VISCA, Teresa (nee Bruni) - (March 30, 1932 – August 27, 2020)
Teresa Visca (née Bruni) was born on March 30, 1932, and raised in the small village of Colli, Frosinone, Italy.
The entire Bruni family, headed by her parents Amedeo and Alessantrina, became a well recognized and respected family, both in Colli and abroad, where it extended, settled and expanded. Teresa was a part of that tremendous Bruni legacy.
Her twin brother Giuseppe was killed by a bomb in the village square when he and she were 12 years old. As part of an already large family, however, she continued to grow up with 9 other siblings, 3 sisters and 6 brothers. At the time of her death, only 1 brother, Antonio, remains of those 10 Bruni siblings.
As a young girl, Teresa suffered from poor health, and her parents sent her to France to live with her uncle Gaetano, hoping that the change in environment would improve her health. She lived in Lyon for almost 10 years, working as a nanny for a family, and became a recognized part of that family during those years.
Teresa was bright and quick, displaying an innate intelligence acquired by personal relationships and life experience, well beyond the limited formal grade 3 education she received. She became fluent in French, a skill that served her well when she eventually moved to Toronto where, unable to speak English for some time, she was able to effectively communicate with doctors and school teachers for her family in French.
At 26, she returned back to Colli and soon after met Carlo Visca. Their parents quickly negotiated a permanent personal and family union, with Teresa’s contribution to the arrangement being that she knew “how to kill a chicken when it’s time.” ;). They were married in 1959, and continued to live in Colli on the Visca compound (affectionately viewed as “Baccala”, i.e. salt cod) for several years. They had their first child, Antonio, there in 1961. She quickly became a respected and essential member of the Visca family. Indeed, many chickens, and other farm animals and produce for that matter, met their “time” while Teresa nourished hungry family farmers.
With 4 of her brothers and 2 of her sisters living in North America at the time, Teresa and Carlo decided to move to Toronto in 1963. They were part of that historic wave of hard-working immigrants, in search of a better life for their families. They traveled, along with Antonio, by ship from Naples to Halifax, and then onward by train to Toronto. Teresa’s brothers helped secure work for Carlo within a week, and they quickly settled into a new life in Canada.
At first, the family lived with Teresa’s sister Maria, and her husband Domenico. Within a year, their second child, Enrico (Rick) was born, and the family established its permanent presence in Toronto. The family eventually moved in with Teresa’s brother and Carlo’s sister, Fernando and Anna, and in 1968 bought their family home in Scarborough. Teresa and Carlo continued to live together in that home on Courton Drive for 52 years, right up until Teresa’s death.
For the first 15 years in Toronto, Teresa was a traditional “stay-at-home” mother. The family supplemented its modest income, in part, by Teresa offering babysitting services at their home. Teresa loved young children, and was a natural and wonderful caregiver, but especially to her own family, and later to her 4 grandchildren, Marc, Sebastian, Madeleine and Thomas, who were showered with her love and affection (and occasional “paccati pacs”👋...(undoubtedly deserved ;).
In her late 40s, Teresa entered the full time work force, at first in a textile factory, and later providing caretaking services at the Newnham campus of Seneca College. She spent many years developing the affection of young students in the cafeteria area at Seneca. She continued to work at Seneca right up until her retirement at age 65.
At under 5 feet tall, Teresa nonetheless commanded a powerful presence. She had a bubbly personality, and a genuine warmth and generosity. One always knew where she stood on issues, because she was direct and outspoken, and not afraid to tell you what she thought about things... whether or not you asked her opinion. ;)
She was an incredible rustic cook and baker . The only recipes she seemed to follow were all securely stored in her head (where most of them unfortunately remained), perfected over years of repetition. The kitchen was where you would generally find Teresa, as she prepared incredible everyday and holiday goodies for family and friends to enjoy.
It was obvious that Teresa selflessly lived life to serve, and it was reflected throughout her life - but she did it with pleasure, excitement, commitment and pride.
A series of strokes at the age of 84 unfortunately and permanently robbed us all of Teresa’s energetic presence and her continued warmth and contributions. For the last 4 years, her family and friends have missed terribly the sibling, friend, wife, mother, nonna and aunt they all knew and loved.
Teresa died peacefully on August 27, 2020, having reached the age of 88.
Her spirit, love and friendship will be forever remembered and missed, but especially by those she cherished the most: her husband of 61 years, Carlo, her sons Antonio and Rick, her daughters in law Serafina and Jacqueline, her grandchildren Marc, Sebastian, Madeleine and Thomas, and her neice Caterina. Ciao Teresa, ciao mamma, ciao nonna, ciao Zia. You touched so many of us in your unique and loving way. May you be granted rewards in heaven that you deserved but never sought on earth.
Visitation for Teresa will be at the Paul O’Connor Funeral Home, 1939 Lawrence Avenue East, Scarborough on Monday, August 31st from 2-4 PM and 6-9 PM. Covid 19 measures will be operating to limit entry to a maximum of 50 people at any one time and face coverings will be required.
The funeral will be held at Precious Blood Church, 1737 Lawrence Avenue East, Scarborough on Tuesday, September 1st at 10 AM. Internment will follow at Highlands Memory Gardens Cemetery.
DIRECTIONS TO LIVESTREAM: Visit: https://distantlink.com/SCION13.html copy and paste into your internet browser close to service time. Please note, if you see “offline” on the test screen, the livestream has not started. Stay on, the video will start when the service begins.
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