Marion was child #8 of ten children born to William Thomson and Margaret (Maggie) (Nee-Burns) and a fifth generation descendant of David and Mary Thomson, first white settlers in Scarborough.

When I married and moved to 3100 Kingston Road, the old Harold and Janet McCowan farmhouse, I found myself more or less cut off from my family and old friends. We had no telephone of our own, although occasionally we used one belonging to one of the tenants who lived upstairs in the triplex. Bell Telephone did not have enough lines installed in the area (remember that this was just seven years after World War Two) and each family wanting a telephone was put on a waiting list. In 1954, when Bruce was to be born we told The Bell Company that we needed a telephone in case of emergency. Eventually we did get a telephone.

Meanwhile, my lifeline to the outside was through meeting new people in the McCowan clan, and also in St. Andrew's Church. While Bill was at work, our only car was away, so if I wanted to go away, I had to use the Gray Coach Bus.

Marion and Bob, however, lived within a five-minute walk from our house, and whenever I felt the need of someone to talk to, I knew that their door was always open to me. (Perhaps I was a bit of a Pest.) However, many an afternoon break I had sitting in Marion's living-room or kitchen talking and sipping tea or coffee, and munching homemade cookies.

Christmas and Thanksgiving days were special to the McCowan family. Christmas celebrations were always held at my In-Laws home down by the lake. However, Thanksgiving Day was divided between Marion's home and our own. Marion had the group one year and I would have them the next. This went on for at least twenty years until some of the younger generation were married with families of their own.

Many years ago, Marion's neighbours organized a ladies' euchre club which in 1992 is still active. Only three of the present eight members were in that first group. I joined about three years later, and have enjoyed our time together, playing cards, but mostly chatting and laughing.

One of the Charter members, Betty Parkes, says that she and another neighbour, Doris Pritchard, both of whom lived across from Marion and Bob on McCowan Road, were having coffee together one day. They decided that since there was so little to do in the area socially at that time, they would attempt to organize a Euchre Club. The houses were just being built around McCowan Road and Kingston Road. There was very little shopping done close by and certainly no restaurants. Besides playing cards twice a month, the eight ladies would often have lunch together in each others' homes. They always looked forward to going to Marion's home for lunch. Betty says there was always such a good feeling there because they all knew that Marion enjoyed preparing a delicious lunch and making it as attractive as possible.