Paul D'Amato

How can one sum up in a few short words the life of a beloved uncle? Self Giving! Generous! Our friendship with ‘Uncle Paul’ spans over almost half a century. Uncle Paul was an essential part of every Christmas, Easter and Thanksgiving and birthday and sacramental celebrations from when we were children.

Paul D’Amato was a giver, never expecting anything, but eagerly anticipating and never missing an invitation to gather on these special feasts of faith and family, to share in the warmth which family and good cooking and all the festive seasons could offer. He always showed up early to our gatherings but his humble personality did not require being waited on; he slowed the rambunctious children down by saying Woah Horse!

Although a man with few possessions, out of the generosity of his heart, a heart which had been nurtured by a faith-filled and self-less people of which St Paul spoke of in the Acts of the Apostles, he never came empty handed, but bearing gifts for each of the children, a tradition he carried through to each of our children. His thoughtful choice of gifts; (I remember in particular the beautiful dresses he would select for my daughters), were always given in humility, evidenced by His placing the receipt in the gift bag allowing the possibility for exchange.

His natural disposition to give rather than to receive extended not only to his family here in Canada, but to his nieces and nephews back home in Malta, by sending back substantial sums of money to help settle his newly wedded nieces and nephews. He loved his siblings, Maria, Derry, Katie and talked often about his brother Rocco, fishing in Wied Zurrieq and catching the red snapper, and secret fishing areas only he knew of.

He enjoyed our excursions to Little Malta and St Paul Church for mass, receiving our Lord in Holy Communion, and the excellent dinner that followed at Vessuvius.

The actions which have gone before him into eternity are the examples of faith and trust in God, despite his many afflictions. Not once during the many occasions in which my family had the privilege of being in his company, did we hear him complain about the loss of his leg, the blindness of his vision, the many humiliations one suffers in being confined to end of life care, especially one who lived his entire life independently. When my son Marcus asked what happened to his leg he joked that a shark had eaten it.

As further proof of the generosity of his soul, during the early onset of dementia Uncle Paul wrote $50,000 cheques for each of our children!

He loved our company especially the time we spent with him in prayer and song; he enjoyed eating Nutella, and listening to horse races over the cell phone and chatting with his sister Derry over skype. He always showed us his gratitude by ending our visits with the words ‘thank you’ and I love you all and god bless you! He loved being held and to kiss our hands almost as a reverential sign of his indebtedness to us for the visit. Whenever I would help him eat, or drink a cold glass of beer, every act of kindness was reciprocated with a strong Thank You Son!

Yet in all of this it was God ministered to us and our children. Little did we know at the time, that uncle Paul had saved the best gifts, which showcased his generosity for us, for the years he spent at Hawthorne home. Uncle Paul kept on living life, a life which the secular world would consider not worth living, for us. Making him feel so loved gave him the reason to continue on and we are sorry to see you go because you were never a burden to us but rather a joy! You see we believe God willed for Uncle Paul to remain with us long enough for our-children to experience, even if only in a small way, what it is to love another, to teach us the essence of the corporal works of mercy.

And lastly I want to thank my Mother who was always there for Uncle Paul, bringing him strawberries and homemade apple sauce, and ensuring his final care was thorough and dignified.

Thank you Uncle Paul for giving us an excellent example of final perseverance; in the words of saint Paul, I have fought the good fight, I have finished the race, I have kept the faith. Now there is in store for me the crown of righteousness, which the Lord, the righteous Judge, will award to me on that day.

We would also like to Extend our sincere gratitude to Fr. Pierre Farrugia for having on such short notice made time to celebrate the funeral mass for our uncle Paul. Our heartfelt thanks to you Father Pierre!

May the Lord richly reward you.

Paul D'Amato, age 80, of King City, Ontario passed away on Monday August 27, 2018. Paul was born January 25, 1938.

A cremation for Paul will be held Friday, August 31, 2018 at 12:00 AM. A Funeral Mass will occur Saturday, September 8, 2018 from 11:00 AM to 12:00 PM at Sacred Heart Catholic Church, 14485 Jane Street, King City, ON L7B1A3.

Fond memories and expressions of sympathy may be shared at www.ThompsonFH-Aurora.com for the D'Amato family.