Our beloved Carmen has set off on her next adventure. Wife, daughter, sister, aunt, friend, colleague, Carmen blessed us all with her presence. Her generosity, kindness—her fun-loving-up-for-anything-ness—made her irresistible. Despite failing health, she never lost those qualities. Yes, Carmen was a force. And she powered through her illness in inimitable Carmen style. If you know the song “Here’s To Life” by Shirley Horn, you’ll remember the lines: “As long as I’m still in the game/I want to play/For laughs, for life, for love.” That was certainly Carmen’s approach this past year. She loved to plan lunches, dinners, drinks (shout-out to the Bamboo Lounge), road trips, afternoons at the beach, walks in the forest, even a helicopter tour. She was, in effect, surrounding herself with the people she loved. She showed us how it’s done. Her final triumph? A heroic exit. Off she went. Her terms. Her way. Our darling Carmen. Lionheart. “Here’s to life. Here’s to love. Here’s to you.”
Thanks again to family and friends for all the love and support. We are also grateful for the exceptional medical care Carmen received from BC Cancer and the Saanich Peninsula Hospital. Special thanks to Dr. Milivi Tiislar and dear friends Nikki Moyles and Robyn Smith.
Memorial contributions may be made to BC Cancer or Make-A-Wish Canada. In keeping with Carmen’s wishes, we will scatter her ashes in East Sooke Park on February 3rd (weather permitting). Join us in June to celebrate Carmen’s life. Details for both events to follow.
Condolences may be offered to the family below.
McCall Gardens
www.mccallgardens.com
26 Responses
Life rarely gives us the gift of someone like Carmen. Her passion for life and living it to the fullest on her terms is a lesson for all. Her light and energy will be her lasting celebration of life that will guide us all.
Love Dan and Marlene
Demetri,
Our heartfelt condolences to you, the family and to those who knew her. To know Carmen was to love her. She had a special gift of seeing you for you and made you feel accepted and seen. She brought so many people together, who from knowing her formed life long friendships. I was one of the lucky ones to be able to call her a friend and will forever be grateful to have known her. I will miss you Carm, rest in peace my friend.
As our lives intersected over the decades…your laugh and love of life affected all those who surrounded you. May you find peace now and may your family be held up with prayers, love and the great memories you made with them. Hugs and love….Sandi-Jo
Carmen, I only got to enjoy but a brief part of your beautiful life, but it was the springtime of our years and we celebrated it with vigor. Always to be remembered fondly, rest easy.
Our life paths crossed briefly in the grand scheme of it all, but Carmen left me with warm memories that I am grateful for and blessed her soul crossed into my life if only for a fleeting moment.
Carmen was such a beautiful soul and I considered her more a sister than a friend. She was such a big part of my life. I am forever grateful for our friendship, conversations and adventures and all the years we had together. She taught me how to two-step, which we did together when our country song came on. One of her many qualities that I always admired, was how she made people feel. She accepted everyone and made them feel like they belonged and that they were special, which I witnessed time and again throughout our friendship. It was beautiful! She was a true friend and an inspiration in so many ways. Forever in my heart, until we meet again, my friend.
My condolences to Demitri, Fred, Gayle and family. My heart goes out to you.
Carmen you will always have a special place in my heart. You made everyone around you feel special. You would reach out countless times to include me. You never gave up on me even though I couldn’t join you all the time. I’d tell you how much that meant to me and you would say “ of course sista”.
Like so many other people you touched, I was blessed to have you apart of my life. Thank you beautiful lady.
I love you and will miss you.
My dearest friend Carmen Kama I don’t want to say Goodbye so I will say see you later. I wanted to be you when I was growing up. You were the most beautiful woman I had ever seen in my entire life. I looked up to you. Thank you for always being there for my dad Ron. Helping us get through the hard times of him being a single parent, and me being the daughter of his single parentness. You taught me about being a girl, and explaining all that stuff to me. My life will never be the same without you here on Earth with all of us. But I understand and respect your decision. I am thankful that you’ve had the love of your husband, and all of your extended family and friends. With all of my love, I love you and will miss you always. love Zoe
Carmen was such a light in my life. She was always someone who I could count on for a laugh and a shoulder I could cry on if I needed one. I will miss “jogging” beside her on our walks, such a good workout for me to keep up with her long legs and effortless strides. She thrived in nature with all the beauty it held for her, and it was awesome to experience those kinds of things through her eyes. Whether it was amongst the trees, the ocean at our toes, hanging out in the bamboo lounge or at the Ascot hot tub back in the day, she just made great moments even better. I loved her sense of adventure and her never ending quests to find the next amazing place to find for all of us to hang out. The ultimate social butterfly, Carmen was able to knit together a large group of friends that through her “Carmen-ness” made our friendships stronger as well, which I will always be grateful for. Sending my love and condolences to you Demetri, Fred, Gayle, extended family, and all of Carmen’s many friends.
It has been an honor my beautiful friend, I love you and miss you. See you on the other side Sista xo
I’m at a loss. I have lost two sisters ( and I feel as though Carmen was my sister) within a very short period of time. There will now be an empty spot in my heart where Carmen once resided. Our history started as roommates… but she ended up as a person who helped me with raising my daughter Zoe, a person who pulled me into her circles of friends, a person who could be honest with me and talk about any topic, a person whom I could vent with ( and visa versa), a person who with I shared many laughs, smiles, … and a few tears. Besides being the best social conveyor I’ve ever known… she had one of the largest hearts I’ve ever known. I admired her beauty, intelligence, and independence. Even though we have seen considerably less of each other over the past decade, there was no gap in our friendship. She was a sister from another mother. And I’ll miss her as such. I also wish to send thanx to Dimitri for looking after her and for letting her be who she was. My deepest condolences. The world will not be the same without her.