Frances Ilkow (née Kagan)

Frances Ilkow (née Kagan) of Dorval, Quebec died peacefully in her sleep at the age of 100 years, at the seniors’ residence where she spent the 5 last happy years of her life, Manoir Beaconsfield.

Frances was born in Winnipeg, Manitoba in 1923 to Mary Wiernik and Francis Kagan, both immigrants from Poland to Canada in the early 20th century.

She attended St Mary’s Academy in Winnipeg and was elected student leader or “Lady Stick”, graduating in 1941. She worked as a teacher and continued studying piano at the Royal Conservatory of Music.

She was accepted into the Sorbonne in Paris but decided not to attend because she met Stanley Ilkow, who had emigrated to Canada in 1947 after fighting in WWII with the Polish II Corps of the British Eighth Army. He earned a Bachelor’s Degree in Chemical Engineering and went to work for Domtar, a timber processing company where he spent his career, eventually becoming a Manager at the Head Office in Montreal. They raised seven children and lived in Manitoba, Saskatchewan, finally settling in Quebec.

After Stanley passed away in 1981, Frances returned to her studies, earning a Master’s Degree in French Literature from McGill University. She was an avid tennis player, cross-country skier and swimmer. She gave much of her time to the St Vincent De Paul Society and Meals on Wheels and was an active member of the Catholic Women’s League. She was Musical Director of stage productions at John XXIII and Dorval High Schools such as Godspell and South Pacific. She was the organist and choir member at St Veronica’s Parish for many years.

Her passion in life was teaching piano and her dedication to her students was invigorated by becoming a member of Suzuki Music Montreal and teaching the Suzuki Method. She traveled the world attending Suzuki conferences and loved the steady stream of young and old students in her home. She will be remembered as a bright and caring person, who always made time for others and had a strong spirit.

Frances is survived by her children Christopher, Conrad, Michael, Martha, John and Annie, and her grandson Jacob. She is preceded in death by her son Paul, brothers Dr. Joseph (Kagan), sister-in-law Irene (Kagan), brother Thomas, sister (Rosalia Mary) Sister Alphonsus, and aunt Sister Benigna Wiernik, brother-in-law Ted Ilkow, and sister-in-law Irene Ilkow.

The family wishes to thank Sabrina Solari and the incredibly dedicated and compassionate team at Manoir Beaconsfield — especially Donna Nicdao — who cared for Frances like she was family, and made every visit and celebration a loving memory for us to cherish.