Mary Bonnie Anne Beaucage

BEAUCAGE, Mary Bonnie  (Ode-mini Kwe)

February 22, 1969 - March 28, 2024 

On March 28th, 2024, Mary made her journey to be with her father Jerry and her ancestors. Mary passed away after a long battle with diabetes and kidney failure. 

Remembering Mary is her mother Linda Goulais, her son Tyler Beaucage, Grandson Rylan Jolicoeur, sister Aimee Coderre (Bobby), niece Isabella, nephew Gerard Coderre, and many more aunties, uncles, and cousins. 

Mary grew up on Nipissing First Nation on Beaucage and Duchesnay Creek, then raised her son Tyler in Sudbury. She is a strong Anishinaabe kwe, living in a time when First Nation people had to be assimilated, she broke the generational trauma by finding her culture and embracing who she is. She loved to learn as much as she could about her culture and language. Mary’s long-time wish was to receive her Anishinaabe name, which came true the day she walked through the western doorway, joining her relatives by hand with her new name Ode-mini Kwe (Strawberry Woman). Her name was always waiting for her. 

Mary loved animals, she had many pets and loved to play with them. She had her best friend cat Grayce Greyeyes kept her company in her final years and would always update her followers on Instagram with “Your daily dose of Grayce”. When she visited Calgary, her niece and nephew found a cat plush that looked exactly like Grayce, she took it home of course, and it became her travel Grayce, or Grayce’s doppelganger. Mary loved to bake and cook family dinners. People would remember how amazing her desserts and dishes were, and she was always excited about bringing food to share. She would garden and have fresh herbs for meals, giving her best to her family and friends. She would take her son to visit Nipissing many times throughout the years, visiting family and often swimming in the lake and playing in the bush. She would partake in harvesting maple syrup, a family tradition that her uncle Peter would host every spring. Mary loved to give people gifts and was always delighted by the gifts she received from family and friends. It was the little things that made her happy, and the thought behind the gifts that made it all matter to her. Mary enjoyed music and loved to sing. She enjoyed meeting and connecting with people. She made friends wherever she went and people enjoyed her beautiful joyful spirit. 

In 2013, Mary unfortunately faced many health challenges, but instead of being a victim of kidney failure, she made herself an advocate. By sharing her most vulnerable story with people of all walks of life. Bringing awareness to others on kidney transplants, blood, and organ donation. She often shared her story of how she persevered through her sickness with the help of her cousin Janice (Debassige) Pulak, who donated her kidney to Mary in March 2015, saving Mary’s life, and allowing her to continue on her journey for many more years. She had a tremendous impact on many people's lives, encouraging others to live healthy lives, donate when possible, and build amazing relationships with others.

The family will receive visitors at the McGuinty Funeral Home (North Bay) on Friday, April 5, 2024, between the hours of 2 pm to 4 pm and 6 pm to 8 pm. Cremation will follow. If desired donations are suggested to the Kidney Foundation of Canada and would be gratefully acknowledged by Mary’s family. Online condolences may be made at www.mcguintyfuneralhome.com