Mary Lou Brannan

On Wednesday January 28th 2026 Mary Lou Brannan (Edwards) loving Wife, Mother, Grandmother, Great-Grandmother passed away at age 89 at Sunnybrook Health Sciences Centre.

O death, where is your victory? O grave where is your sting? 1 Cor 15:55

Mary Lou was born on July 23, 1936 in Toronto Ontario to Harry and Edna (Blair) Edwards. She had two younger siblings, Baby who died at birth, and her brother Bob (Robert).

She attended Havergal College, a private school for girls in Lawrence Park, she spent summers at the family cottage next to the Lime Kiln in Inverhuron Ontario.

She graduated as a nurse at Victoria Hospital at the University of Western Ontario in 1960.

While attending university Mary Lou met her future husband, Mike (Michael Claude) Brannan. While they were still at Western they decided to get married. Now a family secret can finally be revealed!.

As their parents would have stopped paying for tuition if they were a married couple, they snuck off to Port Huron, Michigan and were married in 1959. Once they graduated they were married a second time in Toronto Ontario in June. Neither their parents, siblings, or friends knew of this.

Twice married to the same person speaks of true lasting love.

Mary Lou was known for her love for Jesus that she shared with family and friends, for her love of unique things like her square angel food cake pan, and her shared love of ornithology (bird watching) with Mike.

Her adventurous spirit included tackling the restoration of the family farm property outside of Paisley.

After graduating as a nurse she started a family with Mike but in the 1980’s when Mike left the family business to pursue other opportunities Mary Lou did a refresher course in nursing and worked in F Wing at Sunnybrook Hospital for a number of years.

She is survived by her three grown children, Stephen (Michele), Kathleen (Charles), and Patrick, eight grandchildren and five great-grandchildren.

Mary Lou is also survived by two cousins.

A funeral service will be held in the spring at graveside in New Hamburg Ontario.