Obituary of Mr. Nisan Sismanoglu

OBITUARY

Nisan Sismanoglu

March 20,1926 – DecemBER 9,2020

Big-hearted, sincere, honest, hard-working, inquisitive and determined until the very end, Nisan Sismanoglu left this world on December 9, 2020 peacefully at his home in Toronto, Canada in the presence of his loving family.

Beloved husband of 50 years to Archalous Sismanoglu, father to Annie Sismanian (André Choquet) and grandfather to Alexandre and Mathieu. Predeceased by siblings Vahan, Tackouhi and Repeka and a cherished uncle to his nieces and nephews and their families in Switzerland, Turkey and New York.  

Nisan was born and grew up in Sivas, Turkey.  His father, Oskihan passed away when Nisan was only 5 years old, leaving his mother Aghavni to take care of the family. As the eldest son, Nisan felt that it was his duty to be the “patriarch” and took it upon himself to look after his household and ensure the success of not only his direct family, but the extended family members as well. 

His mother attempted to have him apprentice with a tailor, but to no avail, as Nisan had his own thoughts.  He got himself enrolled in a technical school and trained as a machinist/tool & die maker.  After serving in the Turkish army for two years, the family moved to Istanbul where his brother Vahan and him (who he loved dearly), worked in their respective trades.  Life as an Armenian in Turkey was not easy, as he was often treated like a second-class citizen and so the 2 brothers decided that it was best for them to emigrate to Europe so that their future offspring could have better opportunities.

Nisan and Vahan left Turkey in 1961 and worked in several European countries including Austria and Germany, before settling in Zurich, Switzerland where they stayed for several years.  In 1967, Nisan decided that he wanted to emigrate to Canada and with only a few dollars in his pocket and little knowledge of the English language, moved to Toronto where there was a strong need for skilled trades.  In May of 1970, he married Archalous whom he was introduced to earlier that year in Montreal.  In 1973 he successfully opened up his own machine shop where he worked tirelessly until his retirement in 1999.

Nisan often told stories of his childhood and youth and was proud of his heritage as an Armenian from Turkey (commonly referred to as “Bolsahay”, in the Armenian community) and relentlessly advocated for recognition of the Armenian Genocide and the rights of the Armenian minority in Turkey.  His command of the Turkish language was impeccable, and he wrote countless letters to every Turkish and Canadian politician, newspaper and author he could reach to try and have his voice heard about these societal and historical matters that he held dear to his heart.  He was an expert at backgammon and enjoyed listening to music and dancing.  He spent his spare time reading every book that he could get his hands on, with the focus being Ottoman and Armenian history.  He loved having his family around him as much as possible and in the last few years, you could tell, he was happiest when surrounded by his grandchildren and was thrilled when family came to visit or was at an extended family gathering.

Nisan set an example on how to live our lives and taught us to live boldly, speak up, do our duty, and follow our convictions. He believed in devoting life to working hard, building strong relationships with friends and family and giving back to the community/helping those less fortunate.

We thank our extended family, neighbours, and friends who were there for him, especially in the last few weeks of his life, including Victor (his neighbour of 40 years) and his sister-in-law, Maro (“Baldizim” as he liked to call her) as well as the staff of St. Elizabeth Home Support Services.

Whether we called him Nisan, “պապի (Babi)”, “Dede”, Kerayr, “Ammo”, “Dayi”, “Baron Nisan”, "Dedo" or friend, we have all been blessed with his presence in our lives.  He led an eventful, brave and full life. We are grateful for the experiences he gave us and the steady hand that guided us.  He will be missed terribly, but he has left us all with wonderful memories to make us smile.

A funeral mass will be held on Tuesday, December 15^th, 2020 at Holy Trinity Armenian Church in Toronto, followed by the burial at York Cemetery.  Due to Covid restrictions, both services will be private events for family members only.

In lieu of flowers, donations may be made to either Holy Trinity Armenian Church https://www.paypal.com/cgi-bin/webscr?cmd=_s-xclick&hosted_button_id=ZQ2SH86SUA3D4, or to The Hayastan Foundation, Toronto through the official Canada Helps website https://www.canadahelps.org/en/charities/hayastan-foundation-toronto-inc/.  (Please ensure to note “In Memory of Nisan Sismanoglu”)