Victims of van attack being laid to rest
Services include public funerals, private affairs
TORONTO — Mourners gathered Tuesday afternoon for the funeral of one of the 10 people killed in a horrific van attack in Toronto.
Dorothy Sewell, 80, died after a rental van mounted a sidewalk along a bustling street last week and ran down pedestrians in its path.
Sewell’s grandson, Elwood Delaney, of Kamloops, B.C., has described his grandmother as an avid sports fan who “almost had as much love for the Blue Jays and Leafs as she did for her family.”
“To Dorothy the cup was always full,” an obituary for Sewell said. “She was a very active lady who thoroughly enjoyed life and will be missed by all who knew her.”
Mourners gathered outside a funeral home in north Toronto before a service for Sewell began. Others signed a book of condolences just inside the lobby of the funeral home.
The parking lot of the funeral home was full, the flag outside flying at half mast.
A funeral for 83-year-old Geraldine Brady, another victim of the van attack, was held at the same funeral home later on Tuesday.
A friend has said Brady — a grandmother who was known as Gerry to her family and friends — sold Avon products for more than 45 years and was still going out to visit customers up until her death.
Other victims of last week’s van attack have already been laid to rest.
Loved ones held a private funeral for Munir Najjar at a Toronto church on Sunday. The 85-year-old Jordanian man was in town to visit family when he was killed.
“The family wished it to be private, so we did not invite everybody,” said Harry Malawi, president of the Canadian Jordanian Society.
The service went well, Malawi said, describing it as “heartwarming.”
“After this horrible tragedy, it eased the pain,” Malawi said of the funeral and a public vigil for the 10 victims that followed it hours later.
The family plans to repatriate Najjar’s body to Jordan, Malawi said.
Betty Forsyth, a 94-year-old described as a “lively person” who took regular walks through her neighbourhood, feeding the birds and squirrels along the way, will be cremated privately, according to her obituary.
Her remains will be interred in a family plot in England.
In addition to the 10 deaths, 16 people were injured in the van attack. Two large makeshift memorials have sprung up where people were struck, with flowers, candles and messages in multiple languages.
Alek Minassian, 25, of Richmond Hill, is charged with 10 counts of first-degree murder and 13 counts of attempted murder. More charges are expected.