grave post - Mirvish

Ed Mirvish has been in the headlines again this past week with the announcement from his son, David, that the one and a half blocks known as Mirvish Vilage in the Bathurst and Bloor area of downtown Toronto would be put up for sale.

You can see that something like this would be missed!

Ed Mirvish was born in Virginia on the 24th of July, 1914 and the family moved to Toronto in 1923.

 A businessman, entrepreneur and philanthropist he was also a beloved, larger than life figure in the city. Apart from this over-the-top gaudiness of his 'famous bargain house' where everything was cheaper than you could possibly imagine, Mr Mirvish also made his mark in developing the Entertainment District with theatres and restaurants. 

So it might seem odd that such a man would still be without a head stone at his grave in the Pardes Shalom Cemetery. It is Jewish custom to have a marker put up within a year, but Mr Mirvish has been gone for 6 years as of July 11th. Instead, there is a simple black marker from the funeral home. His son, David, has taken a lot of flack for this oversight and he has said that he's been very busy and that it has been difficult since his father's passing. Though his father's memory has been honoured in many other, public, ways - a theatre has been [re]named in his honour and a parkette and street have been dedicated to Ed and Anne Mirvish as well as an annual award for entrepreneurship.  He admitted that he doesn't visit the cemetery and Ed's wife, Anne, whom he married in 1941, in failing health and 94 years of age, also has not been to see where her husband is buried.
However, in one recent interview there was an indication that a marker may be soon in place. David has finally, after a long deliberation, perhaps settled on the wording.


“A Man with a Good Name.”


Taphophile Tragics

grave post - pardes shalom

Another thing I noticed about this particular Jewish cemetery (admittedly, the only one I have spent any time in) were the personal tributes on the markers. I don't know if it is because this is a 20th century cemetery (it was created in the 1970s) and maybe this is a modern reflection, but I found it very touching to read these remembrances. They seemed to be a celebration of a life lived rather than the Victorian desperation of a reward in heaven.

above we have the traditional menorah for the woman and the Star of David for the man along with their relationships within their family - many listed as 'wife' 'mother', 'bubby' (in all its variant spellings) or 'grandmother' on down to aunt or sister etc.

but the personal memories were the most touching -                   "he sang whenever he had a chance"

I am sorry this one does not show up clearly (though it is more readable in in the photo editing site for some reason. click to embiggen)

"a man who believed in the beauty and power of music to create a world where people can live in peace, harmony and with justice and dignity for all"

"a woman who devoted her life to her community"

as we arrive at the time of year when many cultures are remembering and honouring their dead,
I would like to think that I would be remembered more for my life than my death.

see more honouring of the dead at Taphophile Tragics

grave post - Pardes Shalom

Last week, Halcyon and I went for a walk around the Pardes Shalom, a Jewish cemetery in the town of Maple just north of Toronto. It turned out to be much bigger than I expected, and in spite of the orderly rows, much more confusing to our uninitiated eyes to find our way around.

And, in looking up the history, I discovered that we missed a free walking tour! If only I had done the research as soon as I got home... though it is a long drive to go back.

Two things I noticed immediately that is different from many of the cemeteries I have wandered through recently is the neat rows with each grave facing the same direction and with the back of each stone including the surname. Maybe the names is not traditional but simply an accommodation to the fact that the entrance to this cemetery is at the western edge of the land, but it is a very nice feature. Also, the stones are pretty much all the same height with minor variations in the shapes - no one towers over the others or shows off with a large monument.

The Pardes Shalom Cemetery has been beautifully landscaped, which took five years, from 1972-77, to transform this former Christmas tree farm and gravel pit. Special attention was made to create a space that was as much for the living as for the dead. Had I gone on the walking tour I would now be able to tell you about the various species of the thousands of trees that were planted and the history of the land with the "attempts that have been made to promote the land's environmental health and the visual integrity of the cemetery".

What I can tell you is that there are 15,000 burials with most of the grounds filled with graves. Some of the plots once belonged to synagogues or burial societies while others were purchased directly from the cemetery. There was a variety of traditional and more modern graves, some were written on the front entirely in Hebrew, some had flowers, some had mementoes left. Almost all had stones left on top by those visitors who stopped by to remember them.

See more grave practices at Taphophile Tragics