Villa Charities 2018 Annual Report VC19_AnnualReport_Interiors_Apr29_FNL2 | Page 54

“
His guidance
meant a lot to
all of us.”
villa colombo
vaughan profi le
- Mary LaRocca,
VCV Volunteer
Villa Colombo Vaughan (VCV) prepared
in 2018 to bid farewell to one of its most
devoted and admired supporters and
caregivers, Father Gerolamo Raff aele
Bruzzone, or Father Ralph as he is known.
Father Ralph began volunteering at VCV
following his retirement in 2009, offering
residents spiritual care and celebratory
mass on Sundays. During his time at
VCV, he came to recognize the importance
to seniors of simple gestures such as
shaking hands.
“Seniors and the sick are the people Jesus
left for me to care for, love and support in
the last years of my priesthood,” says
Father Ralph, who returned on April 10,
2019 to Savona, Italy, where he was born.
“I am grateful for the opportunity to
go back to Italy, but a precious gift is
taken away from me – the presence of
the residents.”
“His guidance meant a lot to all of us” says
volunteer Mary LaRocca. “He wrote a
paper of life lessons to remind everyone
that resident care is our first priority.
I took that to heart. That feeling of
making a difference in someone’s life
is so rewarding.”
With his return to Italy, Father Ralph’s
life journey will have come full circle
after a career of service on both sides
of the Atlantic and postings in
several communities. Fortunately for
VCV residents, retirement led him
to serve them.
When asked to share a reflection with
others searching for their life purpose,
Father Ralph responded, “People should
look within themselves first in order to
understand what they want to achieve in
life and, little by little, they will be able to
put the pieces together.”
Joseph Gulizia, President and CEO of
UniversalCare, the operator of VCV, says
Father Ralph’s presence at VCV will be felt
deeply even after his return to Italy. “The
contribution made by Father Ralph will be
everlasting due to his unwavering
commitment to the residents’ spiritual
wellbeing,” Gulizia says. “He has given his
time unselfishly and unconditionally.”
The truth is, Father Ralph really never
retired. Instead, he continued to care for
and support VCV residents and families,
and to assist other volunteers.
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VILLA CHARITIES
ANNUAL REPORT
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