Carmela Lombardi
elevated ziJBe September 6, 1928 ~ May 16, 2019
elevated ziJBe Visitation
Tuesday, May 21, 2019 from 4:00 – 8:00 p.m.
elevated ziJBe Holy Cross Catholic Funeral Home
211 Langstaff Road East, Thornhill, ON, L3T 3Z6
elevated ziJBe Funeral Service
Wednesday, May 22, 2019 at 12:00 p.m.
elevated ziJBe Chapel of St. Joseph – Holy Cross Catholic Funeral Home
elevated ziJBe Entombment
Holy Cross Catholic Cemetery
8361 Yonge Street, Thornhill, ON, L3T 2C7
elevated ziJBe
elevated ziJBe Obituary
elevated ziJBe Peacefully, on Thursday, May 16, 2019, in Richmond Hill, Ontario at the age of 90. Beloved wife of the late Nicola Lombardi. Loving mother of Mike Lombardi and his wife Danielle, Sergio Lombardi and his wife Robin, Rosetta Lombardi and Bruno Lombardi. Adored grandmother of Pierluigi, Carmen, Elizabeth, Nicholas and his wife Kelsey, Olivia and Sofi. Dear great-grandmother of Elijah. If desired, memorial donations may be made to World Vision.
My prayers and sympathy go out to all of you. She was a very sweet woman.
I loved the times I got to visit with her. I will cherish those times and memories always.
I wish I could be there.
Hugs to all of you.
My sincere condolences to all the family. My prayers are with you all as you go through this difficult time.
Riposa In Pace Carmela, ricordando le belle serate passate !
Famiglia DeVito
Copy of my eulogy at the funeral………..
I would like to sincerely thank the family members and friends who are here today.
The death of a loved one touches all of us. It brings us all closer together in love and respect for one another. It makes us appreciate that life is both precious and temporary.
My mother was a kind, hard-working, and humble woman who touched many lives. She experienced many hardships but much joy and happiness.
Let us take the time to mourn her passing—yes— but let us also celebrate her life and learn from her example.
My mother’s life was guided by 3 things—practicing her very deep religious faith, hoping and working very hard for her family to make a better life, and performing acts of kindness towards those less fortunate than herself. In short, faith, hope, and charity.
Although she struggled through many hardships, she always managed to stay positive and hopeful.
My mother was born in 1928, over 90 years ago, in a small village in Italy. As a young child, she had very little time to play—she had a full set of chores and duties both around the house and in the fields.
Before the age of 10, she was already familiar with tragedy and death. She saw three of her little brothers—whom she looked after—each grow sick and, in turn, die at a young age. World War 2 started shortly thereafter and her peaceful world was turned upside down. After the war, she spent many days acting as a nurse caring for her grandfather, Carmine Paolo, for whom she is named, until the day he died.
As a young mother in 1952, she lost her first child who died after a few weeks of life. In 1955, at the age of 26 she accompanied her husband with a young son (me) in the hope of starting a new life Canada, leaving behind her parents, her friends, her sisters and her native land. They came to Canada with little more than the clothes on their backs, $10 in their pocket, and a boat trip that was funded by borrowed money.
In Montreal she found herself living the life of a new immigrant, in a strange new world—not speaking either English or French. Not having the fortune of a complete education, she had to work long hours at low pay while at the same time doing her best to take care of her growing family.
She endured all of this happily, never losing her love of life. In fact, far from losing hope, she considered herself extremely lucky and blessed. She was very proud of her children and was a very devoted wife to my father.
All of her children–me Rosie, Sergio, Bruno–learned much from her as we lived this immigrant experience—her unconditional love, her determination for us to study and work hard, and her insistence that no matter how successful we became to stay humble—to never to forget how fortunate we are and our duty to help each other and those less fortunate.
With the death of my father in 1986, my mother had to adapt, again, to changing circumstances and she remained a widow for the next 32 years. With all of us children grown, she turned her attention to charity and community service to her church in a bigger way than ever. She volunteered as a nurse to care for senior citizens, she joined a choir group so that she could spread joy through songs. Although shy most of her life, now, with her new sense of purpose, she grew increasingly bold and self-confident, taking on leadership roles. She read sermons at church, she led prayer groups, she organized fund raising events, she planned pilgrimages and encouraged friends in her Italian community to join her in trips to shrines across Quebec, Ontario and the United States. She worked non-stop in these activities and donated all profits to her church.
At home, she lived a simple life —canning her own tomatoes, growing vegetables in a garden, baking or cooking her meals, travelling by public transportation. With her pension money she was always looking for new ways to give it away to help her children, her grandchildren, her church, and charities.
My mother loved her children — but she absolutely adored her grandchildren: Pierluigi, Carmen, Nico, Ellie, Olivia, Sofia and her great grandson Elijah. Whenever she was feeling sick or lonely, the sight of any of them would completely change her attitude–bringing a big smile to her face and a new energy to entertain them or join in games. I still remember how in her 70s she was still going on roller coaster rides or jumping up and down with her grandkids on a trampoline.
She had a soft heart for all children and was heart-broken to see starving or sick children in TV commercials. She contributed to World Vision so that she could directly adopt foster children and loved to get news from Africa or Latin America about her little boy or girl.
One day in Montreal, she met a young and poor Haitian immigrant who wanted to be a priest but needed financial help. She was quick to respond. That priest, Father William, was so grateful that he developed a great respect for her—in her honor, he learned to speak Italian and whenever they spoke on the phone, he called her “Mamma”.
Ma — you lived a long life—a life full of many joys and tears. Through it all, you kept your sense of humor, your humility, your optimism, your love, and your faith.
Ma— You live your faith and served both God and your fellow man very well. The world is a much better place because of you. Your work here on earth is done.
Rest in peace.
Know that you, your love, your spirit, and your memory will live forever in each and every one of our hearts.
A very beautiful and touching eulogy. She was a lovely woman and I wish I had gotten to know her better.
I hope all of you treasure your memories and share them often with each other.
❤❤❤
Mike, that was a beautiful eulogy and tribute to your mom. She was a beautiful woman both inside and out with a smile that lit up the room!
To you, the spouses and the entire family – Rosie, Sergio, Bruno – all the kids – My prayers and condolences. I’m so sorry for your loss. Blessings to you always
What a beautiful tribute to a wonderful woman. In the handful of times I met her, I was always made to feel welcome. She truly was a warm woman. Having lost my mother almost 2 months ago, I can relate to the sadness. I am sorry I couldn’t be at the funeral, I am keeping you and Danielle in my thoughts. My heartfelt condolences to the family.