VIDA KOSEVIC

VIDA KOSEVIC

KOSEVIC, VIDA In Loving Memory June 21, 1926 – March 7, 2021 It is with broken hearts that we announce the passing of our beloved Vida Kosevic, in her 94th year. She will be dearly missed by her husband and partner of 62 years, Vasa; daughters Olga (Jovan), Nada (Nikola) and Mira; grandchildren Nikola, Milan (Maja), Katarina (Dan), George (Jessica) and Kristina; great-grandsons Marko, Noah and Mihajlo; and sister Dragica, (Trieste, Italy).

Vida was smart, witty, creative, industrious and resourceful. Above all, she was courageous and a survivor. She was born to Vojn and Hristina Cotric, the fourth of six children in Loznica, Yugoslavia. Vida lived through the depression, WWII and a Civil War that raged in Yugoslavia while the Serbs fought with the Allies in the World War and defended their country against fascists and communists. In 1949, at the age of 23, she escaped communist Yugoslavia by crawling through a cabbage patch at night to reach the Italian border only to find the border demarcated by a wire fence. Undeterred, she tunneled her way under the fence, stepped foot on Italian soil and promptly turned herself in at the nearest Italian police station. Consequently, she spent years in a refugee camp until immigrating to Canada.

In 1954, Vida arrived in this country with a half-empty suitcase, little money and no knowledge of English or French. Yet, she persevered. Here, she met and married Vasa in 1959, welcoming three daughters over three years. Canada gave her the right to freely practice her Serbian Orthodox faith, live in a democratic country and achieve her dream of having a family. Those who knew Vida can attest to the fact that “Baba” (grandmother) was her favourite word and her grandchildren and great-grandchildren her greatest joy. Vida’s memory will live on in the hearts of her family, kumovi, numerous friends and the Serbian community, at large. She was a proud member of the Kolo Srpski Sestara (Circle of Serbian Sisters) Krajlica Aleksandra for more than 65 years, and equally proud of her Honourary member status with the St. Sava Church Choir.

In lieu of flowers, the family asks that donations in Vida’s memory be made to the All Serbian Saints Orthodox Church in Mississauga or via their website at www.sabornik.com Recognizing the COVID-19 restrictions in place, a private funeral will be held on Thursday, March 11, 2021. Memory Eternal to an extraordinary woman.