Goodbye Father!

It’s with a heavy heart that I share that my father has passed. He lived 92 years of happiness and contentment. Throughout my life, my father was an emblem of strength. He supported, inspired, and encouraged me to pursue my dreams and passions to their fullest, and instilled a strong work ethic in me.

In 1950 my father crossed the Atlantic Ocean arriving in Montreal, Canada speaking neither English nor French. Within two days he secured his first job as a tailor and never looked back. For much of my adult life, he made every suit I wore including my wedding tuxedo. His career took an interesting turn when he became an instructor in a Federal Penitentiary teaching and sharing his skills and knowledge with the inmates, earning their respect and admiration. However, tailoring wasn’t my father’s only skill. He could rebuild a car engine, even installing a hoist in our garage, and he was a master craftsman building homes. Unfortunately, I didn’t inherit either of those skills. In his later years, however, we talked about computing, designing webpages, which he took up as a hobby after his retirement.

Other than his family, my father’s greatest passion was travel. Whether it was walking the Great Wall of China, trekking across Europe, or crisscrossing Canada and the United States by car, he gleefully marvelled at all the wonders he discovered along the way.

I will miss him dearly but take comfort in knowing he was at peace and ready to take his final journey. I will miss you dearly– from a proud son, you are inspiration and model of living life to its fullest. God bless you and Bon vent et Bon voyage, Papa.