2011

ADA FLORENCE KINTON - PIONEER ARTIST, MISSIONARY

By Ted Currie

There is a strangely alluring, well worn pathway, quaintly winding over the newly fallen leaves, meandering quite close to the final resting place of Ada Florence Kinton. Artist, writer, poet, philosopher, missionary. Some person(s) is obviously making the rounds of the cemetery regularly, visiting family plots or the grave-sites of friends and neighbors.

It isn't likely the case, the visitors are pausing at the tombstone belonging to Miss Kinton, in this small, quiet, secluded cemetery, not far from the bustling business centre of downtown Huntsville, Ontario.

A few folks here still remember the art work of Ada Kinton. A few more know about her stay in the community, in the late 1800's, and have heard about the book, "Just One Blue Bonnet," which was a small memorial text published by the artist's sister, Sara Randleson, shortly after Ada's death, at the turn of the 1900's. There have been others who have taken the time to learn about this talented, under-recognized artist, and there have been many responses sent to me this past year, asking for more information on this extraordinary woman.

But as far as this path being beaten down to visit her tombstone, as a pilgrimage of faith, she would feel, even in the spirit sense, that she wasn't worth the fuss. As she lived and worked modestly in her pursuit of art, she was a committed volunteer, a stalwart missionary, working tirelessly to help others help themselves. While this writer would like to think that now and again, some person would show up here, to remember her wonderful life, suffice that folks have been reading about this charitable, giving soul for the past year, here in the pages of Curious; The Tourist Guide. One family member has already paid compliments to the series, and we hope as well, that a donation or several, have been made to local food banks in her name, as this series has been dedicated to the Gravenhurst Salvation Army Food Bank. A donation this fall, to any food bank, would be greatly appreciated, and one that would be heartily appreciated by Miss Kinton, in her own spirit of giving and compassion toward the less fortunate. Thanks so much for joining this year-long series of columns, about a woman who inspired such goodwill and harmonious living. She was the epitome of peace on earth and goodwill toward man.

Ada Kinton died while convalescing at her brother's homestead in Huntsville, not long into the 1900's. She was still quite young but the rigors of missionary work, especially in Australia, and then the Northern United States, wore her small body into a progressive decline. Her sister noted that she was in great discomfort in those final years, although she was so much at peace, looking out from the verandah, onto the little town she had written about in her journal, so many years earlier, and had painted in snowclad winter finery during the first months of her stay in Canada in the 1880's.

Ada Florence Kinton gave up a promising career in fine art, and as a talented art instructor, in England, and later in Canada, to join the efforts of the Salvation Army, to administer the word of God, and the kindnesses of good faith and compassion, to those who were most in need. She stood out in the bitter cold, on the streets of Toronto, to help those who could not find shelter, or sustenance. Hers was the voice of optimism and resolve, that God would provide. With her unmeasurable kindnesses and faith bestowed, she gave those without hope, the rare reason to smile. There are testimonials from people she did assist, who later came to tell her, so proudly, of their respective, newfound successes, and to tell her, face to face, what her intervention had meant to them. As well, there were many talented artists, who went on to earn names for themselves as painters, who bestowed thanks on Miss Kinton, who gave them the benefit of her expertise, and her unique capabilities to capture the scenes she witnessed. She inspired many to better themselves by hard work and sensitive lives. Her abilities both as an artist and writer, were captured in the pages of the Salvation Army's "War Cry," a publication she adored working with, during her final years in this mortal coil.

As many times as I beat down this modest, winding footpath, over this peaceful acreage in beautiful Muskoka, I never once arrive at the marker belonging to Ada Florence Kinton, that I don't somehow feel the aura of peaceful solitude, without nary a twig of mournful emotion. It is, as if, she is letting her biographer know, that her death more than a century ago, followed a fulfilled, accomplished life. One that she had celebrated despite the hardships. It was, in her mindset, no hardship whatsoever doing God's work. And it is of considerable comfort, to stand out here, facing the cold wind and colder rain of early November, to look upon the subtle glow I bestow her name, etched onto the modest stone face of the weather-worn marker, and enjoy the contentment, her good name and work have lived on into this new century. For the Christmas season this year, in our hometown, our family will be hosting the annual Christmas Concert, at the Gravenhurst Opera House, in support of the Salvation Army Food Bank, that helps so many in our community provide for their festive season. We will proudly announce, that the concert is dedicated to the memory of Ada Florence Kinton, friend of Muskoka, artist, and missionary.

Please consider making a donation to a food bank in your own community, to help those who find themselves in crisis. It would please Ada Kinton so much, to know her own kindnesses are still impacting the goodwill of folks more than a century later.

Enjoy a late autumn adventure in our beautiful province. It is a time of the rolling year, the Group of Seven Artists loved to venture forth, into the countryside, to depict the haunted landscapes, the misty lakelands, and the curious light and shadows that illuminated our townscapes and historic architecture. There is a beauty even in the leafless forests, and windswept pastures, and the great bank of dark rolling clouds that enchant the month of November in Ontario.

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