At the age of 88, Irene passed away peacefully after a brief illness at Richmond General Hospital on September 11th, 2020. Irene was predeceased by her husband Tom and son Ochie. She is survived and lovingly remembered by only daughter Grace and son-in-law Kevin, grandchildren Stephanie, Miguel and Troy, daughter-in-law Chiqui, sisters and brother, cousins, nieces and nephews, and friends spread throughout the Philippines, the U.S. and Canada.
Irene and family migrated to Canada in 1988 with the help of her first cousin, Odette. Born in Manila, Philippines in 1932, Irene studied music and was a well-known singer in the family with a lovely angelic voice. She was an accomplished cook whose many dishes and desserts were famous amongst family and friends. Her most outstanding trait was her physical and mental resiliency throughout many ups and downs in life. She was the most kind and gentle of people, but also the toughest, the kind of person who could be knocked down but never knocked out. She always got back up, dusted herself off and carried on in style. A fine example for us all.
Throughout her life she very much enjoyed laughter and good times, her jokes never seemed to stop, and she was more than jovial even when the jokes were aimed at her. Even though we grieve her loss and will miss her every day, her memory will warm our hearts forever.
The music will play on....