Marianne Kroes

Kroes, Marianne Bernadette Patterson

BA, MA, LLB, LLM, QC

October 20,1947 to January 27, 2022

It is with great sadness that her loving family said goodbye to Marianne on January 27, 2022. She was the beloved wife of 53 years to Jean-Holgèr Kroes, mother of Geneviève (Terry Goodtrack), and grandmother of Nadia Kroes Bachar and Sarah Kroes Bachar. She was also much loved by her sister Ellen O’Sullivan, her cherished nieces and nephews, her three sisters-in-law, and step-siblings. She was predeceased by her parents John and Nora Patterson, step-mother Rowena Preston, brothers Joseph, Hugh, Patrick-John who died in infancy, and brother-in-law James O’Sullivan.

After qualifying as a teacher in Michigan, Marianne followed her heart and immigrated to Windsor, Ontario in 1969 after marrying the love of her life, Jean, whom she met while studying in Switzerland. Not one to shy away from a challenge, several years after completing a teaching degree and an MA in French Literature, she later followed her dreams and graduated from law school in 1987. After being called to the Ontario Bar in 1989, she established her own law practice in Windsor, Ontario. A lifelong seeker of knowledge and wanting to be closer to her daughter and granddaughters, she and Jean moved to Ottawa in 1999 where she later completed a Master of Laws (LLM) at the University of Ottawa. Marianne spent the last decade of her career on Treaty negotiations for the Department of Justice Canada and retired in 2013.

Marianne’s understanding nature belied a great, dry sense of humor, a courageous spirit, and deep knowledge on complex issues. In conversations with Marianne, you could always count on her to bring people back to the facts of the issue, and advocate for the underdog. She was a fun-loving friend and colleague and demonstrated unparalleled generosity to her daughter and granddaughters, with whom for many years she shared her love of horses and horseback riding.

Over the last few years, Marianne was living with Parkinson’s disease, supported by her loving husband Jean. Even through the most difficult days of her struggle with Parkinson’s, she looked forward to her weekly dance sessions and outings with her loving daughter Geneviève. Her granddaughters Nadia and Sarah were a constant bright spot in her life and she took great joy in cheering them on in their life journeys and watching them develop into accomplished women in their own rights.

A small family gathering has occurred, and a larger celebration of Marianne’s life will be announced at a later date. Donations can be made in her honour to the Parkinson Canada or the Ottawa Hospital Foundation, where the nurses provided her with excellent care in her final days.

A quote Marianne kept on her fridge is one that inspires and summarizes her life’s perspective: “Our lives begin and end the day we become complacent about things that matter”. (Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.)