Gabriele DiMarco

It is with deep sadness that we announce the passing of Gabriele DiMarco on October 18, 2026 at the Charleswood Care Centre in Winnipeg. Gabe lived a good full life, having celebrated his 91st birthday and 65th wedding anniversary with his beautiful wife Maria this past April. Gabe was a hard-working, devoted and loyal husband and a loving father to his two children and their spouses Domenic (Bonnie) and Anna (Gary) and a caring grandfather to Nicolaas and Alexandra (Kadin).

Gabriele was born on April 16, 1935 on a hilltop village at the end of a very long and winding road close to Cellino Attanasio in the province of Teramo. To the locals in his day, this hilltop hamlet was referred to as Carnivale. His parents, Anna Domenica Martella and Carmine DiMarco welcomed Gabriele into their growing and blended family. Anna was Carmine’s second wife and sister to his first wife who had died very tragically after giving birth to their fourth child. With children to raise, a farm to tend to and a war-time economy to survive, Carmine knew he would need the help of a devoted wife and mother to help him carry on.

By the time Gabriele was born, there were already eight children in this large family and many were already married. One more child, Guistino, followed close behind. The age gaps between the two sets of children were so large that Gabriele managed to become an “uncle” within months of being born. He and his nephew Umberto (Bertino) grew up together and maintained a lifelong sibling-like relationship despite the ocean between them.

Gabriele was a captivating storyteller, always sharing tales from his childhood and his early years. He often described those years with a hint of sadness related to the many hardships and traumas he and his family experienced. Three of his siblings served in the war, two had been imprisoned, one had escaped this fate by jumping out of an enemy army vehicle, food was scarce and life felt mostly bleak and uncertain in the 1940’s. Possibly the most difficult challenge Dad faced was his father’s ill health. He had suffered a stroke when Dad was only 8 years old and was significantly incapacitated as a result.

These early experiences led Dad to be incredibly independent, stubborn, and determined. It also inspired him to chase the dream for a “better life” and he was thus motivated to leave the multi-generation family farm in post-war Italy. His longstanding fascination and love of airplanes - despite never having been in one- led him to briefly consider joining the Italian Air Force. He abandoned the notion during an incredibly insightful moment when he astutely concluded that his stubborn and independent nature would not serve him well in a life of military service. He had heard stories about some of the local men travelling abroad to the Americas…Canada, the United States, South America….to create new lives for themselves. This idea of moving to a new land was very appealing to Dad, despite never having travelled far from home and never having seen any photographs of any of the places he was dreaming about. He set his heart and his mind very firmly on this dream of moving abroad in hopes of providing a better future for himself and any children he may one day have.

Like many hopeful European immigrants, Dad travelled to Belgium as an intermediary step towards his immigration to Canada. He was met by his older brother and family who had already established their lives in Belgium. He remained in Belgium for two years and like many other Italians, found work in the dangerous coal mining industry which relied heavily on immigrant labour to fuel post war economic recovery.

In 1958, he left all of his family behind for his new life in Canada, travelling via ship to arrive at Pier 21 in Halifax, Nova Scotia. From there, he immediately made his way to Montreal Quebec where several Italian friends were awaiting his arrival. After spending a year in Montreal, working in construction and in a butcher shop, learning neither proper French nor English, Dad decided that an English speaking province would provide more flexibility regarding his final Canadian destination and ultimate future career. Once again, he had Italian friends awaiting his arrival in Winnipeg. He boarded with these friends in their large Wolseley home and worked various jobs until he was recruited to become a steam fitter. Dad had many stories about the frustrations of trying to get through the program at the Manitoba Technical Institute (now Red River College) with his very limited understanding of the language, but he was determined to complete his studies and become a journeyman.

