Isla Loris Jordan (née Brynjolfson) 
Jan 21, 1927 — Aug 7, 2026

It is with heavy hearts that we say good-bye to Loris, who died August 7, 2026, at Carleton Lodge in Ottawa at 99½ years young.

Loris’s life was the gold standard of a century well-lived. She was a free spirit who tackled everything with high energy and passion, whether it be motherhood, nursing, social activism, travel or play.

Born in 1927, Loris grew up in Victoria, BC with parents Isla and Walter and younger brother Einar. She attended Oak Bay Public School where she endured the trials of having her dad as the principal.

Her first grand adventure began at age 23 when, having just graduated from nursing at St. Paul’s in Vancouver, she and her best friend Joy Spencer boarded a cargo ship for South Africa with a plan to nurse their way around the world. They ended up finding jobs in a mining town in northern Cape Province. The around-the-world plan was shelved after Loris met Tedd, a “tall, dark and handsome” (in her words) mining engineer from Saskatchewan. Their first two daughters, Isla and Wynne, were born in Nababiep and then the family embarked on the S.S. Orsova steamship to take them back to Canada.

Their stay in the northern Ontario town of Manitouwadge was just two years – long enough to produce two more girls, Marcia and Denise – before Tedd took a more permanent job with the Department of Northern Affairs in Ottawa. Daughter #5, Robbi, arrived shortly after the move and Adrienne completed the six-pack four years later.

Life in Pine Glen was full, with Loris throwing herself into family, neighbourhood and church activities. Picnics and big family dinners were her specialty. Once the youngest started school, she retrained in psychiatric nursing and got a job at the Royal Ottawa Hospital working on the Alcohol and Drug Addictions unit, where she made longstanding friendships with many colleagues.

With Tedd, Loris enjoyed many memorable camping holidays and Elderhostel trips and even returned to South Africa for a wonderful holiday. After Tedd’s death in 1989, Loris lived on her own until 2013, when she left Pine Glen for Unitarian House in Westboro. Its values of community, mutual support, and social engagement made it a perfect fit for her during her eighties to mid-nineties.

Loris had a lifelong passion for social justice and helping those most in need. As a practicing Christian she walked her talk – often literally: for several decades she took to the streets of Ottawa every Wednesday in every kind of weather with Ottawa Innercity Ministries, her knapsack full of sandwiches and clean socks for the people she got to know and care deeply about. She was a founding member of the Nurses for Social Responsibility chapter at ROH, and also of the GranAid group at All Saints Westboro supporting grandmothers in Africa. She campaigned for the NDP at every election before directing much of her social activism through the Ottawa Raging Grannies, making more friends and sharing lots of laughter in the process.

Loris had an enormous capacity for having fun and ‘getting up to hijinks,’ as they used to call it. She was a fierce competitor on the badminton court and around the bridge table, where she often partnered with her beloved cousin, Dr. Eleanor Sutherland. She loved swimming, biking and cross-country skiing, and enjoyed many adventures on her annual visits to her daughters in far-flung parts of Canada, from the Yukon to Nova Scotia. She always looked forward to her two weeks in July at Red Pine Camp with her expanding family. When the campers incorporated and bought the property from the Ottawa YMCA in 1973, she was a founding director and served on the board for over two decades.

With the addition of her daughters’ partners (Peter, Mel, Dave, Dale, Linda), the family grew to include nine grandchildren: Lee, Milo, Amber (Neil), Andy, Isla (Jeremy), Jackie (Chris), Michael, Natalie (Nick), and Erin; and so far, six great-grandchildren: Mason, Harlynn, Luella, Sebastian, Rowan and Russell. As ‘Momma J’, Loris was a loving and engaged grandmother, making it a priority to build strong relationships with all her grandkids. She was also very close to our second cousins, the Sutherland family: Ross (Nancy), Jane, Jim (Heather) and Rob. She will also be missed by her nieces and nephews: Diane (Peter), Della (Dwight), Tedd (Kathie), Deborah (Al) and Robert (Silvia).

Wherever she went Loris had a knack for making friends due to her empathy, compassion, genuine interest in people and her adventurous spirit. She was well-loved by her many, many friends and colleagues, and she spread her love and kindness generously. Her life was filled with laughter and joy.

Our gratitude goes to the caring staff at Carleton Lodge who worked to bring ease to Loris in her final days. A celebration-of-life service will take place at All Saints Westboro Anglican Church, 347 Richmond Road, at 10:30 am, Thursday September 3rd, with a reception to follow. All are welcome to wear colourful clothing.

In lieu of flowers, please consider providing support to one of the following:

All Saints' Westboro Anglican Church

Alongside Hope

Unitarian House of Ottawa