Mr. Victor Dino

a test of strength that one must go on

no matter the consequences.

Life is what you make it.”

- Victor Dino

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Vic's approach to his life is exemplified in his words. But he wanted to tell his whole story in his own words and on his own terms, and he succeeded.

He truly did it his way.

You can read and listen to Vic's life story at his website:

http://victordino.blogspot.ca

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From Victor's website, "My Way", he describes his birth and early years:

"I was born on July 21, 1957 with cerebral palsy and only able to use one arm. In the Philippines, I had two other siblings born after me: my younger brother Val, born in 1960, and my sister Grace, born in 1962. My mother was trained as teacher, but decided to stay home to raise her family, with the help of maids to help look after the children.

In the spring of 1965, my family moved to Vancouver, BC, Canada, spending our first month at the Abbotsford Hotel until my father got a job supervising longshoremen on Vancouver docks, like 'On the Waterfront' (1954). Upon renting a house in Vancouver's west side, my brother Val was sent to Kindergarten while I was sent to GF Strong's special school."

As a young boy, Victor was an independent-minded person with a vivid imagination. In his youth, he liked watching hockey and the CFL, and reading comic books. Victor's memorable achievements included being one of the first handicapped people to be integrated in a normal school in Vancouver.

He graduated from Eric Hamber Secondary School in 1975. He always was proud to say that he was the first handicapped student to graduate from Eric Hamber high school.

Victor earned his Bachelor of Arts degree from UBC in 1979. He had pursued teacher training, but that path wasn't right for him, so he enrolled in the Fashion Management program at the Blanche McDonald school in Vancouver, earned his Diploma and got his business license to begin his own fashion show consultancy, called "Victor Dino and Associates". He managed fashion shows and fashion models in the Greater Vancouver area for over thirty years.

Victor was a focused, stubbornly perseverant man with a superb memory. His personality was filled with strength, pride and determination. An enthusiastic communicator, Victor seemed to have an endless supply of stories and enjoyed conversing about old movies and movie trivia, current events and his past. He also listened whole-heartedly to the stories of his friends, remembering details and asking follow-up questions when he would later see or talk to them.

As someone who enjoyed analyzing situations, he was always ready to offer solid advice, guidance and strategies for those who came to him for help. His sensitivity, kindness and generous attitude made him a wonderful friend to a select few. In fact, Victor cherished his small but solid group of true friends. He would willingly support those friends when needed, and would often say and do things that would make them feel supported, encouraged and loved. Throughout his life, Vic maintained long-term friendships from his high school days and later.

Victor was also something of a sports fan and enjoyed following his favourite events whenever he got the opportunity. Tops on his list were NHL Hockey, the CFL, and pro wrestling. Although he couldn't take part in sports due to his disabilities, in his youth, he'd enthusiastically narrate television hockey games, giving his family expert play-by-play commentary. This was evidence of Vic's natural storytelling abilities.

Victor was a man with clear convictions and high principles, and his faith was important to him. He was an inspiration to those who recognized his sense of commitment and esteem for others. He was a member of the Catholic Church all his life. Throughout his later years, Victor was also an active member of TransLink's Advisory Board, giving feedback on the strengths and needs of the HandyDart service in particular.

After 2013, Victor began to feel that his health was declining, along with his fortunes in the fashion industry. A few weeks before Christmas in 2015, Victor suffered a major health trauma, and was rushed by his elderly father to Burnaby General Hospital.

"On December 10th, 2015, I was rushed to Burnaby General Hospital, where I underwent over 12 hours of surgery. By the time I woke up two days later, I realized my appendix had burst and been removed, along with my gall bladder. I was told by Doctors that I'd effectively lost the strength in my gut muscles. Three days later, I was diagnosed with heart inflammation. I wound up spending three months in Burnaby General, with naturally, my family in support."

