In Loving Memory of Judith Mary Barr
It is with heavy hearts, but hearts also full of gratitude and love, that we share the passing of Judith Mary Barr, aged 88, on Wednesday, July 29, 2026. Born September 7, 1937, Judith lived a life so full, so curious, and so generous that it is impossible to sum up in a few short paragraphs — but we will try, because she deserves to be celebrated exactly as she lived: loudly, lovingly, and with laughter.
Judith was born in the small town of Riverside, Ontario, overlooking the Detroit River, where she learned to swim before she could properly reach the counter. Life was not always easy — her father, Frank Watson Barr, a WWI veteran, passed away when she was still young, leaving her mother, Alice, to raise Judith and her sister Diana with the help of their beloved grandmother, affectionately known as “Gommie”. From these early years, Judith carried forward a fierce independence, a deep well of empathy, and an unshakeable belief that hard work and good humour could get a person through almost anything.
It was on the living room floor of her childhood home, poring over the pages of the Windsor Star, that Judith first fell in love with words. That love became a career — she talked her way into the newsroom for $20 a week covering weddings, wrote her way up to feature writing after a chance assignment covering guitarist Andrés Segovia and, seven years later, became one of the youngest Women’s Editors in Canada. She would go on to build an entire second career in public relations in Toronto — the only female consultant in her firm — before striking out on her own and building a client list that ranged from Clairol Canada to the Government of Jamaica. Even in ‘retirement’, she couldn’t stay away from a good story, freelancing for the Globe and Mail, Skate Canada, and Chatelaine.
But ask anyone who knew her, and they’ll tell you Judith’s real gift wasn’t her byline — it was her laugh. It filled rooms. It was contagious, unmistakable, and impossible not to join in on. She had a way of making everyone around her feel like the most interesting person in the world, and she brought warmth, mischief, and genuine delight to every gathering she was part of. Her signature guacamole and margaritas were legendary — recipes that will now be passed down and remade at family tables and celebrations for years to come, a little gift from Judith at every party.
Judith found her great love story later in life, reuniting with high school friend Leo Girard 33 years after they’d first known each other. They married in 1986 and set off to see Europe together, the beginning of a partnership built on shared history and new adventures. Together they made a home in Chatham, Ontario, for seven years, before moving to Meaford, Ontario, when Leo retired from teaching. There they restored Judith’s old family cottage on Sunnyside Beach into a place full of life and laughter. Judith threw herself into her community the way she threw herself into everything — ten years leading Friends of the Meaford Library, two decades as volunteer co-ordinator for the Alzheimer Society of Grey Bruce, and, closest to her heart, founding member and historian of the 55+ Friendship Club of Meaford and Area, where she spent years as photographer, historian, and scrapbook-keeper, and the person who made sure no good friendship went undocumented.
Having grown up with the Detroit River literally in her front yard, Judith developed a passion for fishing early in life. Later in life her passion continued, being known to occasionally ease her way into the expectant throng, rods in hand, lining the Beaver River as midnight approached on the opening day of fishing season. Like many fishers, however, Judith wasn’t particularly successful….but she was passionate. Once Leo came back into her life, that passion for fishing shifted to golf, and Judith became an avid golfer, spending hundreds of (mostly) happy hours playing at Meaford Golf Course, both with the very active ladies’ groups and in the couples golf group with Leo on Fridays.
For many winters, Judith and Leo spent several happy months in Mexico where retired Spanish teacher Leo was in his element, and where Judith quickly absorbed and embraced the culture, cuisine, and language of their surroundings, and where they both thrived in the slower pace of life. It was definitely their ‘happy place’.
Judith was, in her own words, at home among “warm and friendly and funny and kind” people — because she was exactly that herself. She was respected in every boardroom she walked into and adored in every kitchen she cooked in. She gave generously of her time, her talent, and her heart, to her profession, her community, and most of all to the people she loved.
Judith was pre-deceased by husband Leo Girard, and survived by her step-children, Chris Spotswood (Tim Bailey) and Paul Girard (Julie), grandchildren Hillary, Kieran, Owen and Daisy, and great-grandchildren Cohen, Micah, and Emilia. Judith will also be dearly missed by her sister, Diana McGregor (Gerry) and her niece, Katie McGregor (Lorne Kligerman) and grandnephew Jackson.
She leaves behind a legacy of stories told, friendships kept, communities strengthened, and a whole lot of very good guacamole. She will be desperately missed and forever remembered — in the sound of a great laugh, the smell of fresh lime, and the friends who still gather because of the club she helped build.
Rest easy, Judith. The party was always better with you in the room.
The family is extremely thankful for the compassion and kindness shown to Judith by Angela Vessie and the PSWs, nurses, and doctors at PeopleCare Meaford during her two and a half years there. You made a difference in the lives of the whole family.
