Lois McCurdy (Fraser) Sunstrum

Lois Sunstrum

"I loved my family, I loved my friends, I loved life."

Lois left us exactly as she wished, surrounded by family, pain-free, and at peace.

Her life was a master class in kindness, kookiness, the power of laughter and how to leave every person feeling lifted and cared for. She was the best thing that ever happened to many people and every dog she ever met.

She was truly beautiful inside and out. 

Her greatest gifts were her ability to create countless deep friendships, her ability to make people laugh until it hurt and her ability to not give a hoot about any of the small stuff.

To be loved by her was to be fearless in your pursuits knowing a safe harbour existed in her confidence in you. She never tired of cheering others on and making them feel like their ordinary accomplishments were extraordinary.

In high school, she fell head over heels in love with Gary Sunstrum, her husband of 64 years.

Their wonderful life together took them from Noranda, Quebec to Oshawa, Ontario. They then embraced country living and shared many beautiful years at their farm in Kendal raising kids and eventually spoiling grandkids. Kendal living was all about reveling in the outdoors with vegetable gardening, creating spectacular flower gardens, swimming, horses, chickens, Ganaraska Forest cross-country skiing, biking and hours-long walks, maple syrup boil-down weekends, and family golf tournaments in the fields. Kendal was the extended family and friend gathering spot and Lois was the anchor of every holiday gathering and party.

When country living became too much, Peterborough became home, close to friends old and new and the roots of her Father.

The joy of the past 13 years was their winter home in Ruskin, Florida where they made many new friends. Lois said the Florida years were some of the happiest of her life with days filled with golf, cycling and swimming and evenings filled with music and good times.

Lois loved a good sing-a-long and never passed up the microphone at karaoke. Singing filled her with happiness and she sang with abandon.

Lois was loved as a co-worker at the Oshawa General Hospital, the Pines Senior Public School and Vincent Massey School. If there was mischief to be had, she would be involved (usually the instigator). Her co-workers became her family and those connections lasted a lifetime.

She recently said that it was as if the lights of the world burned brighter when she became a Gramma. She passed that light to each of her Grandkids and never missed a sporting event, recital, concert, or chance to instill the importance of family, good grammar, manners and pronunciation. Lois celebrated all of life's moments with her Grandkids passing on family history and stories. She was woven into the fabric of their lives and her pride in each of them was immense. 

She leaves behind and forever missing her, her beloved family:

Husband: Gary

Son: David (Terri)

Daughter: Lorraine (Ian)

Parents: predeceased by Bruce and Berthe

Parents-in-law: predeceased by Claude and Kay

Grandchildren:
Michelle (Michael)

Robert (Tayler)

Julia (Ravin)

Derek (Morgan)

Great-grandsons: Cameron and Callum

Sister: Nadyne (predeceased by Bob)

Sister-in-law: Joan (Arnold)

Brothers-in-law: Dan, Bob (Cathy), Tom, and predeceased by Jim

Nieces and Nephews: Kevin, Rob, predeceased by Allison, predeceased by Mark, Matthew, Andrew, Christopher, Katie, Rob, Maggie, and their families

“People will forget what you said. People will forget what you did. But people will never forget how you made them feel."

Lois made everyone she met feel special.

Special thanks to the many kind and compassionate health professionals who supported Lois's choices as she navigated all of her challenges.

As per Lois’s wishes a Celebration of her Life will take place in the Spring.

Friday April 25th 2025

1PM - 4PM, with remarks beginning at 2:00 P.M. (If you are unable to attend, you can live stream the remarks here)

Highland Park Funeral Centre

2510 Bensfort Rd.

Peterborough Ontario

K9J 1C5

If desired donations can be made to Hospice Peterborough, 325 London St Peterborough ON K9H 2Z5  705 742 4042 www.hospicepeterborough.org

or

The Peterborough Regional Health Centre Medical Assistance in Dying Program https://prhcfoundation.ca/