Sandy Hook, less than an hour’s drive north of Winnipeg, is a popular destination for cottage owners, tourists and visitors alike.
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McRorie’s painted rocks could be found scattered on the beach at Sandy Hook.
For Lisa McRorie, it was more than that, a place where she was happiest, a place to reminisce about the old days and make new memories while spending summers there.
The artist and writer had a passion for painting; she was known to paint rocks and scatter them for people to find on a stroll on the beach and surrounding areas. She also created ornaments, bookmarks and gift bags, and made stained-glass and jewelry.
She also had a passion for various charities, including the Winnipeg Humane Society and Spirit of Hope Dog Rescue. Over the last year she hand-painted 100 wooden ornaments of the pier at Sandy Hook and raised more than $1,200 towards improvements in accessibility.
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McRorie with her son, Quinn, at the cottage at Sandy Hook.
The upgrades were completed this summer, thanks in part to the sale of her ornaments.
She’d planned to continue exploring various painting projects but died unexpectedly on April 29 at age 55, of a heart attack.
McRorie experienced significant loss early on, with the death of her father in 1989 and her brother in 2017.
Her brother was fond of a saying that begins: “Years from now you will be more disappointed by the things you didn’t do than by the things you did do…” Those words served as a great motivator to pursue what mattered most to her.
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Lisa McRorie was born and raised in Winnipeg.
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McRorie’s christening, with dad Doug and brother Scott.
Born and raised in Winnipeg, with summers spent at the family cottage, her early days were spent playing ringette, riding horses, swimming, windsurfing, flying with her pilot father and travelling the world.
After graduating from Westwood Collegiate, she earned a bachelor of science degree from the University of Manitoba, followed by a master’s degree in environmental studies from York University in Toronto. She would later return to school to further her education in computer programming.
Her greatest joy came with the birth of her son, Quinn, who was diagnosed with Rubinstein-Taybi Syndrome (RTS) at a young age. Learning as much as she could about the rare genetic condition — which can result in moderate to severe learning disabilities — became her priority, so she could ensure that Quinn had the best opportunities available.
She connected with other families and researchers around the world, attended national and international conferences, and created a Manitoba chapter to share resources and experiences.
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McRorie with her dog, Duffy. ‘She was a very headstrong, determined little girl,’ McRorie’s mother recalls.
An avid reader of fantasy novels, McRorie had a vivid imagination and used her love of reading to inspire her own writing. She was the author of a series of books titled The Harry Russo Diaries, a trilogy that turned into five books written under the pseudonym Lisa Emme.
“We spent our summers hanging out together in Sandy Hook,” said Jodi Shaw, who met McRorie on the beach when the two were young children.
“We lived on opposite sides of Winnipeg so we did not see one another all winter. We would move to the lake the day after school ended and would stay until school started up in the fall. Lisa and I were inseparable all summer long when we were growing up. When we could finally drive, I would drive to her house in Winnipeg and go to dances at Westwood Collegiate with her and her friends.
“Lisa and I were best friends, like sisters. We shared many of the same interests but were also opposites in many ways. We were always there for one another, no matter what.”
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Lisa McRorie’s prized possessions; she loved to paint and wrote a series of novels.
Describing her friend as being very smart with a strong personality, Shaw said McRorie knew exactly what she wanted and would voice her opinion freely.
“I was always impressed by how she would dive so fully into things she was passionate about. She would give herself fully to things she cared about and didn’t care what others thought,” Shaw said.
“When we were younger we would have all the neighbourhood dogs following us around Sandy Hook, as we built forts in the bushes or explored the beach. We both worked at the community centre in Sandy Hook growing up, running the kids’ day program. Lisa was the one to do all the planning for most things we did. We were both very fortunate to be able to spend our whole summers at the lake growing up.
Shaw said horseback riding was also a passion of her friend’s, one she was happy to be able to share with Quinn.
Ensuring Quinn had a good life and that he would always be supported was most important to McRorie. He was the light of her life.
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Lisa McRorie as a Grade 12 grad.
“We were lucky to have real, in-person experiences with one another throughout our lives — at all stages of our lives — which I think is rare today,” Shaw said. “Our children have been fortunate enough to carry on the traditions of hanging out and growing up with summers in Sandy Hook. They have been able to forge these lifelong friendships, as well, and I hope they will pass on their love of the community as they grow up.”
Though parenting on her own wasn’t easy, McRorie’s mother, Val, said her daughter’s creativity allowed her to do just about anything.
“She built a treehouse on her own for Quinn. At the lake she built a play structure. She did her own wainscotting in her dining room. She was a very headstrong, determined little girl (growing up). Whatever she set out to do, she would accomplish it.”
McRorie had been diagnosed with Lupus several years before her untimely death; the condition had been increasingly affecting her mobility.
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The McRorie clan circa the mid-1980s: (from left) Val, Doug, Scott and Lisa.
“She was determined, caring and fearless,” said her mother. “She had a lot of courage. She had a lot of things to face on her own.
“Lisa did everything she could to make life good for Quinn. She was devoted to him,” she continued, adding that Quinn, now 28, lives in a home nearby.
“When Quinn was diagnosed with RTS at 11 months and there was a possibility of him being non-verbal, Lisa immediately started teaching him sign language. Fortunately, this was not needed.”
McRorie had a personalized licence plate made in honour of her son — QD for Quinn Douglas, which, said quickly, sounds like “cutie” — and enrolled him in the Riding for the Disabled program.
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Lisa McRorie’s greatest joy was her son, Quinn.
She had her own horse, Diamond Lil, and for a few years attended equestrian camp at the Peace Gardens.
Recently McRorie had made a point of telling her mother that she’d had a wonderful childhood growing up in Westwood, thanking her and her father for giving her a happy life.
“Lisa phoned me every evening at 10:30 and every morning at 10:30, until she didn’t,” her mother said.