Doris Vella Obituary - Burlington, Ontario | Guelph Line Smith's Funeral Home
Smith's Funeral Homes Logo
Doris Vella
In Memory of
Doris
Vella (Mangion)
1926 -
2017

Obituary for Doris Vella (Mangion)

Doris  Vella (Mangion)
DORIS VELLA (NEE MANGION)

With heavy hearts, but gratitude for all she meant and gave to us, we announce the passing, on July 16, 2017, of our deeply loved mother, Doris Vella, in her 91st year, at Chartwell Brant Centre Nursing Home, Burlington.

Lillian Taylor of Hamilton; Margaret Pitkeathly; Albert Vella (Shirlene) and Janet Walsh (Doug Lapp), all of Burlington, are so proud of our mother and her strong, steadfast, and loving presence throughout our lives.

Grandma and Nana will always be remembered and missed by grandchildren Michael Taylor; Susan Irwin (Paul); Stephen Taylor (Hope); Ryan Vella (Thara); Adam Vella (Janet); and Melanie Walsh.

Our mom was also blessed with beautiful great-grandchildren: Cole and Michael Jr.; Christine and Daniel; Clarissa, Jordan, and Megan; and Julian and Kiley.

Our loved father, Paul Vella (1993) and Mom’s Maltese parents, Albert and Maria Assunta Mangion predeceased mom, as did sons-in-law David Pitkeathly and Keith Taylor. All of Mom’s sisters, Joyce Fairbrace (England), Emily Mangion (Malta), and our deeply-cherished Aunt Jane Mifsud have predeceased her. More recently, our cousins and we also lost, and dearly miss, our wonderful Uncle Joe Mifsud.

Our close Mifsud cousins, Charlie, Al, Josie Kelly, and David, together with their families, are especially saddened to lose their funny, feisty, and comically-irreverent Aunt Doris.

Born in Gzira Malta, our mom suffered, but survived, constant adversity in her early years. It included the death of her dad when she was three; serious injuries at the hands of a drunk female driver six years later; serious poverty during the Great Depression; enduring WW2 when our tiny island, Malta, became “the most bombed place on earth”; and the complete uprooting of her life at 23 when she joined Dad in Canada with three young children in 1949. A fourth “Canadian Baby”, Janet, arrived in 1963.

Our parents worked selflessly to provide for us, and to ensure that we enjoyed opportunities, especially a good education, and a good standard of living which were never there for themselves.

Throughout hardships and better times, Mom lived her life with scrupulous honesty, personal integrity, and a unique and hilarious shortage of “filters”. Her defence for the latter, spoken with her charming Maltese accent, was always, “Well, the troot is the troot!”. Everyone - everyone - who knew Mom, loved and admired the way she was always her brutally truthful and genuine self.

Next to us (we THINK!), Mom loved animals best. She doted on her feline babies. A regular and generous supporter of twelve charities, her favourites always involved children and animals. One year, asked why she gave the most to the World Wildlife Fund, Mom defensively retorted, “Because wild animals have to eat too, you know!”

Mom, we will always, always love you so, so much. How will we manage without you?

The family has an impossibly long list of individuals to thank: you all know who you are. However, we must especially salute the medical, administrative, and support staff at Brant Centre who made mom’s final years healthier and happier. The family especially acknowledges the incomparable skill, compassion, and extraordinary commitment to nursing home residents, of Dr. Chris Ragonetti. To you, Chris, we owe so much, especially during the final challenging and heartbreaking hours of our beautiful mother’s life. Thank you!

Visitation at SMITH'S FUNERAL HOME, 1167 Guelph Line (one stop light north of QEW), BURLINGTON (905-632-3333) on Thursday from 3 - 5 and 7 - 9 p.m. Funeral Mass will be celebrated at St. John the Baptist Roman Catholic Church (2016 Blairholme Ave, at Brant) on Friday, July 21, 2017 at 11 a.m. Interment Holy Sepulchre Cemetery.

Finally, in Mom’s sweet memory, the family would gratefully acknowledge your support for the good works of the Burlington Humane Society or any charity of your choice.

“Night, night, mom, God bless.” As you always asked as the elevator door was closing, we will kiss our kitties for you.
Share by: