Phillip Carmelo Seminara

Phillip is survived by his wife, Minett, his children Catherine and Frank, his son-in-law, Simon, his daughter-in-law, Winnie, and grandchildren Thomas, Isabella and Jaden. He was predeceased by his brother, Paul, and is survived by his sister-in-law, Maria, his niece, Cynthia, and nephew, Frank.

Phillip was born in Sicily on December 8, 1928, to Francesco and Nicoletta Seminara. His father died at a young age, forcing Phillip to quit school at the age of 14 and find work to help support his mother and younger brother. In 1954 he left Italy and immigrated to Canada to live with his uncle in Vancouver. After working various jobs, he saved enough money to buy his own ice cream truck which was his first endeavor as an entrepreneur. He would later open the Moka Restaurant on Commercial Drive and subsequently the Torna-A-Sorrento on Granville Street. In his later years he opened Exclusive Espresso Centre Ltd. on Venables Street and Caffe Moka on Nanaimo Street and worked tirelessly until his retirement in 2002.

Phillip had a passion for food, music and dancing, so it’s not surprising that his favorite business was the Torna-A-Sorrento. When his daughter, Catherine, was born in 1969 he decided to change careers into something that was more conducive to raising a family. However, his love for music led him to host numerous house parties over the years where he would invite many of the musicians to perform and share their common love for music and dancing.

Phillip was a strong patriarch and will be dearly missed by family and friends. May he rest in peace.