Janet Merry

Janet was born in Digby County in 1928, the daughter of the Point Prim Lighthouse Keeper. She earned her Nursing license and moved to Lawrencetown in the early 50’s. It was here that she would raise her family. Janet was always known as a great organizer and as a person who liked to get things done. She and her husband bought the local Pharmacy and many local people happily remember their Christmas trips to Merry’s Toy Land.

She first became a member of the Bridgetown Curling Club in 1953 and went on from there to have a lasting impact on the Sport of Curling at every possible level. In 1959 she was elected to the local executive and served as President of the Ladies Division from 1965 to 1967. She was also President of the Mixed Curling League from 1955 until 1965.

In 1967, Janet was elected second Vice-President of the Nova Scotia Ladies Curling Association and in 1971 she became the President of the Provincial body. In 1973 she served as Vice-Chairperson of the Provincial Senior Ladies Championship. In 1983 she co-ordinated the same championship, this time hosted by the Bridgetown Curling Club.

During the years of 1970-71 and again in 1974, Janet was Nova Scotia’s observer at the Canadian Ladies Curling Association Council and also served as the Provincial delegate to the parent body’s council. In 1971, she travelled to Ottawa as Nova Scotia’s representative to the first Canadian Ladies Curling Championship. She was elected second Vice-President of the Canadian Ladies Curling Championship in 1975, becoming its President two years later.

For four years during the 1970’s, Janet attended meetings in Scotland, Sweden, the United States and various parts of Canada as a member of an ad hoc committee that represented Canada’s views on the formation of the first Women’s World Championship, held in 1979. She was the first female to be appointed to the Seagram Mixed Curling Policy Committee. In this capacity, she travelled to view championship play in Saskatoon, Prince George and St. John’s.

In addition to her dedication to the Sport of Curling and her commitments to her children and the family business, Janet also served in 1992 as the Manager of the Canadian Ladies Commonwealth Lawn Bowls team and was a long time Officer in Eastern Star.

Besides her noted and admired administrative skills, she was also an accomplished curler, having competed in ten Provincial Playdowns and a couple of Senior Ladies finals.

In 1977, Janet was awarded the Queen’s Silver Jubilee Medal for outstanding contribution to amateur sport.
In 1979, she was presented with the Sport Nova Scotia Service Award for Curling.
In March of 1983, in Sudbury, Ontario, Janet was inducted, as a Builder, into the Canadian Curling Hall of Fame.
In 1987 she was inducted as a member of the Nova Scotia Sports Hall of Fame.
She has also been inducted in the Sports Heritage Wall of Fame, Middleton.