Obituary of Val Moore

MOORE: Val. Val danced her last dance at the Village on the Ridge on September 11, 2012, after achieving her dream of reaching her 100th birthday. Only daughter of the late Ernest Albert and Lela Juanita (Bentley) Moore, Val was born on October 29, 1911. She graduated from Agar Business College in Ridgetown and worked for Supertest in London and Toronto before joining the Foreign Service at the British Embassy in Washington, D.C. She spent her days working as a secretary and her nights in dance studios, including dancing at President Eisenhower's Inaugural Ball. Following her mother's death, Val returned to the family farm in Howard Township, which she described as the most beautiful place on earth. She worked at the Bookshelf Bindery in Ridgetown, Canada Agriculture in Chatham, and retired from Southwest Regional Centre in 1976. In spite of numerous hip replacements, she then committed herself full-time to her first love-dancing. Val taught many people to dance at night school at Ridgetown High School, and went on to teach at Arthur Murray Dance Studios in London and the International School of Dance in Toronto. She was thrilled to win many first place trophies in ballroom dance competitions across North America, and was proud to have danced on every continent except Australia. Val will be missed by her neighbours on Green Line, her extended family and friends including those in her dance community, and especially by Pat and Gary Balmer and Joanne and Mike Mervin and their families. Sincere thanks to the caregivers at the Village on the Ridge for the compassionate care she received there. In keeping with Val's wishes, a private funeral and interment in Greenwood Cemetery will take place. Memorial donations to the Salvation Army would be appreciated and may be left at the Funeral Home or at www.mckinlayfuneralhome.com. Val will be dancing again with the best of them. McKinlay Funeral Home, 76 Main Street East, Ridgetown, Ontario (519)674-3141.