GISMONDI, Patricia

Patricia Gismondi (nee Nolan) 

Mrs. Patricia Gismondi, of St. Elizabeth Village, Hamilton, passed away early Saturday evening, November 22, 2025, peacefully at home. A few weeks shy of her 98th birthday, Pat was accompanied by her family and caregivers, as was her final wish. She was born on January 1, 1928, in Hamilton, as the third child to Peter and Rose Nolan.

Patricia was preceded in death by her beloved husband Tony Gismondi in 1993; brothers and sisters-in-law Peter & Jeanne Nolan, Joe, John & Donna, Paul & Marianne, Philip, and Rose Nolan; sister and brother-in-law Mona & Joe Mattiaci; brother-in-law Albert Santucci; brothers and sisters-in-law Joe & Violet, Paul, Mario & Lois, John & Betty, and Angelo Gismondi; and grandson David Gismondi.

She is survived by her older sister, Rosemary Santucci, and sisters-in-law, Jean Nolan, Donna Nolan and Carmel Gismondi.

Pat was a devoted and loving mom to Michael (Lori-Ann Claerhout) of Athabasca, Alberta; Anthony (Shelagh Flaherty) of West Vancouver, British Columbia; and Susan (Michael Goodwin) of College Station, Texas; cherished grandma to Michael (Sarah), Elin, Matthew (Emily), and great grandmother to Adelie, Ewen, Lachlan, Emmett and Graham in Regina, Saskatchewan and Luca in North Vancouver, British Columbia. Mom often exclaimed how her children’s great successes took them far from her, and she wrote, called, and visited frequently in her early retirement years. In turn, she would always have a pot of Scotch broth on the stove the day before any of us arrived. Later, her greatest joys were in seeing those familiar faces arrive at the door.

One of eight proudly Scottish children of the late Peter and Rose (Campbell) Nolan, Pat knew how to keep the family close. As a child, she went to school a year early to keep her (then shy) older brother Pete from being lonely: and stayed, eventually graduating from Westdale at 15 years of age, a year early. As an adult, Pat’s devotion came in the form of making sure that the monthly siblings-and-spouses euchre games carried on among the sixteen of them. Pat’s numerous nieces remember special days “just with the girls” when they got to try on her many bangles and maybe take one home. Nephews recall Aunt Pat’s Halloween fudge. Her grandchildren recount splashing around in the backyard pool on hot days with Grandma Pat and Grandpa Tony.

The annual Campbell Family Picnic at Dundas Driving Park was much anticipated and never missed by Pat; in recent years, it involved ticketed attendance, organized games, and a 50-50 draw. It always included lots and lots of cousins. Christmas was a time for everyone to be together around a potluck-offered food-laden table, with her brothers jostling for top spot as best Scottish dumpling maker, and the annual Children’s Family Christmas Party with Pat, song sheet in hand, leading the sing-alongs. When it came to family gatherings, Tony liked to say, “You know your mother… she is always one of the first to arrive and last one to leave.” She loved her family.

Pat was active in the community through her volunteerism. A long-standing member of the Catholic Women’s League at Canadian Martyrs, in her middle years, Pat was a dedicated administrative volunteer for Rygiel Home for Children, and in retirement, she kept the Ronald McDonald House office shipshape and spent afternoons helping out with her sister Rosemary at the St Joseph’s Villa Tuck Shop, or at McMaster where as a gerontology class volunteer, she gave students the low down on life as a senior.

A very organized administrator, Pat helped set up the McMaster Student Union at Wentworth House in the 1960s, then moved to Mulberry Street to manage the administrative staff at Hamilton Wentworth Catholic District School Board. There, until her retirement in 1990, she worked closely with James Hansen on abilities-inclusive classrooms.

Patricia was a staunch Hamilton booster. As a loyal Spectator subscriber, she read it stem to stern unto her last days (the paper version!). Pat stayed engaged with what was going on in the Hamilton community by watching weekly Cable 4 council meetings, listening to the news on CHML, and attending the Tiger-Cats games with Tony and her cousin Rose and Bob. Not surprisingly, she constantly protested those who called her hometown the “Hammer,” and enjoyed a Horton’s coffee and honey cruller until her last days.

Pat spent 21 peaceful senior years at St. Elizabeth Village, where she made new friends and neighbours, co-existed with the geese, and introduced herself as “the crab on Father Biro Trail” each time she called the office to complain about the goose droppings, slow snow removal, and loud grass maintenance, once joking that they must have had a red siren light go off when her number came up on the phone. She kept things in order.

Pat lived her 97 years fully, and leaves many memories for all of us. We all miss her dearly and with affection, including numerous nieces, nephews, cousins, neighbours, and friends.

Sincere thanks go out to the wonderful and caring staff at Right at Home, especially Michelle Robinson (mom’s personal “MacGyver,” and steadfast friend and companion in her last years), and Dr. Coull at St. Elizabeth Village.

It brings the family peace knowing that Pat is reunited with Tony after so many years.

Cremation has occurred and a celebration of life is planned for Spring 2026.