Sergio Zoccolante

A Tribute To My Father On Behalf Of The Family
As you may already know that for the last 16 years my dad had Parkinson’s disease and during these last year’s some of them were particularly difficult. Even though my dad would never have expected my mom to look after him the way she did, my mom had made it her mission to look after him at home with complete dignity. My mom’s only concern was to carry out her commitment she made to him and has put her life aside for him and for this mom we thank you very much for looking after dad.

Just to give you a little background on my dad; he was born in Italy in 1932 in the region of Friuli in the town he proudly grew up in, in Zoppola. He was number 9 of 10 children (5 boys and 5 girls) and he was the last surviving.

He was a husband to my mom Lidia, a father to myself and my brother Dino, a grandfather (or best known as "Nonno" to the grandkids)
Daniel, Leanna ( husband Michael), Remi and Max & a great grandfather to little Chase, that he fortunately was able to meet.

Back in Italy, he learned a trade and became a bricklayer. At the age of 22, he immigrated to Canada on his own in 1954. Arriving in Toronto, he was filled with uncertainty, but also with hope that he would make it and he did just that.

Not long after he started working as a bricklayer, his main goal was to save money and go back to Italy to find himself a bride. Five years later, my dad returned to Italy and found and married my mother. Soon after he returned to Canada to once again begin what he set out to do and that is to fulfill the dream he had of a better life.

Just to give you a sense of who my father was I would say the first word that comes to mind is “Loyal” and the love he had for his family. First it started with his commitment and love to my mother when he promised to marry her 57 years ago, but then it was to his family, his friends and loyal to Canada and proud to be Canadian and yet never forgetting his beloved home town of Zoppola.


Despite the challenges of living in a new Country and learning English and renting a flat down on College in Toronto like many immigrants did they soon welcomed their first child (me, Marisa) and then five years later my brother Dino came along who would carry on the Zoccolante name.

When our spouses, John and Denise, became a part of our family, my dad welcomed them with open arms and loved them like one of his own. Later on when the grandchildren came along, one by one, he loved and nurtured them like they were the only child that existed to him at that time. They each received the same " Nonno Affection" without the others feeling like they were missing out.

He may have left us but he will never be forgotten as each one of us has our own set of memories that describe what he meant to us. Also the stories he shared with me and Dino and then later, John and Denise and then when the grandchildren came along my dad knew he had a new captive audience.
But even though he told his stories over and over he would tell each story every time like it was the first.

We will miss you and your stories, we will try and remember the good times and not to the sad.
We’ll see you later Papà ….

Marisa