Stanislaw Ignakiewicz passed away peacefully on March 17, 2020 at his home at the age of 79. He was a beloved Dad (Tatus) of Malgosia (Dan) DeAngelis and amazing grandfather (Dziadziu) to Kayla and Luca. He was a loving brother to his dearest Krystyna, who tirelessly cared for him and until the end was by his side like his angel on earth. Her love and devotion for him was unsurpassed. Stan was also a wonderful brother-in-law to Anna and Francois Bouchacourt. He leaves behind his nieces Ella (Andrzej) and Ania (Mariusz), his nephews Alek (Magdalena), Robert (Elzbieta), Jacek (Agata), and Zbyszek (Beata) and their children. As well as Lisa (Joe) DeAngelis, Olivia, Jackson, Isabella and Sophia who will miss him dearly. He is predeceased by his loving wife Lidia Ignakiewicz (2017), his parents Maria (2011) and Michal (1993) Ignakiewicz, and his sister Michalina (1982).

Stan was born in Lezajsk, Poland in 1940 during World War II. While serving time in the army, he was taking a crowded bus that allowed space for military but not civilians. He spotted a young lady with her mother trying to get on the bus and told the driver that they were his wife and mother in law in order to make space for her. It turned out that he ended up marrying his beautiful Lidia for the next 51 years until she passed away in 2017. They travelled the world together, did everything as a team, and even through all her health battles, he always stood by her side until the very end.

Together they only had one daughter, but she was the apple of his eye. Despite a lengthy immigration process that kept him apart from his daughter and wife for 10 months, he worked two jobs to support them in Austria during this stressful time. He became a mechanic and build his business “Crankshaft Service and Supplies Ltd” into a reputable automotive shop. His personality was very magnetic. He made so many friends over the years, helped so many people in any way he could, went out of his way to solve everyone’s problems and fix anything in sight. If you had something wrong, he had the tool and solution for it. Not to mention, he had a unique sense of humour. As he would tell the grandkids “Dziadziu joke”. He was passionate about fishing. He loved boating and enjoyed watching car races. He knew everything about everything.

As a Dad, he taught his daughter Malgosia so many things. Her early memories included ski lessons on a pile of sand on a playground, driving instructions at the airport parking lot, and endless hours trying to catch fish. He shared his passion for travelling with her, as he had an unbelievable sense of direction and zest for seeing the world. He introduced her to many sports and always encouraged her participation in athletic endeavours even in the recent years.

He loved his daughter, son in law Dan, granddaughter Kayla and grandson Luca immensely. He was so proud of each and every one of them. To have known Stan was to have known every story about his family’s accomplishments, achievements and successes. Even in his wallet he always carried multiple photos of the family to show everyone he met. Dziadziu was the driver, the storyteller, the “best Polish runner”, and the one who attended all the activities and events for his grandchildren when they were young. He loved spending time with his family.

Stan was a very strong, courageous man with a passion for life and perseverance through hardships. He fought a tough battle with liver cancer over the course of the last three years. He wanted to live to be part of his family because he loved all of them so much. In turn, he will always live in our hearts forever. We love you Tatus and Dziadziu!

A special thank you goes out to his amazing sister Krystyna, his wonderful palliative doctor, Dr. David Caplan, his surgeon Dr. Gonzalo Sapisochin, his other doctors Dr. Fung and Dr. Kachura, all nurses and staff of Toronto General Hospital, and the homecare staff. Your great care and expertise were greatly appreciated.

Due to the current COVIT19 situation, the family of Stanislaw Ignakiewicz has been directed not to hold any visitations. Regretfully, we are also unable to proceed with regular funeral mass nor interment of cremated remains at the cemetery at this time. Therefore, we will be holding a private ceremony at the Skinner and Middlebrook Funeral Home for immediate family only. As much as we would like to have the support of family and friends and be in your presence at this time, we have to hold off on any gatherings until the global situation improves. We will hold a memorial mass in the future. We thank you for all your caring messages.

Any donations can be made to Dana Farber Cancer Institute Marathon Challenge – “support a runner” under Malgosia DeAngelis. His daughter’s next marathon in Boston will have even deeper meaning, since he is the one who motivated her to push her athletic limits and reach for the stars.