Cecilia Frances Clarke (nee Crawley) – born January 1, 1936, passed away on March 8, 2026, at the age of 90 at Oakwood Terrace in Dartmouth, NS. She will now be reunited in heaven with her cherished husband, James Clarke, who predesceased her 30 years ago. He was the love of her life and was irreplaceable as she always said no man could ever replace her “Jimmy”.

She was known to everyone as Dooda, and Nana or Nanny to all five of her grandchildren. Mom was well known for her love of bingo, pop, and not holding back her opinion. She had a knack for telling it like it is, even if her opinion was not asked. Despite not sugar coating anything, she was a genuine, loving person who was immensely protective of those she loved. Her date squares, fish cakes, and especially her perogies – which were never smaller than a dinner plate – were eagarly anticipated by family and friends across the province and beyond. Mom was always there to lend a hand, volunteer, and help anyone in need. She could be heard yelling "Bingo!” at the Imperial Hall or at any other bingo hall she found along the way. In her later years, she enjoyed playing darts. Although she had no idea how to play, she somehow had a natural knack for throwing darts. Dooda was a social butterfly and always seemed to have a deck of cards, along with many other items in her considerably large purse or her bra, to pull out at any time when gathered with friends or family. She had a lifelong love of scratch tickets, never missed buying her Lotto 649 tickets, and always supported any child selling tickets along the way. We were all all lucky enough to inherit her strong will, resiliency, and stubbornness, and to know that no matter how many mistakes we made, we were loved well beyond all the galaxies you can imagine. We are so proud to say she was our mother, sister, and grandmother.

Dooda was the daughter of the late, Walter and Kathleen (nee St. John) Crawley. She was predeceased by her soulmate and husband, James “Jimmy” Clarke; sister, Mary Goldman; brother, Kenny Crawley, and so many other dear friends and close family members over the years.

She will be sorely missed and survived by her 2 daughters, Karen (Glenn) Sampson, Kelly (Ian) Capstick; grandsons, Greg Capstick, Josh (Britta) Sampson; granddaughters, Faith (Alex) Sampson McCloskey, Colby (Liam) Capstick, Shelby (Ian) Capstick; brother, Walter “Junior” (Pat) Crawley and; sister, Kathleen “Tootsie” Zeller.

Alzheimer’s is a horrible heartbreaking disease stealing her most precious memories of her children, grandchildren and all the close friends and family she loved. This disease also made her forget her favorite curse words, even those ones she loved to use as adjectives and nouns. Even at the end, she kept her humour and quick wit, always leaving those around her with a smile. We are sure Mom’s presence in heaven is well known by now, and very sure she has a bottle of pop in hand searching for the next bingo game.

We want to thank all the staff at Oakwood Terrace who supported her from all the units, especially Dr. Barnett, the recreation staff, and all the staff that worked on Unit C. They are amazing people who truly found their calling. They treated Mom with love, kindness, respect, just as if she were their own mother. Mom was cremated, and a celebration of her life will take place in Dartmouth.

Her burial will take place at a later date in Sydney alongisde her husband. In recognition of Mom’s lifelong commitment to blood donation, contributions in her memory may be made to a local blood drive.