She was born the second of four daughters in Chieti, Abruzzo, Italy. Her early life was marked by hardship from the privations of war and the early death of her mother. She accepted the written marriage proposal of her sweetheart, Agostino Del Rosario who had earlier immigrated to Canada. When her strict father would not allow his unwed daughter to leave, Elvira and Agostino were wed by proxy over a long-distance telephone call with Agostino’s father standing in for the groom. From there, her life was busy and full with three daughters, Ada (Del) Del Rosario (Ted), Linda Del Rosario (Richard), Rose Del Rosario (Al) and her cherished granddaughter Morgan Klieber (Erik). The family moved to Victoria in 1973 where Elvira worked until her retirement at the Eaton’s Cafeteria. She bowled, knitted, sewed, gardened, played Scopa and on special occasions cooked fabulous gnocchi that was much celebrated. She and Agostino wintered occasionally at their Sun City get-away and enjoyed travelling. After the death of her husband in 2009, Elvira continued to live independently for many years until her health began to fail. The family is grateful to the staff at the Summit and to Sheila Heinekey and Claudia Krohn, her personal caregivers who kept her amused until the very end.
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McCall Gardens
www.mccallgardens.com
