Dana Elizabeth (Culbert) Garrett celebrates her 75th birthday, today. She was born 4 August 1945 at Victoria Hospital in London, Ontario, Canada.
Dana is the great-great-granddaughter of John Culbert and Mary Ward.
Dana is the great-great-granddaughter of John Culbert and Mary Ward.
Dana is the daughter of Sgt. Milward Taylor "Mel" Culbert and Mary Elizabeth Patrick.
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| Left to right: Dana with her parents, Mary and Mel Culbert and brother, Terry, c1948. |
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| Painting by Terry Culbert of Mary and Mel Culbert with their daughter, Dana. |
The following text is Dana's story in her own words, with photo captions by the blog author:
Raised in Lucan, Ontario, I attended Lucan Public School. I skipped Grade 2 and was the youngest in my class for many years. Eventually,
this caught up to me in high school where I repeated Grade 11 due to too much
socializing and not enough hard work.
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| Dana Culbert, 1954. |
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| This building housing a framing store and Earthen Elegance florist was formerly Culbert's Dry Goods Store, owned and operated by Dana's parents, Mel and Mary Culbert. The building is situated on Main Street in Lucan, Ontario. Dana grew up in the apartment above the storefront on the right that says Earthen Elegance. |
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| Left to right: Dana Culbert, her father Mel Culbert, and her brother, Terry Culbert c1952. |
Culbert's Dry Goods was sold after Dad’s death and our family moved
into the new house that was being built (planned by Mom and Dad) at the south
end of Lucan. I was bused to Medway High School in Arva, Ontario for five
years.
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| Dana Culbert, Grade 9, Medway High School, 1959. |
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| Dana Culbert, Grade 13, Medway High School, 1963-1964. |
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| Dana's maternal grandmother, Mabel Lenora (Kerslake) Patrick moved in with the Culbert family following the death of Dana's father, Mel Culbert. Photo by Terry Culbert. |
After high school graduation, although Mom encouraged me
to go to university, I wanted to start working like all my friends. In
1963, I moved into an apartment in London with two girlfriends, and worked at
Canada Trust-Huron and Erie’s head office at the corner of Dundas Street and
Clarence Street in London.
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| Dana Culbert, employee of Canada Trust-Huron and Erie in London, Ontario. Photo by Erik Singer. |
In 1964, I started dating John William “Jack” Garrett. We
were engaged the next year and then married on July 1, 1966 at Lucan United
Church.
We honeymooned on Manitoulin Island. We then moved into our first home on Concession 12 in London Township, just south of Birr, Ontario.
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| Lucan United Church. Photo by Mary Jane Culbert. |
We honeymooned on Manitoulin Island. We then moved into our first home on Concession 12 in London Township, just south of Birr, Ontario.
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| Jack Garrett and Dana Culbert just after their engagement, 1965. Photo by Terry Culbert. Photo by Terry Culbert. |
Jack and I both worked in the city (London) but when I
became pregnant with my first child, I had to quit my job because there was no
maternity leave in those days. Jason William Garrett was born May 3, 1970 at
St. Joseph’s Hospital in London.
We loved living in this small rural community but when
our second child came along, we were feeling cramped for space. Katherine
Melissa Garrett was born November 23, 1972. When she was two years old, we
moved into a new house in the village of Ilderton, Ontario. We enjoyed our
eight years there and the whole family was involved in community activities.
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| Dana and Jack Garrett with children, Kathy and Jason on their 10th wedding anniversary, 1 July 1976. |
Then one day Jack came home from work and told me that he
was offered a promotion but we had to move to Goderich, Ontario. So, in July
1982 we sold the house in Ilderton and moved to Goderich. During the next four
years the whole family embraced living there, making some good friends whom we
still keep in touch with. When word came from Jack’s office about another move,
I wasn’t very enthusiastic about doing it again. However, in order to climb the
corporate ladder, it was a necessity for Jack to take the promotion.
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| Dana and Jack Garrett with children Kathy and Jason, 1982. |
So, in 1986 we moved to Owen Sound, Ontario. I thought
that we had gone to the end of the earth, and there was so much snow! Once
again, Jason and Kathy adapted well to their new schools, and I picked up part-time
jobs. However, I felt that we were too far away from family and friends so we
asked for a transfer back to Southern Ontario and ended up moving to Chatham, Ontario in
1988.
