For lovers of mystery stories, there is always a thrill in meeting someone who is able to spin the tales that keep one, well, mystified. Yorkminster Park is fortunate to have among its members one who is able to provide the kind of satisfaction mystery readers seek.
Rosemary Aubert is a published author of the series of mysteries which feature the hero, Ellis Portal. His fall from grace (he was a respected judge and family man) to the poverty-ridden streets of Toronto makes him unique in the genre. It is a source of sadness to his devotees that the series has come to an end.
Rosemary was born and raised in Niagara Falls N.Y., and took the early part of her education in St. Bonaventure’s School, a Franciscan institution in New York. For her Master’s degree, she moved to York University in Toronto, and has been here ever since. She came to Yorkminster Park in 1995, and joined the church the following year.
What little things make a change in one’s life! Seeking spiritual growth somewhere in this city, Rosemary became aware, through an ordinary sign outside the church, of a Christmas Carol service. Not realizing that this was a service of worship and devotion through music, she attended, and has never left! Over the last few years she has given her considerable skills to teaching others in the church how to discover and use their literary skills to create poetry, and has shown others how she conceives and creates her own novels.
Mystery novels are but one of the outlets of her creative talent. She is a published poet, and has written Romance novels as well. In the future she will be publishing a book that is a historical novel, based on the true story of a group of New Yorkers who were forced to leave their homes and settle in Ontario. The book is entitled, The Judge of Orphans.
I asked Rosemary what she was aiming at, particularly in her mysteries. She replied that, not only in her mysteries, but in her other books as well, she wanted to show that small people matter and that they can make a difference to their world. An example is Ellis Portal, the “nobody” who had been a “somebody”, and how he affected the lives of many of the ordinary people of the streets whom he encountered. Rosemary says that even these “nobodies” are children of God.
Rosemary saluted the members of Yorkminster Park, because of the support they were ready to give to the artists among us. Perhaps this will surprise some of the very people, who, without thinking that are doing anything, are among those who (in the words of Jesus) are giving a cup of cold water to those who need it.
