Obituary
Francesco passed away peacefully surrounded by his family on January 13, 2019 at the age of 75. Born in Scandale, Italy, the oldest of 8 siblings he along with his family immigrated to New Westminster, B.C. in 1960 to reunite with his father.
Despite the difficulties of a new country and a new language he dedicated himself to his studies and proudly obtained his Bachelor of Arts in 1968 and his Masters in Romance Linguistics in 1970 from Simon Fraser University. During this time he was the founder and first president of L’Alliance Francaise; for his work and to his great surprise, he was presented with a medal of honor from the French Government. He went on to pursue his PhD at the University of British Columbia for his research of French philology and linguistic geography of the Occitane region.
From 1974 to 2005 he taught French, Spanish and German in the Delta School District. In retirement he continued to dedicate his time to his passion for linguistics and recently added author to his list of accomplishments with the completion of his book ‘Dizionario del Dialetto di Scandale (KR).’
Married for 38 years Francesco was a dear husband to Maria and beloved father to their children Paolo (Veronica), Margherita and Domenico. In the past 4 months of his life he was blessed with his beautiful granddaughter Estelle.
He will be dearly missed by his siblings Domenico (Settimia), Maria (Jose), Italo, Giuseppe (Maria), Alberto (Adriana), Fernando, Rosalba (Vincenzo), their children and grandchildren.
Throughout his life Francesco was devoted to his Catholic faith and volunteer involvement in the community. He will be remembered for his passion for languages, music, his thirst for knowledge and loving dedication to his family and friends.
Francesco was a teacher in many ways; he has left us with the most beautiful memories and lessons in life that will continue to guide us. The
best we can do in his memory is to strive to have a heart as big and full as his and to do good around us just as he did.
Prayers and Mass of Christian Burial to be held at Our Lady of Good Council 10460 139 Street, Surrey on Monday, January 21 at 7:00 p.m. and Tuesday, January 22 at 11:00 a.m. Entombment at the Gardens of Gethsemani on Tuesday, January 22 at 3:00 p.m. In his memory donations may be made to the Volunteer Cancer Drivers Society and the Canadian Red Cross.
Our most sincere sympathies to the family and friends of Francesco Cirillo January 13 2019..
Death notice for the town of: Vancouver, Province: Colombie britanique