I always looked up to Erin, not just because she was taller than me. I really admired her sense of style.

Erin was born a fashionista. Even as a toddler, she would change her clothes hourly, trying to find just the right fashion forward outfit to show her friends.

Erin was also a born sales person. My mother recalled one day when a neighbour knocked on our door and asked her if Erin was really associated with the Red Cross. My mother looked at her quizzically and the lady turned and pointed to Erin, who was out on our front lawn sitting on a blanket, selling my fathers old playboy magazines to raise money for the Red Cross.

Erin was also a very compassionate person. When she was a teen she volunteered with my mother for the Association of the Mentally Retarded in Burlington. While in Erin, she also did volunteer work to raise money for the local hospital.

Getting back to Erin’s sense of style, Erin was always the first person in our neighbourhood to wear the latest fashion statement. Whether it was platform wedgies, palazzo pants, bell bottoms or earth shoes, you always saw it first on Erin.

As she got older she decided to use her great sense of style in a career in retail fashion. Her first job as a teen was at Fairweathers. With the discounts that she received, she would spend almost her entire paycheque on new outfits every week. This pleased me to no end, as I was the same size as Erin. I can remember on numerous occasions sneaking into her room, and borrowing a brand new outfit which still had the price tags on it. It was at this time, that my friends noticed that I also had developed a great sense of style. If only they knew.

Erin was also a great beauty. Not many of you know this, but Erin was first runner up in the Queen of the Burlington Mall contest. I say this in jest, but it really was true. Erin was a great beauty. She had many many boyfriends. She was very popular and always hung out with the “in” crowd. In her college years, she had many happy years during the disco era dancing and partying with her friends at the exclusive “RJ” disco bar in Burlington.

Being the “it” girl of her generation, Erin was destined to marry someone special, and she did that when she found Richard Clewes. Erin really loved Richard and was very happy when they married. Erin loved living in their house in the beaches. Moving into Richard’s house, wasn’t without some challenges in the decorating department. Remember at the time, fashion was Erin’s area of expertise, not home décor. Erin proceeded to put her stamp of style on their house by hiring a friend to paint the house robin’s egg blue. Not only did this friend paint the walls blue, he painted Rick’s favorite chair robin’s egg blue. However Erin’s critical eye for style allowed her to learn from her mistakes. She soon began studying decorating magazines and turned her decorating style completely around.

Erin was instrumental in the interior design and décor of their new house up in Caledon. She worked very hard in the year that they spent building this house. She did such a great job, that their home was featured in several Canadian home décor magazines.

At this point she was so interested in home décor that she decided to open up her own store. With the sluggish economy the store was not a great financial success, however it was a great landmark in the town of Erin. Everyone raved about her store and the unique stylish merchandise that she carried. Her store was also featured in several magazines. Erin’s store brought a lot of new clientele to the town of Erin and the other shopkeepers in Erin were very appreciative of that. Erin had a lot of people that helped her run this store and she was always very grateful to them for all the help that they provided in making her store look so great.

Erin also gardened. Richard designed and implemented extensive gardens at the house and Erin spent many hours watering and tending to these gardens.

Erin also became very interested in cooking while living up in Caledon. She entertained many of Richard’s clients, friends and family with large dinner parties. Everyone thought the food was always excellent. Erin worked very hard to ensure that everyone had a great time at their house.

Erin loved to travel. Erin especially enjoyed the trips to Nevis, Bermuda and St Lucia that she and Richard shared. Before she died she hoped to take a trip to New Orleans in May to visit her friend Pat Stewart. She also hoped to visit her friend Sharon Green in Santa Barbara this summer.
Erin had a lot of friends in Erin, Toronto and Burlington. She loved all her friends. Erin was also very close to her family, she visited with my mother, Sherry and Rob, Evan and I weekly.

I will especially remember Erin for the love and support that she provided me when I became a new mother two years ago. Being an older mother, Erin provided a lot of assistance to me in those first few months after I had my son Evan.

My mother is especially grateful to Erin for all the help that she gave her with my grandmother. Moving my grandmother into a nursing home was very difficult for my Mum and Erin really helped her through it.

My younger sister Sherry and her husband Rob are especially grateful to Erin for all the help that she gave them with their wedding this past year. This was a big event for Sherry and Rob, and Erin not only opened her home to them but provided a lot of assistance in the planning and execution.

Richard is especially grateful to Erin for teaching him the gift of giving.

For all Erin’s gifts and accomplishments, she was not without her challenges. Erin suffered from depression. She had many ups and downs over the years, but always managed to win the battle. Like a lot of illnesses, the effects became worse over time. Erin sought medical treatment but her quality of life had been affected.

It is very difficult for all of us to understand Erin’s final moments. I thank God that she is finally at peace. I pray that we will all remember the happy times that we spent with her. Erin may not be with us physically anymore, but she is still with us in spirit.

Our family would like to thank all of Erin’s friends, Rick’s friends and family and our own family and friends for all the love and support that we have received over the past week.

Lastly, I would like to thank Erin for being the best daughter, sister and friend that all of us could have had. We love you and will miss you deeply.

Thank you and god bless.
Nancy.