This was the start of a major life change for Victor - a new chapter. His new life involved relocating to Pearson Hospital, where he shared hospital rooms with severely disabled patients for the next five or six months. Not having his own room like he'd always had in his father's house was a major disappointment for Victor, and it motivated him to think about how he could leave Pearson and establish a new independent living arrangement for himself.

By October 2015, Vic succeeded in leaving Pearson with help from the CARMA program and his family. He moved to his own apartment at Kelly Court in Vancouver. This marked Vic's "retirement" phase of life, and in retirement, he found new pleasure in finishing his life story writing project, in reaffirming his faith, enjoying his classic movie collection, and in reconnecting with old friends.

At the age of sixty, Victor passed away on November 18, 2018 at Burnaby General Hospital, succumbing to esophageal cancer and a complication called "DIS". His funeral service was held at Corpus Christi Catholic Church in Vancouver on November 22nd, and he was laid to rest in Ocean View Cemetery in Burnaby, next to his mother.

In his online autobiography, "My Way", Vic reflected on his life:

"Looking back at my life now, I've come full circle, and realize I've had quite a life. All my life, I've had to fight to prove I could do things, and in the end I can honestly say, as Frank Sinatra would say, I did it my way."

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Vic's approach to his life is exemplified in his words. But he wanted to tell his whole story in his own words and on his own terms, and he succeeded.

He truly did it his way.

You can read and listen to Vic's life story at his website:

http://victordino.blogspot.ca

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THE EULOGY FOR VICTOR DINO

(E. John Love, Val Dino)

I'm John Love, Vic's brother in law.

I'm so proud to have been Vic's family and friend. I didn't know him as long as many of you, but his friendship has affected me deeply, and the Dignity, Decorum, and Strength with which he faced his many burdens is an example to all who knew and loved him.

I first met Vic back in 1986 when I began dating his sister Grace. Vic was always friendly and welcoming to me, and tried to strike a brotherly tone with this slightly scruffy young guy. Vic's individualism and single-minded purpose were his hallmarks, and over the next 20 years, I learned to respect his passion for life and the depth of his feelings for the people he loved.

I got close to Vic after his health crisis in 2015, when he lost his appendix and gall bladder, and suffered a painful twisted bowel. It was a traumatic time for Vic and his family. We all wondered if we might lose him in those first 24 hours of recovery, but his family and friends rallied to his side, and to his father's side, and over the next couple of months, Vic recovered and considered what the future might hold for him.

After that, at the age of 58, Vic faced the prospect of living independently for the first time in his life. Throughout 2015, his career, privacy, and living arrangements were all thrown into disarray, and he transitioned through two hospitals before settling into his first apartment, in an assisted living complex called Kelly Court.

Vic grudgingly began to back away from his fashion career and become what I called "a gentleman of leisure". He adapted to a new assisted living lifestyle, and learned how to mange his Meds and supplies, and to stay on top of his diet, health, finances, and weekly shopping.

Grace and I visited Vic each Sunday night, joking with him, advising him, watching a DVD, or helping him work on his Web autobiography. Vic's little one bedroom flat was bright, modern, and perfect for him, and it became a comfortable place for his father to come for dinner, for Vic to enjoy his friends, or just a place to surf the Web or look up old schoolmates on Facebook.

We didn't always agree with Vic's choices, but they always remained his choices to make. We talked a lot with him, about responsibility, his future, and the people who cared for him at Kelly Court.

Vic was stubborn, and strong, opinionated, silly and vulnerable. He was a complex and contradictory man. He had an encyclopedic recall for actors and classic films, and he loved live theatre and Bard on the Beach. But he'd also keel over in breathless hysterics when trying to tell me something the Three Stooges did.

For me, getting to know Vic as closely as I have in the past 3 years has made me a better person. I've heard similar feelings from some of his other friends too. I loved Vic like he was my own brother, and I'll miss him each and every Sunday night.

