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Vera Pat (Paraskevi) Atsalinos Singelis
November 5, 1930 - February 15, 2020
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<div itemprop="description">It is with tremendous sadness and sorrow that we announce the passing of the most wonderful mother, sister, aunt, cousin, friend, and teacher, Vera Pat (Paraskevi) Atsalinos Singelis. <br> <br>Mom/Yiayia/Thia/Pat/Voula passed away in palliative care at Sacré Coeur Hospital in the early hours of February 15 at the age of 89 years. <br> <br>Born and raised in Montréal, she lived in small row house on Grosvenor Avenue with her parents (Argyro Logothetis and Iakovos Atsalinos) and sister Sophie until 1960 when she met and fell in love with an American (the late Eleutherios Singelis). Her one true love, he became her husband – moving them to the USA where to raise their family in Cherry Hill, NJ. In 1970, she, her husband and their three sons (Anthony, Jack, Van) returned to settle in Dollard-des-Ormeaux. <br> <br>She was a graduate of MacDonald Teachers College in Ste-Anne-de-Bellevue, beginning her teaching career as the first art teacher at Rosemount High in 1948, and ending it as a grade school teacher at Beechwood Elementary some 35 years later. <br> <br>Mom was wonderfully devoted to her 3 children Anthony, Jack (the late Debbie Smith), and Van (Kellie) and she demonstrated that devotion even as she was dying – saving her energies while in palliative care to awaken from unresponsiveness and check on her children were doing only when others were not present in the room. She wanted to devote what little time she had to her boys. <br> <br>She was a loving Grandmother to Alexandra, Mark and Evan. In fact, she so loved her grandkids that the last smile she gave was when a photo of her youngest grandson was held close enough to her blurring eyes that she could see him in his baseball jersey and cap. It was the last moment of joy and happiness that we saw in our mom. <br> <br>Mom was also a best friend to her sister Sophie Papadakis (the late Dean Papadakis), about whom she worried constantly as big sisters do, and with whom she shared a love of soap operas on tv and family gatherings over a meal. <br> <br>She was also a superstar aunt to Aggie Papadakis (Fern Garcia) and cheerleader great aunt to Mateo and Emma Papadakis Garcia. <br> <br>Our mother had many friends and relatives for whom she cared including family with whom she had gotten close over recent years, and neighbours at Centenaire II where she lived and loved looking at the view of Centennial Lake in the condo our father bought for her before his death. In her final days, she expressed her appreciation especially for her next door neighbour Pirko, her cousin Kyrie Hadzievagelou, and a friend of her son Anthony (Terry Hamelin) who went out of her way to make a senior feel special through visits, cards, and exchanges of stories about raising families. <br> <br>Mom was a strong, determined, big-hearted and fiercely independent woman who wanted nothing more in this world than to see her kids and their families happy. She cared about us like no other mother could – always putting her kids first even when she was dying. We will miss her every day. <br> <br>The family extends special gratitude to the wonderful doctors and nurses at Sacré Coeur Hospital Trauma and Palliative Care units. They showed tremendous humanity and respect for a woman who had been healthy just days before, only to see her life slip away because she slipped on the floor in a seniors residence home to which she had moved just days before. <br> <br>The family will receive friends at the Rideau Funeral Home (4275 Source Blvd., DDO, H9B 2A6) from 6 to 9 pm on Wednesday, February 19, 2020 and from 10 to 11 am on Thursday, February 20, 2020. The funeral service will be performed by Rev. Dr. Father Kamperidis at the funeral home on Thursday at 11 am. Burial will be held on Thursday, February 20, 11:30, at Rideau Memorial Gardens, followed by a traditional Greek coffee and sweets service on the grounds. <br> <br>Mom spent her final days telling everyone that mattered to her how much she loved them. In lieu of flowers, the family requests that mourners do the same with those people that matter to them in their lives. <br> <br></div>