Ada Mae Campbell

Ada arrived in the middle of a raging snowstorm. Whether she entered this world eagerly or was given a push from behind by her twin Anna, who made her appearance shortly afterwards, is still up for debate.

Anyway, Ada arrived. And for 96 years and five months she brought love and joy to everyone who had the amazing good fortune to be part of her world.

Ada and Anna grew up on the family homestead in Bayview, on the edge of what is now the PEI National Park in Cavendish. Her parents Will and Mary Graham led by example, showing the girls and their brothers how to put in an honest day's work in the barn, in the fields, in the garden, and in the summer tourist accommodations that Mary ran in the farmhouse to help the family earn a little extra income. We don't know if Ada was sent outside to play when L.M. Montgomery dropped by to visit some of her author friends who became regulars at Mary's tourist home. Probably so.

Ada attended Hope River School, took grades 7 and 8 in one year, and graduated from grade 10 in that one-room schoolhouse just after she turned fifteen. Then she adventured to Charlottetown to attend the one-year teacher's training program at Prince of Wales College.

Certificate in hand, she began teaching grades 1-10 at the age of sixteen, spending two years in Mayfield and one year in Margate.

Somewhere in there Ada found time to go on a blind date, arranged by her friend Ruth. At the age of eighteen or so, Ada began seeing that blind date, Millar Campbell. She definitely liked Millar, but she also liked the idea of travel and adventure, so she and Ruth took off to Toronto, where Ada got a job at an insurance company as a receptionist/bookkeeper. Millar suddenly decided he was interested in checking out the big city. Although Millar was never one for talking, he must have summoned the courage to tell Ada how he felt. Then he returned home to PEI and shortly afterwards Ada did, too. In November of 1951 they were married at the Cavendish United Church manse.

And thus began Ada's next adventure. She and Millar raised their family of four children while building a new business, following their dreams. Millar was the earth mover. Ada was the administrator, keeping the books and answering the phone. They moved from their original home on Graham's Road to Charlottetown, eventually buying a brand new house on Nassau Street. They helped found Spring Park United Church, attended hockey games, music festivals, and dance recitals. They encouraged their kids to follow their own dreams and go on their own adventures.

Snowstorms continued to play a big role in Ada's life. She watched Millar watch the weather forecast, then helped him get ready to head out in the middle of the night to clear parking lots and people's driveways. In the summer, she delivered his lunch to wherever he was digging a basement. And Sunday family drives always seemed to end up at a shale pit.

When Millar passed away in 2000, Ada began her next adventure, learning to navigate life alone. When she needed a new car, she just went out and bought one. She started attending exercise classes and going for coffee with newfound friends. She and Millar had usually gone on driving trips to see the fall colours in New England. Now she headed off with daughter Carolyn to see Elton John and Neil Diamond in concert. Her joy returned as she followed the lives of her children, her grandchildren, and eventually her great-grandchildren.

That joy was abruptly shattered when Carolyn died in 2017. Shortly afterwards, Ada decided she no longer wanted to live alone on Nassau Street. She moved into independent living at Geneva Villa in Charlottetown, then community care and eventually nursing care at Andrews of Stratford. She found her final home there, where the staff and residents became an important part of her expanded family.

As age and some serious health issues began to drastically limit Ada's world, you might think that worry and fear would become her everyday outlook. Instead, as her body began to fail and dementia crept in and stole her memories and her thoughts of the future, Ada embraced her innate sense of adventure. She started the day with a smile and asked, “What's next?” She cracked jokes and laughed with delight when someone else made one. Visionless, she chose to trust those around her, sensing their goodness and responding to them with gratitude and respect. And she lost her fears through music. It became her lifeline.

Ada's music was always playing in her room. It filtered out into the hallways and became part of the facility's soundtrack. Whenever Ada displayed any discomfort, the staff would put on her music and all would be well.

And Ada sang, bravely and joyfully. The woman who was always too afraid of the sound of her own voice to sing aloud (except for the congregational singing on Sundays at Spring Park Church)—that woman sang all the time. She danced in her wheelchair to the fiddle music in the activities room. She spontaneously incorporated song lyrics into conversations. And in the last days of her life, eyes closed, she hummed along, toes tapping, hands conducting unseen musicians.

Ada arrived in a blizzard. She weathered many storms throughout her long life. But she left this world, gently and without fear, on a beautiful PEI spring day, rejoicing in the next adventure.

The death occurred peacefully at Andrews of Stratford, PEI, on June 17, 2026 of Ada Mae (Graham) Campbell, age 96. Born in Bayview, PEI, on January 18, 1930, daughter of the late William A. and Mary (Moore) Graham. Beloved wife for 49 years of the late G. Millar Campbell and cherished mother of Pamela, Don (Sherry), Kenny (Shirley), and Carolyn (deceased). Lovingly remembered by grandchildren Heather Gray (Trevor), Alex Campbell (Brittany), Lindsay Campbell (Matt Smith), and Kendra Campbell (Alexander Aghdassi); great-grandchildren Aiden, Kate, and Rowan Gray, and James Campbell; sister-in-law Mary Campbell; and many special nieces, nephews, great-nieces, and great-nephews.

Predeceased by her dear twin sister Anna Andrews; brothers Austin, Claude, and Benson Graham; sisters-in-law Vivian, Mary, and Marion Graham, Elaine Dimond, Jessie Dow, and Erma, Anna, Evelyn, Clemmie, Grace, and Doreen Campbell; brothers-in-law Robert Andrews, Fred Dimond, John Dow, and Elric, Ewen, Louis, Gordon, and Malcolm Campbell.

Deep gratitude to the staff of Andrews of Stratford for their loving care of Ada.

No visitation or funeral by request. Interment and private family gathering to be scheduled at a later date. Donations in Ada's memory may be made to the music program at Spring Park United Church or to a music program of your choice. Arrangements through Belvedere Funeral Home, Charlottetown (www.belvederefh.com). Online condolences are welcome.