VRAKKING
VRANESIC
VRANIC
VRANJES
VRAZINOFF
VRAKKING o@ca.on.middlesex_county.london.london_free_press 2006-02-13 published
VRAKKING,
John "
Jan"
At London Health Sciences Centre, University Hospital on Sunday,
February 12, 2006 John (Jan)
VRAKKING in his 91st year. Beloved
husband of Wilhelmina (Willy)
VRAKKING.
Much loved dad of Trudy
(Truusje) and her husband Manfred
VON
WISTINGHAUSEN.
Opa to Peter,
Patrick (Lynne), Christine and Kirk. Father of John
VRAKKING
Jr. and Rita
SCHUHMACHER.
Father-in-law of Ada
VRAKKING. Opa
of Jan-Willem, Jasper, Jeroen, Kateri, Heidi, Elke and great
grandfather of five. Visitors will be received at John T. Donohue
Funeral Home, 362 Waterloo Street at King Street, on Tuesday
morning from 11 o'clock until the time of the funeral service
at 12 noon. Interment in Woodland Cemetery.
V... Names VR... Names VRA... Names Welcome Home
VRAKKING - All Categories in OGSPI
VRANESIC o@ca.on.york_county.toronto.toronto_star 2006-02-13 published
Leslie WITT, 72: Chess 'superstar'
Received carved set from Fidel Castro
By Catherine
DUNPHY,
Obituary
Writer
Leslie WITT never talked about the time he beat Bobby Fischer
at his own game -- but others did for years afterwards.
It was 1964 and the chess world's greatest prodigy had not yet
knocked out Russian great Boris Spassky from his world domination,
but the 19-year-old was still a huge chess star and all of Montreal's
and Toronto's chess players were thrilled when he showed up for
some exhibition matches.
His first day in Montreal, Fischer was subjected to a vapid television
interview. He hated being asked questions about dating; he actually
hated talking about anything other than chess but the highlight
of the show was the one-minute chess match he played against
WITT, then the city's best player as well as a member of the
Canadian Olympic chess team.
Fischer was -- naturally -- confident. He'd already played two
exhibition games -- one in which he faced 56 people at once,
beating them all, the other where he took on 10 players with
clocks. They were better players but Fischer completed his 40
moves in under two hours, winning every game.
He could be forgiven for thinking he had another easy ride ahead.
WITT, a Hungarian émigré, was unprepossessing -- an affable,
smiling man who earned his living as a television repairman,
not particularly tall, a little on the pudgy side.
"But Les was one of the speediest players I have ever seen,"
recalled Denis
ALLAN, an assistant Crown attorney in Hamilton
who was a young chess player at the time. "Not only could he
think fast, but the speed with which he could move his hands
was incredible. Bobby was not happy about losing. He made that
clear."
Much later that night everybody got together at the Boulevard
Club, where chess was played seven days a week, and Fischer and
WITT faced off for about a dozen five-minute games.
"Bobby cleaned him out,"
ALLAN recalled. "Leslie won maybe one,
but even one game is pretty good. Bobby Fischer was a genius."
But WITT was pretty darn good as well: a four-time Montreal chess
champion, three-time winner of the Montreal Closed Championship,
winner of the Quebec Provincial Championship, the Ontario Provincial
Championship and, in 1962, the Canadian Open Chess Championship,
held that year in Ottawa, with a perfect score of 9-0.
He was a member of the Canadian chess Olympic team at the 1964
Olympiad held in Tel Aviv, the 1966 Olympiad in Havana and the
1970 event in Germany.
"I remember the Tel Aviv Olympiad because it was the first time
the Canadian team made the A group -- the top two teams," said
Zvonko VRANESIC, a University of Toronto professor who often
played WITT. In the '60s he and
WITT were vying for the country's
top spot.
"They were the two superstars," said Toronto Star chess columnist
Lawrence DAY. "It was a great rivalry."
Both men were representing Canada when Cuban leader Fidel Castro,
a big chess fan, pulled out all the stops for the Olympiad in
Havana -- putting them up in the best hotel, even opening the
event himself playing an exhibition match with the ubiquitous
Fischer. Castro presented each player with a gorgeous wooden
chess set, in a splendid carved box.
In 1969, WITT won a Brilliancy Prize in the Canadian Closed tournament.
That same year he was named an International Master, which is
one rank below Grand Master.
