Mother’s Day offers a chance to reflect on the many women who helped shape the North Okanagan. Motherhood has always taken many forms, with the contributions of biological mothers, adoptive parents, stepmothers, and others extending far beyond their homes and families.
Theresa Ashton, a respected Syilx matriarch, raised eight children and was admired for her deep community commitment. She took pride in her 31 grandchildren, encouraging them to learn Nsyilxcən, and her handmade moccasins, gloves, and buckskin garments preserved cultural knowledge. Another Syilx woman, Alapetsa O’Keefe, partnered with rancher Cornelius O’Keefe in the 1860s to raise their daughter Christine, contributing to vital homesteading partnerships between Indigenous women and settlers, despite not being formally recognized by colonial authorities.
Migration also shaped many maternal stories. Anne Scherba emigrated from Ukraine around the turn of the 20th century and helped raise a blended family of nine. She later donated land for the province’s oldest Ukrainian Catholic church, which still stands. Loo Ying Kwong, who immigrated from China, co-raised 15 children while helping to run a grocery store in Vernon’s Chinatown. Elizabeth Nel, who grew up in Vernon and later served as Winston Churchill’s secretary during the Second World War, went on to raise three children after this distinguished career.
Several historic mothers contributed to education and community life in quieter but lasting ways. Sophie Ellison, Vernon’s first schoolteacher in 1884, raised eight children and helped establish the Vernon & District Women’s Institute. Shizuno Ogasawara, who ran a vegetable farm with her husband Moichi in Bella Vista, became the first president of the local Japanese Women’s Association, supporting local schools and the Vernon Jubilee Hospital.
Grace Mackie, matron of Vernon Preparatory School, raised five children, though tragically only one survived into later adulthood. Marjorie Brooks, who married ornithologist Allan Brooks in 1926, supported his work while caring for their son. Trained midwife Angeline Atkinson had five children of her own and delivered hundreds of others at the Atkinson Maternity Home.
The stories of Vernon’s mothers highlight the resilience, compassion, and leadership of women throughout the region. Whether in their homes, classrooms, or businesses, these mothers, along with countless others, played a key role in shaping Vernon into the community it is today.
Archives Manager, Gwyneth Evans