Gregoria Villarruz

It is with deep sorrow and much love that we mourn the passing of Gregoria Villarruz, a woman of strong character and magnanimity. Gregoria was born on December 23, 1930, and transitioned out of this life on May 3, 2026. Through her journey of 95 years, she touched many lives with her humor, leadership and an unwavering spirit of humanity.

Gregoria will be lovingly remembered by her sister Edith, nephews, niece-in laws, grandnephews, grandniece, great grand nephews and great grandniece. She will be dearly missed by relatives, longtime friends and acquaintances.

Gregoria was born in the Philippines to Alfonso and Amparo. She received her nursing degree from Iloilo Mission Hospital. Upon graduation she was employed as an Industrial Nurse, in Manila, Philippines.

A new chapter in her young life came when she was awarded a working visa by the United States of America in 1958 to work as a registered nurse at Cook County Hospital, Chicago, Illinois. Her adventurous nature could not easily be contained. When her contract in the USA expired and was scheduled to return to the Philippines, she decided to pursue other avenues and selected Canada as her chosen country to settle down.

A new life, a new beginning. With hope and resilience in her heart she, and together with her sister Anita who also completed her contract in New Jersey, USA started a new chapter in their young life. They immigrated to Winnipeg. However, due to the inclement weather of Winnipeg, they set their site to a much warmer weather of beautiful British Columbia. It was Spring of 1963, when she first laid eyes on the sprawling gardens of residential communities, snowcapped mountains looming over the lower mainland of Vancouver, British Columbia, and made a pact of life to settle down comfortably for many long years until the end of her life in Vancouver.

Gregoria with her skills set in clinical and leadership easily made her mark as a professional registered nurse in Shaughnessy Hospital, where she met a Head Nurse who was recruited to open a new Jewish Home for the aged. She went along with her. She was given the position of Head Nurse, retained the position until her retirement in 1988; a milestone of rewarding service to the Jewish Home for the aged.

During her life time Gregoria lived a full diverse life. She was a woman with many passions, including extensive traveling, gardening, handcrafting, listening to classical music, collecting unique figurines, and donating to charitable organizations.

We discourage donation. Instead, we encourage you to honor Gregoria with prayers. This we believe would be the best tribute to her.

The interment will be held at 1 pm, on May 29th, at Boal Chapel and Memorial Garden, 1505 Lillooet Rd. North Vancouver, BC.