Obituary of Dora Micieli

MICIELI, Dora - Passed away on Thursday, January 21st, 2021 at the Hotel Dieu- Shaver Hospital at the age of 92.  Beloved mother of Emma (Peter) Trozzolo, Joe (Judy) Micieli and Frank (Karen) Micieli.  Loving Nana of Joanne (Nathan) Hyde, John (Ashley) Trozzolo, the late Nicky Micieli (June 18, 2012), Michael (Miriam) Micieli, Marissa (Kevin) Fox and Vincent Micieli. Great Nana of Caiden Fox.  Dora, an avid gardener;  loved spending time with her family. The family will receive visitors at the GEORGE DARTE FUNERAL HOME, 585 Carlton Street, St. Catharines on Tuesday, January 26th from 2-4p.m. & 6-8p.m. A Funeral Service will take place on Wednesday, January 27th at 2p.m. in the funeral home chapel. Entombment at Victoria Lawn Cemetery to follow. Memorial donations to Arthritis Society. As per COVID restrictions, visitation is limited to 10 people max. All guests attending the visitation must wear a mask and must call (905) 937-4444 to make an appointment for visitation attendance.

                                                                                                                                             Eulogy for Mrs. Dora Micieli

Good afternoon and thank you for being here to celebrate the life of my grandmother, my Nana, Dora Micieli. She was born, Dora Grimaldi, on September 3rd, 1928, in the small town of Paterno Calabro, about 20km south of Cosenza, Italy. One of 16 children (we think… based on discussions last night, might be 18, we're not so sure; after 10, I imagine you could start losing track of all the kids running around) She grew up working on the farm, doing whatever was required to help her family through the Second World War. A few years after the conclusion of the war, She made the difficult decision to build a new life in a foreign land, knowing that she might not see some of her family ever again. Nana took the long journey across the Atlantic, arriving in Halifax, and was shuttled off to Timmins, as many Italian immigrants were in that era. By the early 70’s, she found herself in St. Catharines, a single mother with 3 young children, Emma, Joe, and Frank. She worked tirelessly to provide for her family (a bit of a theme, here). Working on the farm by day, pizzeria by night, day after day, to give her children the best possible chance at a better life than she had. She had a bit of help, from her wonderful brother, Sam (known to us as Uncle Sam). One by one, her babies grew up into responsible, hard-working adults. However, the work didn’t stop there. Taking care of her grandchildren became her new mostly full-time job. Joanne, myself, Nicky, Mikey, Marissa, Vinny. She kept us well fed. Took care of us when we were sick, taught us how to make homemade gnocchi, taralle, and macaroni. When I was in University, she would put together simple care packages that would make my roommates envious. She taught us the importance of following rules; of being well fed; of respecting our parents; of being honest; of working hard; of knowing when to ask for help. We know she passed down these lessons to her children, which were passed on to their children, which will be passed on to Nana’s great grandchildren, beginning with Marissa’s little guy Caiden. Getting together to make sauce every year was a joyful event. To see this aging yet ageless little lady order everyone around like an army general to ensure the operation ran smoothly was something I’ll always appreciate. There always seemed to be too many cooks in the kitchen, but when Nana spoke, we listened; when Nana led, we followed. Nana showed us, to make a good, award-winning sauce, all we needed were a few good tomatoes, and enough people to march to her orders. Over the years, her workload got smaller, but her attitude and work ethic never changed. Her garden got smaller (and frank, so did she), but the work never stopped. Daily 5am outings to the garden persisted. We made a variety of homemade foods, but less often. However, personality-wise, she was still the same. You could always expect to be well fed when going to Nana’s, even if you just ate lunch. You knew you couldn’t say no. Since I moved closer to home about 6 years ago, I’ve been thankful for the opportunity to spend more time with Nana, even if it was just to have snacks or fix some things or sit outside. We would talk about anything and nothing. She was at her happiest when she saw her loved ones be happy. She absolutely loved dogs. She spoke fondly of her horse of a dog, Chico. She loved Nicky's dog, Levi. She won over our barky-when-nervous dog Poppy with her gentle, calming hands. From barking to belly rubs in no time. To this day, when I talk about Nana, friends that never met her think she couldn’t possibly be a real person. The hard life she’s lived, the impeccable and extremely productive garden that people could only dream of, her unabashed demeanour, her approachability, her extraordinarily unique personality. During Ashley and I’s wedding reception just a few short months ago, Nana basically stole the show. For days and days after the wedding, all we heard from our friends was about how spunky and joyful and hilarious and amazing and passionate and sweet and absurd Nana was. She made such an impression on so many people in such a small time frame on one night, that it really made me appreciate what we all had with Nana. We had decades to share with this wonderful woman. We were there for the ups and downs, the joys and sorrows. The last 2 months have not been easy. It’s not fair for such a great person to suffer so much. We know that she deserves to be at rest. She knows that we will remember her, not for how she was the last couple months, but for how she lived her life, solely for the betterment of those close to her, without regret.