Barbara died peacefully at the time of her choosing in the presence of her sons Sean and Ben, the lights of her life, her sister Karen, and her beloved golden retriever Sonny.
Barbara grew up in Winnipeg and Thunder Bay, attending McMaster University in Hamilton where she married George Markham and met her new family of friends, she was soon followed, one by one, by her siblings. Shortly after the birth of her first son Sean in 1986 she obtained her MBA in Health Economics, graduating cuma sum laude. Because of her strong acumen in health care economics Barbara was asked to lead a group which was instrumental in founding the Hamilton Urban Core Community Health Centre for the Underhoused. After a short time in Thunder Bay, she returned to Hamilton to begin work for CHEPA (Centre for Health Economics & Policy Analysis). Her second son Ben was born and in the ensuing years she became a talented gardener (winning a Trillium award), an expert pierogi chef at Christmas, and a wonderful mother. While running with her large group of friends she eventually qualified for the Boston Marathon, became a triathlete, and completed the Madison Wisconsin Ironman. Her friends called her Crash after a lucky escape during a bicycle accident.
After leaving CHEPA for Bayer she found herself working for them in Germany for a few years. In 2010 Barb and her siblings went on a trip to meet her cousins in Poland and Ukraine, and finally visiting the farm of her paternal grandfather Bronislaw in Warwarynce, and the home of her paternal grandmother Albina in Strusow, Ukraine.
Switching to Lundbeck as a Vice President she moved to Copenhagen, Denmark, where she lived as an expat for five years. There she found a strong love for Danish design, that influenced her in her re-build of her cottage on Go Home Lake, while supervising from Europe. Coming back to live permanently in Canada she would live at the cottage during the summers. Here she invited her friends and family to swim, sauna and hot tub…but mostly to have good conversations. She lived in Burlington, Toronto and Oakville in the winters, and there reconnected with all of her beautiful friends. She founded her own pharmaceutical consulting company, Kewa Consul Ltd, were she worked while tending to her garden at the cottage.
Barbara leaves behind her mother Irene; sons Sean (Karolina) Markham, and Benjamin; siblings Jim (Lisa), Blake, Eric (Theresa), and Karen; her niece and nephew Gina and Dylan; her aunts and uncles Marilyn (Don) Leitch, Bob (Lori) Roe, Ed (Liz) Roe, Alison Roe, and their many sons, daughters, and grandchildren. She gives her love to her expectant grandson Miles.
Barbara is predeceased by her father William Henry Jashewski, her uncle Doug Roe, as well as her goldens Laska, Lucy, and Madison.
Barbara’s service will take place on 19 November 2022 at White Chapel Memorial Gardens & Cemetery, 1895 Main St W, Hamilton, at 10:00am. Friends and family are welcome to add a small memento or note to her final resting place at this time.
Her Celebration of Life will be held in the RHLI Officer Mess at 200 James St North, John Weir Foote Armoury on Saturday November 19 from 11:00am to 5:00pm, where toasts and stories are welcome. There will be limited parking in the armoury’s courtyard but there is free parking downtown Hamilton on Saturdays.
The tribute is such a fitting tribute to a beautiful, talented and compassionate leader and individual. She was a great informal coach and mentor for me. I loved working with her in our industry and miss her practical / pragmatic approaches to problems we collectively faced. She was a fierce force and she left an indelible mark.
View MoreYou will be remembered for your kindness, your generosity with your time/advice/outlooks but most importantly for the years of allowing me to grow up in your home and with your family. They were some of my very best years, and will always be remembered. - The Renaissance Man Shan
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