Obituary of Georgina Elizabeth Dort

Georgina Elizabeth (“Betty” to her family) Dort (neé Andrews) has passed away at the age of 95. She was predeceased by her four brothers; George, Stanley, Edwin, and Colin and her two sisters; Ada and Anne and by her husband, William Joseph Dort.

Born in Abertillery, Wales (where, as a young girl, she would take her pet goat for walks on a leash), the family migrated to England when she was a child.

My mother was a part of “The Greatest Generation”: as a teenager, she served as a Red Cross Nurse first responder on ambulances during the ‘Birmingham Blitz’ of World War Two. After meeting and marrying my father, who was serving overseas (in England, Holland, and Germany) with the Royal Canadian Army Medical Corps, my mother first crossed the Atlantic in 1946 on a converted troopship as a “War Bride”, dodging live mines to originally set up house in my father’s hometown of Canso. Her life was far from easy: she lost two baby daughters in infancy and never truly recovered from losing the only man she ever loved when he was just 61, and she 54. Following my father’s passing in 1982, my mother remained in the apartment she had last shared with her soul mate, Bill, until very recently.

My mother was an intelligent, strong woman of whom I am immensely proud. I was very lucky to be born to such hard-working, caring, brave and loving parents. I also am and always will be grateful to Mom’s best friend and carer, Cathy Seward, who – in her declining years – looked after her, comforted her, laughed with her, and helped her cherish the memories of an extraordinary life long lived.

Georgina is survived by her son, James William (currently in Shetland), her daughter, Evelyn Shirley, and her grandson, Andrew Thomas Smith, Cape Breton.

There will be no visitation.  Funeral service will be held at 2p.m., Monday, October 21, 2024 in St. James Anglican Church, Halfway Cove, NS with Vonda George-Card officiating.  Burial to follow in Evergreen Cemetery, Guysborough. Words of comfort may be forwarded to the family at www.haverstocks.com