My mother, Mary Elizabeth (Patrick) Culbert was flown
from Burlington, Ontario to Chatham by air ambulance because she wasn’t well
and could no longer live on her own. Needless to say, this was an extremely
stressful time for everyone, and I found myself experiencing “burn-out” from
trying to look after everyone. So, we called my sister Mary Jane and she came
from Toronto to stay with Mom for a weekend so I could get away for a break. We
took the family to the Talisman Resort near Collingwood for a skiing weekend. I
ended up having an accident on the ski hill and tore three ligaments in my left
knee. Back in Chatham, I had surgery to repair the ligaments. The recovery was
long and agonizing. I couldn’t manage the stairs so was unable to handle
looking after Mom. We had to place her in a nursing home, which was
heartbreaking for all of us.
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| Dana's mother, Mary Elizabeth (Patrick) Culbert. |
I returned to the hospital to have my knee re-manipulated
because it wasn’t healing properly, and during that time, Mom took a bad turn
and was admitted to the same hospital in Chatham where she passed away at the age of 71 on
February 12, 1989.
During the next year while I was in a leg brace and
crutches, I decided to take the Real Estate courses at St. Clair College. I got
my Real Estate license in 1991 and started working at Doher Realty in Chatham.
Approximately one year later Jack made the decision to
take an early retirement from his job with the Ministry of Revenue. We knew
that we wanted to get back to the London area so we bought a house in Westmount
subdivision and I moved into it while Jack finished out his work year in
Chatham. I started working at Triland Realty and really enjoyed my new
co-workers and building up a new clientele for business.
Over the next few years, our children Jason and Kathy
moved back in with us for awhile after graduation and between jobs. Luckily, we
had two more bedrooms and a bathroom in the basement so it was perfect for
them.
I completed my Bachelor of Arts degree in 1991 after
years of taking part-time courses through the University of Western Ontario.
Mom would have been proud!
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| Dana (Culbert) Garrett's graduation from the University of Western Ontario in London, 1991. |
The major highlights over the next few years were:
Our daughter Kathy Garrett’s wedding to Ed Pritchard in
2001...
The birth of our first grandchild, Jaime Elizabeth
Pritchard on July 10, 2003.
Our son Jason Garrett’s wedding to Heather Beare in 2005...
The birth of our second grandchild, Megan Adele Pritchard
on February 9, 2006.
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| Dana's daughter, Kathy with her husband, Ed Pritchard and their daughters, Jaime (on Kathy's lap) and Megan. |
I gave up my real estate license after 10 years because
I needed a hip replacement and Jack and I both wanted to spend more time in a
warmer climate during the winters. Over the last 19 years I have had joint
replacements in both hips and my left knee. Also, I have osteoarthritis, spinal
stenosis and fibromyalgia. However, none of this has stopped me yet!
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| Front: Jack Garrett & Dana (Culbert) Garrett. Back: Ed Pritchard & Kathy (Garrett) Pritchard, Jason Garrett & Heather (Beare) Garrett. November, 2001. |
I enjoy summer theatre, dining out with friends, and
wintering in Naples, Florida. We have been in our home in London for 25 years
now and are very blessed with a wonderful family, good friends and good health.
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| Dana (Culbert) Garrett at the grave of her great-great-grandparents, John Culbert and Mary Ward at St. James Cemetery, north of Lucan, Ontario at 34092 Richmond Street (Highway 4). |
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| Dana (Culbert) Garrett at the grave of her great-grandparents, Richard Culbert and Jane Fairhall at Nursery Cemetery, north of Lucan, Ontario at 35051 Richmond Street (Highway 4). Photo by Mary Jane Culbert. |
DANA ELIZABETH (CULBERT) GARRETT'S FAMILY TREE:
Ancestors:
John Culbert and Mary Ward (great-great-grandparents)
Richard Culbert and Jane Eleanor Fairhall (great-grandparents)
Myron Manford Culbert and Effie Pearl Taylor (grandparents)
Milward Culbert "Mel" Culbert and Mary Elizabeth Patrick (parents)
Descendants (Children):
Jason William Garrett
Katherine Melissa (Garrett) Pritchard
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