Laszlo WITT was born in Budapest, where chess is respected and
popular, and the best chess players accorded the accolades reserved
for hockey players in North America. He began playing the game
at age 8 and tournaments when 15. By 17, he was the premier player
for the Hungarian junior national team.
He was in Vienna for a tournament during the three weeks in October
and November of 1956 of the Hungarian Revolution. His wife, Viola,
and 4½-year-old daughter, Sylvia, had not been permitted to accompany
him to the tournament. "We were collateral," said Sylvia
SANKEY,
now a stage manager who lives in Winnipeg.
Jews who had pretended to be Christians since the war when most
of the family's male relatives -- including
WITT's father --
were taken to Auschwitz concentration camp where they perished,
they quickly decided to flee the country. Mother and daughter
crossed the border to Austria to the sounds of Russians shooting
on one side and Germans on the other. For three weeks they had
hid out in farmhouses and fields.
They were taken to refugee camp outside Vienna where they were
eventually reunited with
WITT.
They left for Italy and the ocean
voyage to Halifax, where one of
WITT's six sisters lived, moving
to Montreal in 1957.
They lived in a walk-up on the Main in the heart of the émigré
chess-playing community.
SANKEY remembers them always sitting at her parents' kitchen
table playing chess with her father, all men, all in their 20s
and 30s, slapping the button on the top of the clocks.
She and her mother never did really learn to play the game, but
SANKEY grasped quickly that she had to be "quiet, quiet, quiet"
so her father and his Friends could play. "I would read or go
and watch television in the other room. It was just a part of
life, coming home to see who ever happened to be in the kitchen
playing chess with daddy. It was the norm," she said.
And yet by the time the family all moved to Toronto in the late
'70s, WITT had all but retreated from the chess scene. In Toronto
and Montreal it was no longer dominated by the émigré master
a new generation of home-grown talent had emerged under their
tutelage.
Current top-rated Canadian Kevin
SPRAGGETT was moving up fast.
"He beat WITT in 1979 for the Montreal championship and that
was the changing of the guard," said
DAY.
WITT was a very private man who simply slipped out of the world
of chess. Few questioned it -- chess had become an increasingly
young person's game.
"When you've played the game at such a high level, climbing down
is difficult,"
VRANESIC said. "People just quit instead. I think
that's what probably happened in this case."
WITT took up painting and backgammon in the '80s and in the last
few years frequently went to Casino Rama for poker games.
Before he died at 72 on December 27, his daughter found his easel
and paints in the Scarborough townhouse he had shared with a
young couple -- as well as the chess set from Havana.
"You know it was kind of sad," said
ALLAN, the lawyer. "
WITT's
death was mentioned on an international chess chat room and it
got no comments. I guess people just don't know him anymore."
V... Names VR... Names VRA... Names Welcome Home
VRANESIC - All Categories in OGSPI
VRANIC o@ca.on.york_county.toronto.globe_and_mail 2006-07-18 published
Otto SIREK,
Endocrinologist (1921-2006)
He was one of the last surviving scientists who worked with Charles
BEST, the co-discoverer of insulin
By Carol COOPER,
Special to the Globe and Mail, Page S9
Aurora, Ontario -- Otto
SIREK's
Friends joked that the year of
his birth determined his future. The endocrinologist was born
in 1921, the year insulin was discovered. But it was his ability,
not his birthday, that led to Doctor
SIREK's postdoctoral fellowship
with Charles
BEST.
Recruited by the co-discoverer of insulin
to join his lab, the Czechoslovak native came to Canada, along
with his wife, Anna, then a pediatric surgeon.
The SIREKs' year-long stay became permanent, as did Otto
SIREK's
study of diabetes. With Doctor
BEST as his personal and professional
mentor and his wife as his research partner for more than 30 years,
Dr. SIREK published more than 100 papers, many of them co-authored
with Anna. He was one of the last surviving scientists who worked
with Doctor
BEST and, like him, became internationally renowned.
When the
SIREKs arrived in Toronto on a snowy April day in 1950,
Dr. BEST served as both the head of the department of physiology
at the University of Toronto and the faculty of medicine's Banting
and Best Department of Medical Research.
While Anna
SIREK undertook research at the Hospital for Sick
Children, her husband worked with Doctor
BEST. By 1953, Doctor
BEST
and Doctor
SIREK had contributed definitive knowledge to the understanding
of diabetes: Before their studies, many scientists believed that
insulin was the sole hormone responsible for physical growth
and that all other hormones involved worked through the agency
of insulin. The pair proved that, while insulin needed to be
present for physical growth, some hormones, such as testosterone
and growth hormone, acted independently of it.
