Aileen Life (June 17, 1924 — June 9, 2009)

My mom would have been known by many on Kahshe as Aileen Smith (maiden name) or as Aileen Young (my family name). She had been going to Kahshe since she was a teenager, starting when her family rented a cottage near Nagaya Beach. They loved it so much that they finally bought their cottage. We all spent our summers at that cottage until our numbers grew to the point that we were bursting at the seams: five grandchildren, two parents, and two grandparents in a two-bedroom cottage! 

My grandmother, Eva Smith, had the foresight to purchase some land on the mainland south of Lindhill Island (near Westwind) and it is on a section of that land that our family cottage was built in 1961, or thereabouts. My grandparents’ cottage, which is now owned by my mother’s sister, Carol, is two cottages south of what was Keenview near Rockhaven. My mom remembered the days of Albert Denne delivering ice on the barge in the times before cottages had electric fridges. My grandmother, her mother, used to scold Albert for tracking sawdust into the cottage.  She remembered also the days before the lake was buzzing with motorboats. She told us how she loved to go to Rockhaven and play tennis. She loved her cedar strip canoe which was a gift from her parents. 

We, her children, had it refurbished for her on her 80th birthday and will proudly maintain it for future generations of our family to enjoy. My mom made friends on Kahshe who remained friends all her life, just as so many of us do. Some even became members of our extended family. Kahshe was a part of who my mother was and it enriched her life and our lives in so many ways. I can't imagine life without Kahshe Lake having been a part of it.