
Ferne Cristall had a passion for the common good (and finding the perfect piece of fruit)
Family lore has it that when Gary Cristall opened his schmatta business selling workingman's clothing in Brandon, Man., he insisted that he had a good reason for naming it the New System Store in 1912: When the revolution came marching along downtown Rosser Street, they'd know which side he was on.
Ferne Cristall would echo her grandfather's line. Her parents, she once wrote, 'started me off in 'red diapers' and stirred my desire for a socially just world.'
Ferne's mother Ellie taught mathematics at Brandon University while her father Arthur ran the family store.
The Cristall household was a busy, welcoming place that didn't hesitate to take in strangers. Once Ellie went to court to defend a couple of hitchhikers who had been arrested while passing through the small Prairie city.
'I was a Jewish kid with an agnostic mother and atheist father in a Christian town,' Ferne recalled.
She was so accustomed to her secular community that immersion in a Jewish milieu was beyond her. An often told family story was Ferne's stay at B'Nai Brith summer camp as a young teen. Ferne confessed, quite innocently, to her fellow campers: 'I'm Jewish.'
In 1971, Ferne headed to Trent University where she studied anthropology, taking time off for extensive travel before graduating in 1978. During her travel, she found herself in Guatemala when a massive earthquake killed more than 24,000 people. Ferne did not leave but stayed to help with the recovery effort. Through her passion for the common good, her everyday life showed how ideas about social change could be put into practice.
In 1978 Ferne joined the Development Education Centre (DEC), a Toronto group rooted in 1960s New Left politics dedicated to fighting global inequality. Ferne worked in DEC Films, distributing documentaries across Canada.
Meeting Robert Clarke at DEC sparked a 45-year relationship that combined Ferne's magnetic, outgoing personality with Rob's wry, understated persona. Robert had a daughter, Gabrielle (Gabe), from a previous marriage. Their son Jonah was born in 1983.
The family moved to Peterborough, Robert's hometown, in 1990. Ferne commuted to the University of Toronto to get her Bachelor of Education the following year.
Her teaching career at Peterborough Collegiate and Vocational School (PCVS) focused on helping English language learners, particularly newcomers whose confidence she had an uncanny knack for bolstering.
She had a remarkable capacity for listening but a lot of trouble making decisions at the grocery store. Gabe recalls perhaps too much time needed to select just the right peach, or watermelon, or apples, or head of lettuce…
No one could drop by Ferne's home without being greeted by a cornucopia of baked treats, fresh vegetables, fancy crackers, cheeses. Whatever she had at hand. She always welcomed friends of Jonah and Gabrielle. A friend of Gabe's recalled that Ferne was 'the only real parent in a sea of distracted boomers. … The only one who had a clue what was going on with us.'
Ferne was a fixture in the local film, music and theatre scenes. She was an indispensable volunteer at Peterborough's ReFrame Film Festival, and specialized in programming documentaries. Given her lived experience, she had a particular interest in organizing panels and screenings on gender-based violence.
Ferne also co-authored books about women's films and was a leader of Peterborough's refugee sponsorship community.
Ferne unfailingly thought the best of others. She could sometimes be a soft touch for a hard luck story, unhesitatingly doling out cash to anyone in need.
Diagnosed with cancer in 2024, Ferne underwent every possible treatment and wouldn't give up even as the end approached. She kept on screening documentaries for the 2025 ReFrame festival.
Ferne remained at home for as long as she could. Meals and generosity overflowed. Jonah had to maintain a spreadsheet to organize the volume of visiting well-wishers and their casseroles.
Through it all, Ferne kept apologizing for causing so much trouble. Coming from a woman so accustomed to giving, the beguiling paradox wasn't lost on those who knew her well.
Jamie Swift is Ferne Cristall's friend.
To submit a Lives Lived: lives@globeandmail.com
Lives Lived celebrates the everyday, extraordinary, unheralded lives of Canadians who have recently passed. To learn how to share the story of a family member or friend, go online to tgam.ca/livesguide
Hashtags

Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles


CTV News
3 hours ago
- CTV News
Lewis Hamilton is so fed up with his results at Ferrari that he's taking matters into his own hands
The Shopping Trends team is independent of the journalists at CTV News. We may earn a commission when you use our links to shop. Read about us.


CTV News
4 hours ago
- CTV News
Mine near Snow Lake evacuated due to wildfire
Hudbay's Lalor mine is seen in an undated image. A mine operating in northern Manitoba has evacuated due to the ongoing wildfires. Hudbay announced Wednesday night that the Lalor Mine near Snow Lake was evacuated due to a wildfire getting close to the mine site. 'At this time, the main front of the wildfire has currently moved past the Lalor mine site,' the company said in a news release. 'Initial video and camera inspections suggest our preventative measures and the fire crews' hard work have limited damage to the site. 'Once safe to do so, we will perform a more thorough assessment and inspection of our assets.' Hudbay said the crews will remain on-site to monitor the situation. Snow Lake is under a mandatory evacuation due to a wildfire burning near the community. According to Monday's fire bulletin, the fire is 21,480 hectares in size and out of control.


CTV News
5 hours ago
- CTV News
Ottawa Fire Services hazmat team helps tackle transport truck fire in Stittsville
Ottawa Fire Servies says its hazardous materials (hazmat) team helped deal with a significant fuel leak after a transport truck caught fire in Stittsville Wednesday. Firefighters were called to a section of Iber Road, south of Hazeldean Road, at around 11:09 a.m. on reports a truck was on fire close to a building. The driver had made it out of the vehicle safely and told firefighters that the fuel tanks were approximately half-full and could contain up to 500 litres. A large amount of fuel was leaking because of the fire, Ottawa Fire Services spokesperson Nick DeFazio said. Hazmat crews used an absorbent called 'Oclansorb' to keep the fuel and oil floating on top of the water used to fight the fire from leaking into a nearby ditch. The fire was declared under control at 11:27 a.m. and was kept from spreading to the nearby building. DeFazio said the Ministry of Environment was notified and they called in a cleanup company to the scene. Firefighters left the scene at around 1:30 p.m.