Mildred Eisenberg passed away peacefully on Jan. 7, 2025, in Toronto, just three months shy of her 100th birthday. She was predeceased by her brother, Tommy Levy and her husband, Philip Eisenberg. She is survived by her sons, Joel, Ian (and Susan), Eric (and Joni); sister-in-law, Peggy Levy; nephew, Allan Levy; grandchildren, Robert (and Hannah), and Meryl (and Chris Nirenberg); and great-grandchildren, Samuel, Liam, Miriam, Philip, and Jordan, as well as cherished cousin, Stan Albert.
The term 鈥渓ifelong learner鈥 is often used, but rarely does it apply so aptly as it does to Mildred. Despite growing up during a time when women were not expected to work (or to work as a secretary, as she was encouraged to do by her mother and friends), Mildred believed she was capable of much more. She attended Queen鈥檚, where she obtained her teacher鈥檚 degree in 1943. She began teaching primary school right away to support herself, but continued to pursue her studies during the summer months and part time during the school year, eventually graduating with her BA from Queen鈥檚 in 1949.
Over the next 30 years, she raised her three sons Ian, Joel, and Eric in Montreal, and with the loving support of her husband, Phil, she continued to pursue her education, obtaining her MA (double masters of Arts and Education) from McGill University in 1968, and her Ph.D (psychology) from the Universit茅 de Montr茅al in 1977. Along the way, she was appointed to a Quebec government school commission and served as chairman (as was the designation at the time) of the board of governors of Vanier College.
At the 50th anniversary reunion of the Baron Byng high school class she taught, she was honoured for her dedication and ability to teach, to instill a love of learning, and to motivate others. One of her students recounted that Mildred was the only teacher who ever believed in her potential and credited her with being the one who motivated her to pursue and ultimately realize her career dreams. To paraphrase a piece of Jewish wisdom: 鈥淥ne who changes a life changes the world.鈥 Mildred did this hundreds of times over during her career as a teacher, guidance counsellor, and later professional psychologist, focusing on helping teenagers and young adults.
She always pushed her children 鈥 and later grandchildren 鈥 to pursue higher education, and was very proud of her grandchildren Meryl (Artsci鈥12, Ed鈥13) and Robert (MPA鈥12, JD鈥14) for following in her footsteps at Queen鈥檚. Meryl lived in Ban Righ Hall, just as Mildred had done 70 years before, and continues to wear Mildred鈥檚 Queen鈥檚 ring today.
In later years, Mildred moved to Toronto to be closer to her children and grandchildren, and took great joy in getting to know her great-grandchildren, Samuel (named after her father), Liam (named after her mother), Miriam, Philip (named after her husband), and Jordan.
Always eager to learn, she continued to take many courses in various areas of interest. Creative writing became a special passion for her, and she began to document her family history by writing short stories about events that shaped her life and some short fiction stories 鈥 all told, over 400 stories! Her stories, along with her love of family, are part of her legacy.
Within just a few hours after the announcement of her passing went up on the Papermans website in Montreal, student after student after student posted tributes that made Mildred鈥檚 experiences as a teacher come to life. They describe her in these words: 鈥渙utstanding teacher鈥, 鈥渁 tribute to her profession鈥, 鈥渄ynamic manner鈥, 鈥渋ncredible woman鈥, 鈥渁 role model of intellectual rigour and comportment鈥, 鈥渁n inspiration to those of us who knew her鈥, 鈥渁 force of nature鈥, 鈥淚 owe much of my rich vocabulary to her鈥, 鈥渁n inspiring educator鈥, 鈥淚 loved her鈥, 鈥渟he was the best鈥, 鈥渇ormidable and wonderful lady鈥, and 鈥渓eft no stone unturned in advancing the education of each of her students.鈥 These are tributes from students she taught over 60 years ago 鈥 she truly had an incredible impact on a generation of students! We all miss Mildred terribly, but know that she truly lived a beautiful and full life.
