Born and raised in England, the daughter of a ship's captain, Anne Martin was staunchly loyal to her country and a proud supporter of the royal family.
As vice-chair of the interim board of governors at UNBC, Martin had a prominent role at the opening of the university in August 1994 which brought Queen Elizabeth to Prince George. Meeting the queen in an official role was a thrill, one of the highlights of Martin's 82-year life, and this past August she confessed to longtime friend Horst Sander she'd overstepped her boundaries during the queen's visit.
"Some of us cursed the detailed arrangements under the Buckingham Palace protocol [but] Anne, with her U.K. background and her interest in matters of etiquette, royal and otherwise, thrived on it," Sander said Saturday in his eulogy to Martin.
"Apparently there is a saying that nobody meets the queen more than once in a day. Anne bragged that she broke this rule. Earlier in the day she was introduced to Her Majesty at a city hall function. Later in the day, on campus, Anne met the queen again and Her Majesty asked: 'Are you involved in this too?' Little did she know about Anne Martin.
"Anne told me this story not long ago on the day she had been given the Queen's Diamond Jubilee medal. She added: 'And if I played in the orchestra that day, she would have seen me three times.'"
As a university board member, city counsellor, physiotherapist, child development advocate, symphony musician, sailor, master gardener, wife, mother, and grandmother, Martin wore many hats in her decades of devotion to making lives of those around her better, and hundreds of people packed into St. Michael and All Angels Church for her funeral service Saturday to hear stories of her lifetime of achievements.
Martin was unsuccessful in her attempts to get into medical school in England and as a "failed doctor" studied to become a physiotherapist working in a London hospital. Seeking a better life, 28-year-old Anne Graham emigrated to Canada in 1960 and arrived in Victoria, where she met her husband Bob through a mutual acquaintance. Bob was sent to drive her to his family's farm in Sooke for dinner, and during that trip Anne said to him in her impeccable English accent, "I would so like to see a Douglas fir tree," to which Bob responded, "Miss Graham, I think that can be arranged."
They were married later that year and started a family with sons, Peter and John. In the winter of 1965 they moved to Prince George. Bob took a job as a welding instructor at the B.C. Vocational School, later to become the College of New Caledonia, while Anne worked as a physiotherapist at Prince George Regional Hospital.
She and Sander met in 1967, when Sander's daughter was in need of the kind of medical help not available in Prince George. Anne's influence created a society of like-minded parents who formed the Cerebral Palsy Association of Prince George.
"Anne had a knack for engaging people," said Sander, who served as chair of the society and followed Martin to the UNBC board. "She was successful recruiting newcomers to this fast-growing city into a sizable pool of volunteers, creating a broad mix of skills."
They took over a portable school building on Winnipeg Street and the organization steadily grew there until 1972, bursting at the seams, they received provincial government funding to build the Child Development Centre of Prince George at its current site on Strathcona Avenue.
As teenagers, Peter and John volunteered their time to work with the kids at the centre, which left a lasting impression on them both.
"Through this experience my mom taught me to look beyond appearance and take people for what they are and what they have to offer," said John, in his eulogy. "The gifts she gave to Peter and me are priceless."
Anne served with the organization until 1990, when she moved into municipal politics, elected for three terms as a city counsellor until 1999. In her busy life, she served on the boards of the Regional District of Fraser-Fort George, Livable Winter Cities Association, CNC Fundraising Society, Two Rivers Gallery, Minerva Foundation, Bridget Moran Statue Project, Communities in Bloom Committee, and the Prince George Regional Performing Arts Society.
Anne was the Prince George Community Foundation's Citizen of the Year in 2003, and in 2010 became Freeman of the City, the highest honour city council can bestow on an individual. Mayor Shari Green described her as "an exemplary citizen and a champion of making the community better through arts, culture, gardening and social justice."
Family time was precious to Anne and Bob and they loved having their four grandchildren sleep over every New Year's Eve at their home on Nechako Road. Anne was a founding member of the David Douglas Botanical Society, which created the Alice Wolczuk Memorial Garden. Anne's love for gardening and the relaxation it brought her is evident everywhere at her home, where she once took it upon herself to plant 1,500 bulbs in a week to replace a stand of cherry trees and cranberry bushes because "it looks scruffy."
Before she died on Nov. 10, Anne asked city recreation director Cheryl Livingstone-Leman to speak at her funeral. Having worked with her for years on city projects, Livingstone-Leman said Anne was a master at motivating others to join her cause to get things done, using an approach that was difficult to refuse. Her notes or emails of appreciation to city staff for doing the right thing made them feel valued for their work.
"Anne never raised her voice, nor got angry publicly or disrespected others," said Livingstone-Leman. "She was a classy lady who put her energies towards more productive and positive tasks."
Livingstone-Leman recalled Anne's proposal in 1995 to then-mayor John Backhouse that the city should have its own city flag and coat of arms and she headed a small committee to get the task accomplished. It involved extensive research and in August 1995 their work was finally unveiled. In honour of her passing, the flag she helped develop will be flying at half-staff this week. The coat of arms she developed contains the motto: Shaping a Northern Destiny.
"Now if that doesn't describe Anne, I don't know what does," said Livingstone-Leman.
