Obituary

It’s with profound sadness that we announce the passing of our beloved Robin McLaren. Robin passed at the age of 58 from pancreatic cancer. Her husband, two daughters, son-in-law, and all family pets were present when she peacefully departed (except for the chickens). Robin valued and cherished her family fiercely. If you ever even remotely slighted one of her loved ones, she probably held that grudge until her last breath. Ever since she was a little girl, she was loyal, brave, kind and strong. She protected her siblings and her daughters from harm throughout her life. She was not only a survivor but a thriver – she put an end to the cycle of abuse and used her experiences to teach her children about body autonomy, safety and respect. Her Husband Scott and she were high school sweethearts – she saw him at Centennial Secondary School one day in 1980 and ran home to tell her mom that she saw the man she was going to marry. She loved him deeply and always supported his antics with love and admiration. Robin was mischievous and silly. She took pride in embarrassing her daughters regularly. From trying to playfully sell her kids in the grocery store when they were misbehaving, to bursting into their gym classes and stealing the basketball in play, she was so full of life and was always the most fun person in the room. Robin was a loyal and caring person. Her love language was giving and never expecting anything in return. Robin showed up for her friends and family relentlessly, always asking genuinely how they were doing, regardless of what was going on for her. Not only was she a giver to her loved ones, but also to strangers. Robin would occasionally pay for the order of the person behind her in a drive-through or anonymously pay for the hydro bills of struggling customers that she talked to in her career with Halton Hills and Milton Hydro. Robin wanted to give back, and had aspired to be in a career in the justice system, a dream that she didn’t pursue because she poured herself into motherhood, giving every opportunity to her daughters. Her favourite activity was sharing a drink on a sunny patio and people watching. She loved to travel with her husband and they have been all over the world together. Robin was a beautiful painter, singer and lover of arts and cinema. Robin was not a wallflower. She could bring down the house at a karaoke bar, and modestly bask in the brief, but oh-so-deserved, stardom. She was the loudest cheerleader at her daughter’s softball games, and particularly loved heckling comedians. You could literally hear her laugh from kilometres away. She was not stoic, and wore her emotions on her face, sometimes needing a reminder to relax her brow in public. Robin will be missed so dearly. She was a beautiful human being inside and out. Her kindness and courage will be forever remembered with an award in her honour for a graduating student at Eramosa Public School for years to come. Once COVID restrictions are lifted, Robin’s family will be hosting a celebration of life that can properly pay tribute to the bright light that she was. In lieu of flowers, her family requests that you purchase a Christmas gift for a child or adolescent in need at Christmas time in her name.