Jozsef Fazekas

Jozsef (Joseph) Fazekas passed away peacefully on February 25 2021 at 2:10pm at Finnish Home in Vancouver where he was a resident since 2017 after his stroke. Joe, as most called him, is survived by his loving family including wife Maggie, daughter Magda, son-in-law Carey and his brother-in-law Joe in B.C. Canada, as well as several relatives in Hungary including his sister Annus, niece Zsuzsa, nephew Bence, Brother Ali, sister-in-law Ica, nephew Zoltan, niece Zita with husband Robi and nephew Palko (son of older brother Pali who passed away).

Joe was born in a small town in the northern region of Hungary, and during the Hungarian revolution in 1957, he - like many others - left the country to make a better way of life. He travelled with a couple of friends and ended up in a a UN refugee camp in Italy for almost a year, while Maggie and her family found refuge in France. When Canada invited people to immigrate here, both Joe and the Gyuro family boarded a ship to Canada, and interestingly, Maggie and Joe later found out that they were on the exact same ship (the Ascania) to Canada. At the time Maggie was only a teenager, so of course they did not meet until years later, but it certainly must have been fate.

Joe was skilled in many trades including doing brick laying and stucco in the early years, and then worked for the Vancouver Shipyard where he retired. Joe will be missed by many, including family, many long-time friends, ex co-workers and previous neighbors that had many ‘over the fence’ talks. Joe was never idle, he loved to tinker with cars, and could fix almost anything. He loved to dance, enjoyed travelling with Maggie and their friends to various destinations such as Hawaii, the Caribbean and Mexico as well as Hungary, Hong Kong and Korea. Joe was also an avid gardener, and was especially proud of his roses which were not only beautiful but incredibly fragrant. Joe loved all animals, and their last cat Tigish was a special companion to Joe, always at his feet while he worked outside or inside. Joe was always ready to help others cheerfully, loved his family and embraced life fully.

Joe will be missed terribly by family and friends in Canada and Hungary. To honour his life, a small service will be held in Vancouver which is not open to the public due to public health restrictions, however a live stream link will be available for online viewing. In lieu of sending flowers, a donation can be made to the Alzheimer Society of B.C., as Joe also experienced some dementia in his later years. https://alzheimer.ca/bc/en/take-action/donate Rest in peace, until we meet again.