The SIREKs, meanwhile, had put down roots and, at Doctor
BEST's
insistence, stayed in Canada. On his recommendation, they purchased
a house 10 minutes from the university and around the corner
from him. They lived there for 50 years.
Proximity to the University of Toronto helped with Doctor
BEST's
next suggestion.
Dr. SIREK's studies involved dogs in which hormonal deficiencies
were created by the surgical removal of the pancreas and pituitary
gland. Colleagues joked about his lack of surgical skills, so
Dr. BEST brought in someone who had them.
Breaking the rules that said husband and wife could not hold
positions in the same faculty or department, Doctor
BEST insisted
that Anna SIREK work with her husband. Carrying out research
as her husband's equal as well as operating on the dogs, Anna
slipped home to have lunch with their four children.
Playing on the original pronunciation of the couple's surname,
shirek, Friends sometimes referred to the pair as Herek and Sherek.
"He was a good partner for life," Anna
SIREK said. "He would
share the work of the children. My husband supported me in every
way I could have been supported."
The couple proved the only correct method to measure blood insulin
levels was by the specific laboratory method called radioimmunoassay
studied the relationship between pituitary growth hormone and
release of insulin and glucagon, the hormones which control the
blood sugar levels in the body; and the cardiovascular complication
of diabetes.
Along with Mladen
VRANIC, the pair determined that removal of
the pituitary gland led to normal glucose production by the liver,
linking one aspect of the high blood sugar with the pituitary
gland.
On the birth of their first child, Ann, Doctor
BEST advised the
SIREKs that, if they raised their child properly, papers written
by SIREK,
SIREK and
SIREK would eventually be published. One
was.
Otto SIREK met Anna when both attended the same school in Bratislava,
then in Czechoslovakia but now the capital of Slovakia. Otakar
Viktor SIREK was born in that city, the only child of a land
surveyor from Moravia and a woman from Vienna.
One of the girls became class president, with Doctor
SIREK as leader
of the opposition. Their political rivalry and keen competition
for top marks became Friendship, and then love, as Anna and Otakar
proceeded together through high school and then medical school
at Comenius University in Bratislava. They graduated in 1946.
An award for top marks was offered by the president of Czechoslovakia.
As it happened, both Otakar and Anna were equally deserving.
The dilemma was solved by the university's rector, who suggested
that, since in old Roman law husband and wife were regarded as
one person, they should marry so both could receive the award.
They did. The award included a year of post-graduate study. The
newlyweds moved to Sweden, where Otto
SIREK began his research
in diabetes and Anna
SIREK hers in surgery. With the Communist
takeover of Czechoslovakia in 1948, the couple's families encouraged
them to stay in Sweden, where Doctor
SIREK added the country's language
to his English, German and native Slovak.
He began to publish internationally, attracted Doctor
BEST's attention
and was invited for a fellowship. In a lecture given to the Japan
Diabetes
Association in Tokyo in 1994, Doctor
SIREK described Doctor
BEST
as a dedicated scientist and efficient organizer with little
patience for bureaucratic excesses.
One of Doctor
BEST's favourite expressions, according to Anna
SIREK,
was: "Otto, in your spare time, could you…?"
Under Doctor
BEST,
Doctor
SIREK completed his PhD and began teaching.
Eventually, he became a full professor at the university. Among
other awards, Doctor
SIREK was honoured with the Starr Medal of
the university's faculty of medicine in 1958 and the Charles H.
Best Prize for outstanding work in the field of experimental
diabetes. In addition, he helped start the Canadian Workshop
on Diabetes, a convention on the disease that was held nine times
during 11 years. As well, postdoctoral fellows came to study
with him, and he and his wife held many visiting professorships
in countries such as Israel and Iran.
Otto SIREK retired in 1987. He donated his books and papers to
a university in Shenyang, China, where a library is named for
him.
A humble and deeply religious man, Doctor
SIREK treated everyone
equally and was universally well-liked. He loved opera, attending
live performances and spending Saturday afternoons listening
to it on the Canadian Broadcasting Corporation. He counted among
his Friends Karel
ANCERL, a past conductor of the Toronto Symphony.
