Thursday, July 4, 2024
My deepest condolences to all of us, especially Heidi, Hansi, Nadia, Brendan, Zackary, Jakob and Jessika. You all meant the world to Gale, so did her dear brothers and sisters. She spoke about you often and was proud of each and every one of you. To our family, she was a great friend as well as an auntie and godmother to our children. Gale was everything we needed in our lives to cheer us on. She was giving, caring, kind, talented, positive, playful, supportive, fearless and always ready to give a hand to people in need …. I met her when she and our dear Reidar had just been relocated to Montreal due to work, about 37 years ago. We soon bonded and became a family and started to hang out on a weekly basis. Our children Adrian and Sara considered Gale and Reidar their uncle and aunt and Heidi and Hansi their cousins, so did we.
Gale would drop everything and come to my rescue the minute I would call and ask for her help. Adrian would not stay with anyone other than two or three very important people in his life. Gale was one of them. Sara followed suit and created an enviable bond with her Auntie/Godmother Gale. Sara hung out with and confided in Auntie Gale as long as she was in Montreal and then kept in touch with her, long distance, once they each moved to a different city. To this day, anytime she bakes or does arts and crafts with her daughter Luna, she fondly remembers her auntie Gale and how she expressed tenderness, attention and love to her and Adrian in the same way.
Gale was a pillar in our household whether she lived close by or far away. We loved her, cherished her and kept in touch. The last exchange we had was on April Fool’s Day 2024. I managed to tickle her a bit with my silly April Fool’s Day prank, which our brilliant Hansi quickly deciphered and dismissed. I didn’t know about Gale’s surgery, though, and was only going to call her on her upcoming birthday as usual.
My family and I, along with all our close friends and relatives - who also considered Gale a principal member of our family - will miss her company as well as her kind face, her beautiful smile, her yummy cakes and pastries and all the happy days we spent together. Our lives will be much less meaningful without her.
Our thoughts are with you,
Arezoo, Emilio, Adrian and Sara
