Achieve Wellness Spa and Your McMurray Magazine Honor Two Local Mothers

Fran Castro

Fran Castro is a mother and grandmother who came to Canada from Philippines. She was nominated by her daughter Marivic who explained why her mother deserves this prize:

“Fran is a proud mother of 3 kids. Myself, Marivic, is the eldest who came here to Fort McMurray 22 years ago as a nanny. When I got settled in here as an immigrant and became a Canadian citizen, I decided to sponsor my mom (Fran) to come here as an immigrant, but before she immigrated she came to visit as a tourist, and she said that she really liked it here. Her second child is Benny Jr. who lives in the Philippines and his wife is presently working here in Fort McMurray too. Her youngest is Corazon who lives in Philippines too. Fran is happily gifted with 7 grandkids, 2 girls and 5 boys. Fran came here to Fort McMurray as a visitor and lived with me for 4 years, and when I started sponsoring for immigration she went back home to enjoy her time with the rest of her grandkids while waiting for the approval of her papers. After a long wait, finally she got her immigrant visa and came back here to Canada. Fran has been here in Fort McMurray for 6 years. She is presently working at Walmart as a sales associate at the adult clothes department. She's been there for 4 years and enjoys meeting new friends.

I nominated my mom Fran for this prize because I know she deserves to be pampered and treated for relaxation especially for Mother’s Day. She loved her relaxation massage, manicure, pedicure and facial. For us, she's a woman of great sacrifices for her family. She has done so much that no words can describe how blessed we are as her children, together with her grandchildren to have her in our life.”

Brenda Walsh

Brenda Walsh is a local mother and grandmother. She was nominated by her daughter Melanie, who told us why she wanted to nominate her mom:

“At the tender age of 13 years old, I truly realized just how incredible of a mother my Mom, Brenda Walsh, was.  I even remember the exact day, June 27, 2007, because it was the day my little sister, Madison Walsh, was born.  My Mom and Dad, Perry Walsh, had troubles conceiving a child after my father’s ongoing battle with cancer and they decided to do In Vitro Fertilization.  For months my Mom went through all the treatments and hormone injections and the process to finally become pregnant.  Then I got to watch her grow my baby sister in her tummy and even give birth.  Getting the opportunity to first hand witness her raising a child was so humbling as we reminisced on her raising my older sister and me and all the work she had done and continued to do to provide the best for her children.

Motherhood isn’t always easy but she does it with impeccable strength and grace.  My mom loves and cares for our family fearlessly and that can be seen through the way she took care of my Dad throughout their 26 yearlong marriage, caring for my Dad as he battled cancer for 16 of those years before he passed away in February 2018.

My Mom has been a shoulder to cry on, a warm hug on a cold day and my biggest cheerleader throughout everything we’ve been through.  Not only is my Mom the best mother a child could ask for, she is an outstanding grandmother too.  She works so hard for our family and always puts others before herself.  She inspires me deeply to always be considerate of others, to take one day at a time, never sweat the small stuff and always pursue your wildest dreams.”

Congratulations to these two mothers, and all the other nominated. Your contributions to your families and our community are outstanding. Thank you for all that you do, and Happy Mother’s Day.