Cianflone, Tommaso (Tom)

It is with sadness we bid our final farewell to our father Tommaso (Tom) Cianflone who passed away peacefully in his sleep at St Joseph’s Villa (Gardenway) at the age of 91 on August 9, 2024. Dad was born on Sept 7, 1932, to Giuseppe and Concetta Cianflone (both predeceased) in the small mountain village of Caraffa Italy. In search of a “better life” at the tender young age of 19 he emigrated to Canada. He recounted numerous times of landing by sea in Halifax on a cold wintery day in December and then making the long and arduous journey by train to Sudbury, Ontario Canada. Once in Sudbury he secured employment at Vale (formerly known as INCO). His employment continued there until his retirement in 1989. Once retired dad always mentioned that he was busier in retirement than in his work life.

Once he arrived in Canada dad sponsored numerous relatives from Italy to Canada some of which included his parents, brother and the woman who eventually became his future wife Rebecca, our mother. She predeceased him in 2018 after 65 plus years of marriage.

Our dad is survived by his 3 children: Sue (Sudbury), Richard (Diane) Star Valley Ranch, Wyoming USA, Daniel (Waterdown) and his brother Don Sr. (Toronto). He is also survived by his grandchildren Daniel Bruhl (Venice, California), Greg Bruhl (Hoffman Estates, Illinois), Luca Cianflone (Waterdown) and his niece Connie Quadrini (Gino) and nephew Don Cianflone Jr. (Laura) both of Toronto. He will also be remembered by his brother and sister-in-law Giuseppe and Maria Talarico both of Italy as well as his nieces and nephews Francesco Talarico (Erminia), Luciana Negro (Mario), and Lina Critelli (Piero) all of Italy. He will be fondly remembered as well by his many great nieces and nephews. Dad was affectionately known as “Genius at work” (Vale formerly INCO) and “Mr Fix It” “Gadget Man #1” (to family and friends). Numerous friends and family can attest to the fact that he was always helping everyone who required his assistance. He was accomplished with electrical, plumbing issues all without any formal education in those areas. Those interests also included extensive car repairs, woodworking, electronics and home repairs. Eventually he built his own home in Sudbury (1962) where he raised his young family with our mother until 2017.

In the summer months you would find him hard at work in his beloved garden which occupied half of the backyard. Also, he was an accomplished blueberry picker where he would drag all of us out for the joy of being eaten by mosquitoes and black flies and being on the lookout for not so friendly bears, but in the end, all was forgiven with the delicious blueberry pies our mother would make. Being outdoors was important to him and he was always going for daily walks because he “didn’t like being cooped up inside”. Eventually both he and our mother became “Snowbirds” traveling to Florida to escape the harsh Northern Ontario winters. Dad’s interests included watching nature and building shows, listening extensively to the news, watching old movies and listening to classical music, specifically opera. Fishing and hunting were also outdoor pursuits he enjoyed. In his later years he became an accomplished bread and pizza maker, both of which were delicious. Dad was a hard and conscientious worker, qualities he instilled in each of us as we were growing up.

He encouraged us as siblings to spend time together and assisted us in those endeavors. Sadly, dad’s quality of life came to a halt in 2017 and as his children we can only hope that he is reunited with our mother in whatever exists once our earthly lives have ended. We hope in the “great beyond” he continues to “fix things” and can be heard quoting his favorite expression “do it right the first time”! Buon viaggio papa e a più tardi.

Special thanks to the nursing and support staff at St Joseph’s Villa (Gardenway) for their compassion and care of our dad. Following our father’s wishes there will not be a service but there will be a private Celebration of Life at a later date. Donations made directly to the Heart and Stroke Foundation https://www.heartandstroke.ca  or the Alzheimer Society of Sudbury https://alzheimer.ca/sudburymanitoulin/en would be appreciated.