Obituary of Mr. Yusuf Hizel

March 21 1931 Çanakkale Türkiye – April 29 2023 Toronto

Yusuf or Joe, as he was known by all Toronto friends, passed away peacefully at the age of 92 in Sunnybrook’s Palliative Care unit following a stroke.  He leaves behind his loving wife Emine of almost 56 years, daughter Selma (Matthew Onyschuk) and grandchildren Daniel, Esra, & Joshua.  He was a loving brother to two younger sisters still residing in Türkiye and a wonderful uncle to his nieces and a nephew.

Joe was a proud man of his Turkish heritage and will be most remembered for his kind, gentle disposition and generosity towards his family and friends.  After retiring from Canada Post in 1996 he became an active member and volunteer in his Scarborough Agincourt community and began to focus on fitness by making use of the facilities offered by the City.  He was a lifelong runner and at the age of 79 became a reluctant celebrity when he quickly ran after 2 young men who mugged him on the subway.  Thinking they had an easy target on their hands, the thugs didn’t realize the very senior who they mugged got up off the ground and chased after them right up to the platform.  TTC cameras caught the whole thing and Joe was interviewed on many media outlets while enjoying his 15 minutes of fame!

Joe had an immense love of Music and Performing Arts.  He and Emine attended the Opera, Ballet, symphonies and Grossman’s Tavern jazz club on a regular basis.  He enjoyed playing backgammon, doing puzzles, reading, playing bridge, cruising and eating good meals with lots of dipping sauce. 

He will be greatly missed by all those whose who knew and loved him.

A celebration of life will be held on Wednesday May 10, 2023 from 2- 4 p.m. at Ogden Funeral Home 4164 Sheppard Ave. E Scarborough.

Donations in Yusuf’s memory are appreciated and may be made to Make a Wish Foundation.