Jane was born September 13th, 1933 on a houseboat on the Whaleboat Canal in the City of Srinagar, Kashmir, India, as it was then, today it is Pakistan. Her parents were Margaret Rose Stuart and Lieutenant Alexander George Stuart, Royal Artillery. Jane’s youth was spent in England and Scotland and was directly affected by the disruptions that were caused by World War 2. Jane’s interest in animals started young and she enrolled at the Northampton Institute of Agriculture in her teen years to work with cows. There she met her husband, John McIntyre.

They had their first baby, Bethany, while on a stock farm in Rosshire. Jane, John and baby Bethany, immigrated to Canada after seeing ads in the papers for people interested in farming in Canada. They took the cat Tootie Peg and the baby Bethany and set off on their big adventure. They sailed out of Liverpool on the Franconia, landed at the now famous Pier 21 in Halifax. They then started their life in Canada settling in Sutton Ontario. Shona was born when Beth was 2 and after that Ian, Lilace, Gwen, Bryony and Jocelyn arrived every two years approximately.

When the youngest, Jocelyn, was in school Jane was accepted at the University of Guelph where she spent 4 years gaining a B.A. She loved school, found it very energizing and exciting after years raising young children. She received her Social Anthropology degree at which she earned a B.A. Honours. As the years went by, Jane decided to move out west, and following Beth and Ian, moved herself and the three youngest to the Yukon in 1978. Jane was employed for some time as a Court worker, working with people who had to appear in the Magistrates Court. After that she applied to be a Student Counselor at YVTTC which the College was called at that time. She remained there for 17 years until she retired.

Of course, all the children had grown up by then and she became "Nanny" or "Granny" to 13 young ones and spent quite a lot of time with the grandchildren who lived here. She had also applied to "foster" children. Jack, Timmy and Jordana spent a lot of their childhood with Jane and the family. Jane also supported many others over the years like Mary Jane and Gabriel by providing them with a safe place to stay.

Dogs were always a large part of Jane's life. All sizes, colours and shapes. She loved them all, Rosie and Pepper, Minnie, Sarah, Roni, Moka, Kya, Foxy, PD, and Buddy. However, none were as loved as Charlie and the new addition Rupert. There were also multiple cats, gerbils, fish, guinea pigs, chickens, ducks and other birds. Each was important in her life.

Retirement was wonderful. She kept very busy and was involved with many organizations and on many boards such as Skookum Jim, Humane Society, Vestry at church, YPLEA and so on. She had always loved gardening and it became one of her main interests once she had the time. It was a real challenge in Whitehorse but what a thrill when something was successful!! She loved to try new plants. One great sadness was that when she finally had the time to give to the garden, she did not have the strength to fulfill all the plans and ideas she had for the garden.

Legally a Canadian, Jane never lost her love of her homeland and pride in her family's history which was part of that of Great Britain. Her own children, grandchildren, animals, wild and tame, to the great beauty of the natural world and our responsibility to love and care for it have always been some of her main concerns and interests throughout her life. She enjoyed crafts and working with her hands and very much wished she could go back and live life again.


A celebration of life service to remember Jane will be held at the Church of the Northern Apostles, Porter Creek (45 Boxwood Crescent) on Monday, September 13, 2021 at 2pm. We hope that all who loved, miss and appreciate Jane will be able to attend. In lieu of flowers, please make any donation in Jane’s name to the Mae Bachur Animal Shelter in Whitehorse.