Even years the Doris Sweeney Memorial Scholarship will be awarded to a student in the second year nursing program.
Born in Rainy River, ON, Doris grew up “in the bush” of northern Ontario, first on a homestead in Minahico and later in a log cabin her dad built in Redditt. She graduated from Dryden High School in 1948, trained as a practical nurse at the Ryerson Institute of Technology and worked at hospitals in Toronto and Cap-de-la-Madeleine, QC. She and Wilf Sweeney were married on 30 August 1952 and lived in Cap-de-la-Madeleine until 1960 when they moved to Castlegar, BC.
Doris was a strong, compassionate and generous person with her time and many talents. Her appreciation of nature was instilled early in her childhood by following her Grandma Pentney around the garden and woods surrounding their homestead in Minahico. She was a largely self-taught naturalist who could recognize many species of birds, plants, and even mushrooms, going so far as making spore prints to key out the more difficult ones. When a neighourhood cat had kittens, Doris was often consulted to determine which were males and which were females (sounds easy but it isn’t). She was a hunting and fishing guide as a teenager and went on annual hunting trips with Wilf after their marriage, on one occasion the only one to bring home a moose. She shared her appreciation and respect for nature and the outdoors by actively volunteering with the Girl Guides of Canada, as a Ranger leader for many years and serving as the Kootenai Area Camp Advisor and Deputy Commissioner in the ‘80s. Some of her more memorable experiences with her Rangers were the 100+ mile canoe trips that she led several times down the Arrow Lakes from Galena Bay to Syringa Creek. In years when she didn’t take them down the lake they would go on week-long camping road trips in the Rockies – one year included a trip to the Calgary Stampede. She was an excellent youth leader, providing her girls with the responsibilities and freedom to learn, grow, and have fun, balanced with clear boundaries to ensure safety and respect for one another. In addition to her work with the Girl Guides, Doris was an active member of the Hospital Auxiliary for more than 20 years, serving twice as president and initiating the district’s Candy Striper program. She led the teenage youth group at the Kinnaird United Church for three years and was a multiple Paul Harris Fellow. For several years in the 1990s, Doris and Wilf chaperoned groups of about 40 Rotary International Exchange students on one week bus tours of southern BC, and parts of Washington State and Idaho, and were affectionately referred to by the students as “Grandma and Grandpa”. In recognition of her many years of community service, Doris was named Castlegar’s Citizen of the year in 1978.
Doris was an avid collector of many things, from antiques like Depression glass, cast- and wrought iron, children’s books, bottles and tins, and British royalty mementoes to natural objects like driftwood, rocks, (abandoned) bird’s nests, and animal skulls, and she usually had an interesting story on each and every item. Thankfully, she also had a keen eye for composition, and no matter how many things or how small the space, she always managed to arrange them attractively, i.e., she was a natural interior designer. She applied her artistic talents to many things over the years, such as oil painting, macramé, soft sculpture, hooked rugs and especially quilting, which she learned as a member of the Kinnaird Women’s Institute. Many close friends and family members cherish the beautiful quilts and Christmas socks that she lovingly made. Doris always had the courage to speak her mind, and most people appreciated and respected her for that rare quality. Seeing the good in people of all ages, Doris touched many, many lives in a positive way. She will be sadly missed and fondly remembered.