Whenever I watch an Orson Welles movie, or Hawaii Five-O, or whenever Moe pokes Curly in the eye... I'm sure that I'll hear Vic talking to me. I hope you can hear his voice too.

Vic's sister Grace reminded me that Vic never wanted to be known as the man in the wheelchair.

He wanted to be known as the man in the HAT. (John puts on one of Vic's hats.)

Vic's younger brother Val couldn't be here to deliver his eulogy, but Val asked me to read it for him.

Here are Val's words

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Val's Eulogy for Victor:

Every parent considers their first child to be special. On July 21, 1957, a child was born who truly was special. Not because he was the first child to his parents, and not because he was born with cerebral palsy, an ailment that prevented him from walking and limited the use of his hands, but because this newborn child would eventually become a man who somehow was able to overcome those obstacles, despite his handicap.

Vic was one who always insisted on choosing his own path, choosing his own destiny, living his life to the best of his abilities like any normal human being would. In his eyes, he never saw himself as crippled. He saw himself as an equal to you, me and everyone else. Whatever we could do, he was every bit capable of doing too. His drive to live his life never deterred, regardless of what lay ahead of him.

As in every family, siblings get into their fair share of conflicts. As his younger brother, believe me when I say, Vic and I had our moments of conflict. To this very day, I still remember one instance where, for some reason, Vic & I had an argument and tempers flared. Vic took a swing at me, but since his reach was limited, he was unable to hit me, but I retaliated anyway striking him across the nose. About two weeks later, as I was casually walking by, Vic struck me across the stomach using his arm wearing his steel brace. "Hey! What was that for?!!!" I said. His response was "That's for hitting me on my nose!" It was at that moment, I learned about payback, and for the first time in my 8 years of life, I didn't know what to say, except "Oh". My point: Vic always believed he was fully capable of living his life as normally as those who weren't disabled.

He attended Eric Hamber High School, where he spoke on behalf of all the students during his graduation ceremony. After high school, he went on to further his education at UBC and Blanche MacDonald school, which eventually helped him to operate his own business managing models and producing fashion shows.

Since I'd moved away from Vancouver, years passed where I wasn't able to see him. There may have been thousands of miles between us, but he was always in my thoughts. Thankfully, I was kept informed of his well being. I never doubted that he'd be successful in whatever he chose to do. I always knew he would succeed, doing it his way.

Today, we mourn the loss of Vic, and yet we also celebrate his life and acknowledge the fact that he was an inspiration to us. He makes us realize how lucky we are, that maybe our everyday problems aren't really all that bad since they could be so much worse, so much more challenging. I only wish all of us had the courage, inner strength, and determination that Vic had.

He was a son to proud parents, Honesto and Rosie, a brother to me, Grace and Bill. He was a brother-in-law to John and Jackie, and to my wife Laura. He was an uncle to our niece Heather and our nephew Mitchell, and a friend to countless people.

Undoubtedly, Vic has been welcomed into the Heavens above. "He planned each chartered course, each careful step along the byways ... he faced it all, and he stood tall, let the record show, he did it ... his way"

You will be missed Vic, but you'll continue to live in our hearts and our memories. You shall not be forgotten. May you rest in eternal peace.

* * * * * * * * * *

Victor Dino

July 21, 1957 - November 18, 2018

Victor passed away at the age of 61 after a difficult battle with cancer. He is survived by his father Honesto, brothers Val (Laura) and Bill (Jackie), sister Grace (John), his niece Heather, and his nephew Mitchell.

Victor distinguished himself as one of the first wheelchair-bound students to graduate from Eric Hamber high school. He went on to earn a Bachelor of Arts degree (UBC) and a diploma in Fashion Management from the Blanche MacDonald school. In spite of facing many handicaps since birth, he produced a variety of fashion shows across the lower mainland for over 30 years.

Victor always retained his passion for living and an indomitable spirit. He had many life-long friends for whom he cared deeply. He will be dearly missed.