ISAURA DIAS SIMOES

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ISAURA DIAS SIMOES

It is with great sadness that the family of Isaura Simoes announces her sudden passing on May 5, 2023, just 17 days before what would have been her 91st birthday on May 22. It was an occasion we were all looking forward to celebrating with her.

Left to cherish her memory are her three daughters, Luisa (Bill), Milu (Jose), and Laura (Manuel); her grandchildren, Annette, Marla, Carla (Matt), Garrett (Stefany), and Andrew; her great-grandchildren, Benjamin and Sophie; her sister-in-law Fernanda; and her many nieces and nephews in the Dias, Tavares, Simoes, Delgado, and Aparicio families, both in Canada and in Portugal.

Isaura was predeceased by her husband Americo; her parents, Rita Dias and Manuel Dias; her sister Maria Rosaria; and her brother Jose.

Born in Pe Da Serra, Amendoa, Portugal, Isaura was the baby of her family and by far the youngest of her siblings, with whom she swore to have never had a single argument. Their parents were horse breeders, and from an early age Isaura worked well with the animals - even an especially difficult one they called Picasso. She loved horses for the rest of her life, and always admired the horsemanship of the cavaleiros when her grandchildren dragged her to bullfights during their visits to Portugal.

On January 31, 1952, Isaura married Americo Simoes, the son of a good friend of her father’s. As much as she loved to tell stories about the four potential suitors who would stand outside her bedroom window to try and court her, she knew she made the right choice. Americo was undeniably the love of her life, and she always called him “amor” - even when his pet names for her could seem somewhat less endearing. After they married, the two of them moved to Portugal’s capital city of Lisbon where she took up hairdressing. Many of her best clients were the wives of Spanish businessmen, but while they could not understand what she said, she insisted she could understand everything they said.

In 1953, Isaura had the first of her three daughters, and for the rest of her life devoted herself to her family. She was a woman of impeccable taste who came to admire the fashion sense of Jaqueline Kennedy, and she took great pride in making sure her daughters were always as well-dressed as she was. She and Americo delighted in buying them the best that was available, but when she knew she could do better, Isaura would sew outfits for all four of them herself. A perfectionist in everything she did, she never left a thread out of place.

Unfortunately the political situation in Portugal left Isaura and Americo wanting more for their three young daughters, and in April of 1964 they made the difficult decision to move their family to Canada. Americo took a job up north where he could earn more money, and the early months alone with her daughters in a foreign land were difficult for her, but she found strength and determination in knowing it was the best thing for them. Once settled into their new lives and in their first home on Burrows Avenue, Isaura took a job at Western Glove, and later at Sabina Sportswear where she attached pockets onto heavy winter coats. When Americo started a successful construction company of his own, she gracefully became the perfect chatelaine to his busy life as both became pillars of the growing Portuguese community in Winnipeg. They were proud to have been founding members of the Portuguese Association of Manitoba and dedicated members of the Immaculate Conception Parish, where Isaura sang in the choir.

As the years progressed, Isaura and Americo began spending more and more time at their beautiful home in Cascais, Portugal. She was a modern woman even in her 80s, when she took up yoga and forwarding emails to her friends and family - often of recipes she found while researching the latest trends in health food. Her family may have preferred her traditional recipes to her newer, healthier ones, but her banana bread was second to no one’s. She always made sure that everyone had enough fibre in their diet, and monitored everything her husband ate especially closely. As his health began to decline she devoted herself even more completely to his care, and deserves full credit and gratitude for the long, happy, and healthy life he was able to live. After he passed she returned to Canada, but her life was never the same without her partner.

Strong willed and fiercely independent, her final years were difficult for her as she lost her mobility, but visits from family and friends always lifted her spirits - especially when they came from her great-grandchildren Benjamin and Sophie. Isaura always remained stubbornly hopeful that she would be able to walk and drive again, and hopeful that she could move back into her home to start her garden. She also longed to visit her beloved homeland, and the loving family she had spent many days of significance with. She never lost her pride, even if she could have good days and bad, and she never lost her wits. She could question your life choices, but always told us “nunca se compara aos piores, sempre aos melhores,” or “never compare yourself to the worst, always to the best.” We feel blessed to have had her for as long as we did, and will forever be grateful for the time we had with her.

A special thank you goes out to all of those that took time to visit with her, and to all of the staff at Calvary Place for the tremendous care they gave her. She always spoke well of you even if she never fully settled into life outside of her own home, and it warmed all of our hearts to know that she was in the care of compassionate and understanding people.

Family and friends are invited to join us on Thursday, May 18, at 6:00 p.m. for viewing, and 7:00 p.m. for Mass at Immaculate Conception Parish, 181 Austin Street North. Refreshments will follow.

In lieu of flowers, a donation can be made in Isaura’s name to Immaculate Conception Parish for all of the good work they do in the community.

Maezinha, Avo, Vovo, as hard as it is to say goodbye, you were a deeply Catholic woman and we know you are at ease in the hands of God with your dearly beloved by your side.

For those who wish to sign the online Guest Book please visit www.chapellawn.ca

Chapel Lawn Funeral Home - 204-885-9715

As published in Winnipeg Free Press on May 13, 2023