I received terrible, terrible news late Wednesday night. An e-mail from one of the guys from our Friday Night Hockey group, Larry Hum, told us another friend, Tom Chan, had suddenly passed away.
Tom had just returned from a week long trip to Jamaica at the end of January. He was supposed to return to hockey on Friday, February 12th, but e-mailed me Thursday evening saying he was too sick to play this week. What I didn't know at the time was that he had been admitted to Mt. Sinai Hospital that same day.
Less than a week later (on Wednesday, February 17th) we were informed of his passing. I believe it was very sudden and very unexpected. Because earlier that same day Tom asked Florianne to e-mail me saying he's out for hockey this week. Just over six hours later we were told of his death.
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I met Tom through ice hockey. I'm not exactly sure when, but it was quite a few years ago. I don't even know exactly who in the group he knew. So many guys have come and gone over the two and a half decades we've played. All I know was that he was a really good guy.
Over the years he's invited me to his home where he and Florianne would host many lovely dinner parties. There would be ones for Christmas or Chinese New Years or one of many other special occasions. Tom was a great chef. He'd always prepare a number of wonderful dishes.
He was also a world traveler. Before his trip to Jamaica he was in Iceland late last year. And in prior years he traveled to Mexico, Asia and Europe with all Florianne and other friends. I'd always enjoy looking through his photos on Facebook.
For work he renovated old homes. I didn't know too much about this side of him. Though he had me photograph one project he completed, a semi on Baldwin, just east of Spadina. It was really amazing. Such a beautiful place. He really was a multi-faceted, multi-talented guy.
Taken far too young, he will be missed. Good-bye, my friend.
Very sorry for your loss. Tom was a childhood friend of my family. We will miss him. Thank you for sharing this.
ReplyDeleteIf you have details of any memorial or service for Tom, please share it as I'd like to pay my respects. Thank you.
ReplyDeleteI'll post any updates here in the comments section when I find out more. Take care.
ReplyDeleteOh... I'm sorry... I forgot to post the details of Tom's funeral in time. Anyway, a lot people came out to say good-bye to him. Many kind words were said on his behalf. He was a great friend.
ReplyDeleteI was devastated to learn only yesterday of Tom's death. I was friends with him for many years but had lost touch. I met him when he renovated the house next to mine (while I was also doing mine) in Leslieville in the early 2000s, and for many years thereafter we kept in touch and helped each other with our projects. He was a kind, generous and thoughtful man whom it was easy to take an instant liking to. I gave him the spare key to my truck so he could come by any time and use it to move materials around. I learned a lot from him about renovations and he was my first phone call when I needed a recommendation for a tradesperson.
ReplyDeleteThere was a devastating fire on Thursday night at a couple of houses that I knew he owned on Queen Street East in Corktown. I went down after work yesterday hoping I might bump into him and spoke with the fire investigators who said I had just missed the owner. I asked them "was he a Chinese guy, Tom Chan?" and one guy said yeah, but then the other guy got very grave and said "actually, no it was Tom's brother. Your friend Tom passed away in 2016. Sorry to be the one to break it to you." May he rest in peace. If you know where his grave is I would be grateful if you could let me know so I can pay him another visit.
I was devastated to learn only yesterday of Tom's death. I was friends with him for many years but had lost touch. I met him when he renovated the house next to mine (while I was also doing mine) in Leslieville in the early 2000s, and for many years thereafter we kept in touch and helped each other with our projects. He was a kind, generous and thoughtful man whom it was easy to take an instant liking to. I gave him the spare key to my truck so he could come by any time and use it to move materials around. I learned a lot from him about renovations and he was my first phone call when I needed a recommendation for a tradesperson.
ReplyDeleteThere was a devastating fire on Thursday night at a couple of houses that I knew he owned on Queen Street East in Corktown. I went down after work yesterday hoping I might bump into him and spoke with the fire investigators who said I had just missed the owner. I asked them "was he a Chinese guy, Tom Chan?" and one guy said yeah, but then the other guy got very grave and said "actually, no it was Tom's brother. Your friend Tom passed away in 2016. Sorry to be the one to break it to you." May he rest in peace. If you know where his grave is I would be grateful if you could let me know so I can pay him another visit.
Hi Tom, I don't believe there's a gravesite since he was cremated. I sent you an e-mail showing you approximately where his "tree" is. Let me know if you don't receive it.
ReplyDelete