Dr. Joseph Kiss, born September 8, 1929 passed away at the age of 94 on September 26, 2023 after battling Alzheimer’s Disease for the last five years. Known as Jocó, Apu and Nagypapa, Joe’s early life was spent in a small rural village in Hungary. He went to high school in the neighbouring town and attended the University of Pécs, obtaining his medical degree. In 1956 he and his best friend, Andor Keleman, made the brave decision to leave Hungary during the revolution and try to make a new life in Canada. Their escape took them through many countries and eventually they both landed in Edmonton, Alberta. Joe made a move to Montreal where he became a teaching radiologist at McGill University while working at the Montreal General Hospital. It was there that he met Christine, his medical secretary, who would soon become his wife. They started a life together in Montreal and had their firstborn son Andy before moving to Victoria in 1972. Two years later, Joanna was born and they lived in their family home on Redwood Avenue until September 2020.
Joe was passionate, animated, intelligent, and highly skilled in black and white photography. He enjoyed reading, dinner parties, red wine, good food, gardening, opera, going to museums, classical music and dancing with Christine. They travelled the world with their children, which included several trips to his home village of Juta. He was very proud of his children and grandchildren and always encouraged them to work hard, enjoy life and remember their roots.
He will be deeply missed by all those who have fond memories of him. Joe is predeceased by his mother and father, best friend Andor Keleman, and wife Christine (2021.) He leaves behind his son Andor (Andy), daughter-in-law Rachael, grandson Oscar; daughter Joanna, son-in-law Scott, and grandchildren Angus and Lola.
A special thank you to the staff in Fir Cottage at The Priory LTC home for the love, patience and care that was provided in the last two years of his life.
A small private celebration of life will be held at a later date. In lieu of flowers, donations can be made to the Victoria Alzheimer’s Society https://alzheimer.ca/bc or the Victoria Hospitals Foundation https://www.victoriahf.ca/
Condolences may be offered to the family below.
McCall Gardens
www.mccallgardens.com
16 Responses
This week I learned of Joe’s passing from Richard Mark
What can I say about Joe….
Larger than life, expansive interests, who brought a bit of the larger world to his work and life and to all of us who knew him.
Was honoured to know and work with him.
When he retired, I was lucky enough to occupy his former office at VGH…. So I always felt that I was exposed to a little bit of his spirit every day.
I am a retired Family Doctor, but interacted with Joe many times in the Radiology suites at the hospital. Joe was thoughtful, caring, and wise in all of my dealings with him. He was an individual you just looked forward to meeting with. As a family you have every right to be very proud of Joe. I am so sorry for your loss.
Joe was such a pleasure to work with. He was one of the most enthusiastic people I knew – always excited about something, and very, very concerned about doing things the right and most modern way. He always supported innovations in radiology. Even after he retired he had a great interest in learning about the latest developments. I also really enjoyed discussing photography with him, and learned a great deal from him. He was very kind to me, and I really enjoyed his company – “one of a kind”.
I worked with Dr. Joe Kiss from 1990 until his retirement. I loved his enthusiasm for radiology, and for life. He was a great mentor for me.
Unforgettable!!
I worked with Dr. kiss for many years until his retirement. He was such a hard working man. Enjoyed listening to his stories of his life, in Hungary, his garden, his photography and recommendations of good wines. He was well respected in his profession. I am thankful for the time I got to work along side him in angio. Rest in peace, well deserved. My condolences to his family.
I worked with Joe for many years in the Medical Imaging Departments in Victoria. He was, to me, a teacher, a colleague,and most importantly, a friend. I loved talking to Joe about anything, whether it was a CT scan, his Ansel Adams style photography, his garden, or a bargain Hungarian wine. He had such a “joie de vivre” about him and it was sad to see the sparkle leave his eyes as he struggled with his disease. Rest in peace, Joe.