ROSATO, Maria (Canestrini) - (December 28, 1930 - March 23, 2021) -
It is with great sorrow that we announce the passing of Maria Rosato (Canestrini) at Villa Forum, surrounded with love by her daughter Carmelina Pascarella (and her husband Pasquale), her 3 granddaughters Mary Guzzo-Foliaro (and her husband Angelo), Lucy Ferreira (and her husband Edgar), Laura Atkinson (and her husband Jonathan), and her 9 great grandchildren, Pasquale, Melina, Angelo, Domenic, Olivia, Micaela, Adriana, Matthew, & Alessia; who were all at her bedside as she passed from this life to the next.
Guiding her on her journey and waiting for her with open arms were her husband Domenico, her baby daughter Lucia, her parents Lucia & Antonio Canestrini, and her 3 sisters Giuseppina La Penna, Elena Pappano & Filomena Zita.
In her community everyone knew 'Maria Canestrini' and she will be missed by her many friends and extended family.
We have one chance at life and we want to live it with no regrets. Life can be messy and sometimes it can be really hard. But throughout her life, she always reminded others to let things go. She was simple. She wanted to sing and dance. She wanted to have fun and she wanted everyone else to have fun too.
Maria Canestrini Rosato lived her life to the fullest. Although, her life wasn’t always easy. After losing a child, she moved her family from Italy to Canada. It was an unfamiliar country. She didn’t know the language and she had very little in her pocket. After being in Canada for only a week she found a job in a restaurant. Her next job was at a laundry pressing and folding clothes and eventually she began working at GH wood doing piece work. She told stories that she had to pack quickly with her hands tied. One story that will always be remembered is her story about peeling potatoes. The owner of the restaurant asked her to peel potatoes, so she peeled one potato; and then he replied “No Mrs., not one, LOTS”. Having only been in the country a week, and not knowing the language, she clearly misunderstood! However, she never let that hold her back, and always persevered. Everyone loved to hear her stories. She talked about the good and the bad, but she always talked with enthusiasm. Despite the hardship she always saw the good in every situation, and in everybody. She always worked hard, and she always had fun.
She loved people and she talked to everyone, including strangers. We would sit on the porch and she would talk to the people passing. She had a way of connecting with others through her upbeat energy. She knew everything about everyone because she made it part of her regular routine to call all her family and friends, near and far because she genuinely cared and loved being connected to them. Everyone jokes that Zia Maria was the telephone. She always welcomed family and friends into her home, day or night. She loved her Italian heritage and always filled her table with homemade pasta, pizza, cookies, sausage, cheese, taralli and of course her famous sponge cake. If you went to Zia Maria’s house, your glass was always full of homemade vino.
My grandmother loved my grandfather dearly, and together they lived a good life. They travelled together to Acapulco, London, Paris and visited shrines and churches. We are blessed to have had her be such a big part of our lives, spending weekends, special occasions, holidays and summer vacations together.
My grandmother loved her family more than anything. She was loud and proud and she had every right to be. She often talked about her childhood, her parents and her siblings. She talked about sharing a small bed, stealing the apples from the rafters, working the fields, and going to the piazza with her friends. She always said she had a good life. She bragged about her daughter going to college and being one of the first women in her career. She was so proud to be a Nonna and even prouder to be a bis-Nonna and always boasted to anyone who would listen about her 9 beautiful great grandchildren. She was so proud that her little family of 3 had grown so big and strong. I feel so lucky to have had my Nonna be such a big part of our lives. Our family is strong because she was strong. And although this is the end of a chapter, her story doesn't end here. It continues with the legacy she has left behind.
In short, my grandmother loved life, and it loved her right back. She suffered, especially during the past few years. But despite everything, she was grateful for it all. Her faith was important to her and she always praised God. She set an example for all of us by always having faith, accepting the bad, praising the good and always allowing her heart to forgive and forget. She was blessed to the end and thankfully we were all able to be with her on her final day, as she took her last breath with her family by her side.
This pandemic has been a challenging one for everyone. Funerals are difficult at the best of times and Covid has made it hard for us to celebrate the way we should. We are and always will be connected by my grandmother. May she always be remembered by her charismatic energy and her generous heart that captivated us all. We love you Nonna.
Arrangements and livestream funeral details are entrusted with Ridley funeral home, Etobicoke.
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