On October 20th, I had the honour of being part of the official renaming of Mary During Park, formerly Cypress Gardens Park, located at 33 Brae Crescent.
Mary Durling was a well known member of this community and an active volunteer in this area for many years. Through her volunteer work, Mary formed rich ties to this community and an overwhelming amount of public support was received during the public consultation for this proposal.
Mary Durling was described as a loving, generous and kind person who brought joy to those in her company and made others feel special. Mary also devoted her time to raising awareness and funds for important causes and advocated for those in need of a voice. She unselfishly supported many charitable organizations such as the Heart and Stroke foundation, Cameron Awareness and the Ladies Auxiliary Stittsville Legion for many years. Most importantly, she was said to be a great bingo and dart player!
This park is particularly significant to Mary Durling and her children as the family spent a great deal of time enjoying this space and making memories in this exact location over the years.
For these reasons, I am very proud that we were able to make this event happen and that Mary Durling will be honoured for her work and dedication to this community through the naming of this park.
Shad Qadri 