By 1960, Dad was working throughout the province taking on jobs that would allow him to best prepare for his future. And that future included proposing to his childhood friend and now long-distance love interest who was still living in Italy. As there were no telephones where Maria was living in Cellino, he romantically proposed via letter. She cheekily responded “if you want me to come to Canada, you will have to come get me”. It was a “yes” with a very big hurdle to navigate. Dad was unfettered and he fully agreed to her terms of engagement. He excitedly prepared for his new life by ensuring some financial stability for his incoming bride. He accepted a journeyman job at the Canadian- American army base in Churchill. The long hours, the extra pay and the forced savings strategy (with nothing to do in Churchill) allowed him to save enough money to buy a car, furnish an apartment, buy a plane ticket to Italy, buy a wedding dress, a wedding suit, and a wedding gift, pay for a farm style wedding, and for a honeymoon in Venice with cash. He returned to Italy with a gorgeous designer dress that he chose for his bride and that was the beautiful beginning to a 65 year union.

Once settled back in Winnipeg, Mom and Dad rented a suite in a friend’s home and started their life together. They soon saved enough money to purchase their first home on Walnut Street in the beautiful Wolseley neighbourhood. Domenic was born in 1962 and Anna followed in 1964. He soon sponsored his mother and by 1967, Dad had sponsored his brother Serafino and his wife Filomena and their five children to Canada. With more family to enjoy, our lives became richer and Dad’s commitment to holding onto our Italian heritage while simultaneously embracing our Canadian culture grew more intense.

Dad held onto his Italian heritage by continuing in the many cultural traditions he had grown up with. His Canadian life was filled with the hobbies and traditions he developed as a young man in Italy…storytelling, hunting, fishing, gardening, canning, wine-making, sausage and capocollo-making, and fixing anything and everything he could. He loved to share his hobbies with his children, grandchildren and any stranger, friend or neighbour who showed a remote interest for that matter! He was a prized problem-solver and friends and family would often ask him to “engineer” a solution for a myriad of situations that arose with their homes or gardens. We always joked that he earned his living as a steam fitter but lived his life as an engineer. The Italians refer to this ability to resourcefully and creatively solve everyday problems, overcome obstacles and adapt to difficult situations with whatever means are available as “l’arte di arrangiarsi” - the art of getting by.

While Dad had managed to return to Italy multiple times over the last seven decades, and quickly visit a few European ports en route to Canada, he had not done a lot of Canadian or world travelling. We were fortunate enough to coordinate many wonderful family trips these last 15 years, spending quality time together and creating wonderful memories. Our escapades included full family hiking excursions to Canmore and Banff, Kelowna for some extravagant wine tasting, Las Vegas to celebrate Dad’s 80th, Tuscany and Abruzzo for a beautiful family reunion to celebrate Mom and Dad’s 50th wedding anniversary, Whistler in the summer to further challenge our hiking skills and ride the world’s longest and highest gondola, Whistler in the winter to see the mountains in the snow and Maui on repeat for extended winter stays and to facilitate Dad’s love of rock hunting and tree climbing which continued until 2024.

Despite the hardships and traumas he endured, Dad always found a way to the other side. And desire his advancing age and multiple health issues, he truly never slowed down until this past year. His final two months were difficult to witness as he suffered a loss of independence and decreased mobility. Towards the end, he settled into his new reality with grace and dignity. His caregivers consistently described him as kind and loving, always ready with a hug. But, they also recognized his fierce independence right to the end.

We extend our heartfelt gratitude to the beautiful staff at the Charleswood Care Centre, Dr. Stephen Smith and the nursing staff at the Grace Hospital Emergency Department the weekend of October 17, to Dr. Lawrence Homik, to our fabulous team of homecare providers and to our wonderful cousins who dropped in to see Dad while he was transitioning from this realm. A special thank you to Mario Costantini for his wise and comforting presence while we were sitting vigil.

In lieu of flowers, we ask that you choose to make a donation to the charity of your choice or to Siloam Mission, the Alzheimer Society of Canada or Cancer Care Manitoba.

“They whom we love and lose are no longer where they were before. They are now wherever we are.” - St. John Chrysostom