In the 1994 Japan lecture, Doctor
SIREK also said: "I feel privileged
that life has given me the opportunity to develop my intellectual
and professional abilities in harmony with my wife, my most faithful
ally. I am immensely grateful to Doctor
BEST for providing an environment
for peaceful and productive work."
Otakar Viktor
SIREK was born in Bratislava, Czechoslovakia, on
December 21, 1921. He died in Toronto on May 5. He leaves his
wife, Anna; children Ann, Jan Peter and Terese; and 10 grandchildren.
V... Names VR... Names VRA... Names Welcome Home
VRANIC - All Categories in OGSPI
VRANJES o@ca.on.york_county.toronto.toronto_star 2006-01-21 published
ULSETH,
Reverend
Lawrence
Christopher
Went to be with the Lord, on Friday, January 20, 2006, at Scarborough
Grace Hospital. Predeceased by his wife Esther on January 27,
2001. Dear father of Darlene (Jerry)
CALLAN of Rome, Georgia,
U.S.A., Betty (Philip)
VRANJES of Derbyshire, England, and Robert
(Robyn) of Lawrenceville, Georgia, U.S.A. Loving grandfather
of Lisa, Cheri, Casey, Isaac, Emilie, Lori, Charles, Jason, and
Mandy, and great-grandfather of Ayla and Wyatt. The family will
receive Friends at the Ogden Funeral Home, 4164 Sheppard Ave.
East, Agincourt (east of Kennedy Rd.), on Monday from 2-4 and
7-9 p.m. Funeral Service Tuesday at 1 p.m. at the Church In The
Village, 3758 Sheppard Ave. East, Agincourt. Interment Highland
Memory Gardens.
V... Names VR... Names VRA... Names Welcome Home
VRANJES - All Categories in OGSPI
VRAZINOFF o@ca.on.york_county.toronto.globe_and_mail 2006-03-18 published
EVANS,
Vassa▼ (née
GIAMOU)
Passed away peacefully at Sunnybrook Hospital, on Thursday, March 16th,
2006, surrounded by her family. Beloved wife of the late Theodore
(1977.) Loving mother of Gloria
CHICULES
(George,▼)
John
(Karen)
and Mary Ann
KOTEFF
(Stan.▼)
Proud▼
Baba▼ of 8 grandchildren and
6 greatgrandchildren. Dear sister-in-law of Jenny
VRAZINOFF.
Vassa will be sadly missed by many nieces, nephews and Friends.
She will be well remembered for her great dedication to the Macedonian
community through her efforts for the Canadian Macedonian Place
and St. George's Macedonian Church. She was recognized as an
Honorary Citizen of the City of Toronto. Friends may visit at
Heritage Funeral Centre, 50 Overlea Blvd 416-423-1000 on Sunday
March 19th from 1 to 9 p.m. Funeral service to be held on Monday
March 20th in the funeral home chapel at 11 a.m. Interment to
follow at Pine Hills Cemetery. In lieu of flowers, donations
to the Canadian Macedonian Place or St. George's Macedonian Church
would be appreciated.
V... Names VR... Names VRA... Names Welcome Home
VRAZINOFF o@ca.on.york_county.toronto.toronto_star 2006-03-18 published
EVANS,
Vassa▲ (née
GIAMOU)
Passed away peacefully, at Sunnybrook Hospital, on Thursday,
March 16, 2006, surrounded by her family. Beloved wife of the
late Theodore (1977.) Loving mother of Gloria
CHICULES
(George,▲)
John (Karen) and Mary Ann
KOTEFF
(Stan.▲)
Proud▲
Baba▲ of 8 grandchildren
and 6 great-grandchildren. Dear sister-in-law of Jenny
VRAZINOFF.
Vassa will be sadly missed by many nieces, nephews and Friends.
She will be well remembered for her great dedication to the Macedonian
community through her efforts for the Canadian Macedonian Place
and St. George's Macedonian Church. She was recognized as an
Honorary Citizen of the City of Toronto. Friends may visit at
Heritage Funeral Centre, 50 Overlea Blvd., 416-423-1000 on Sunday,
March 19th from 1 to 9 p.m. Funeral Service to be held on Monday,
March 20th in the funeral home chapel at 11 a.m. Interment to
follow at Pine Hills Cemetery. In lieu of flowers, donations
to the Canadian Macedonian Place or St. George's Macedonian Church
would be appreciated.
V... Names VR... Names VRA... Names Welcome Home
VRAZINOFF - All Categories in OGSPI