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The family of Dennis Benvenuto uploaded a photo
Wednesday, November 15, 2017
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The family of Dennis Benvenuto uploaded a photo
Wednesday, November 15, 2017
/tribute-images/6724/Ultra/Dennis-Benvenuto.jpg
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Robin Morrison posted a condolence
Thursday, November 30, 0002
Sending our thoughts and love...Words cannot express our feelings at this time.
Darquise and Elmer Weaver, and Robin Morrison.
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Marilyn C. Bodogh posted a condolence
Thursday, November 30, 0002
Dearest Janice, Matthew and Christine,
Dennis was a great friend to many. He brought the "Big Splash" together because friendship meant a great deal to him. He loved seeing people laugh and now that I think of it, his gift was bringing people together to share laughter and kindness. I will miss my grade school friend.
Love Marilyn
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Jim and Robyn Kish posted a condolence
Thursday, November 30, 0002
Dear Janice, Christine and Matthew:
We are so very sorry for your loss. Your husband and father will be remembered as a very caring and genuine person who supported and unconditionally loved his friends. He will always be a part of our D.M. memories! "perhaps they are not stars, but rather openings in heaven where the love of our lost ones pours through and shines down upon us..."
Our thoughts are with you.
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Mary Anne (McAleese) Kormos posted a condolence
Thursday, November 30, 0002
Janice:
It seems that only yesterday you were showing us your engagement ring at the party on the island. A short time ago that you and Dennis were married and yet 30 years has passed us by. None of us were ready to let go of our friend. We all prayed that an organ would come available on time. God has other plans for Dennis I guess. You and the children are in our thoughts and prayers at this time. I choose to remember Dennis as he was when we spent an afternoon in Welland at the regatta 2 years ago May. I was along with the Fox Chapel kids in a tent next to the one DM had. We all spent the day cheering on our crews and recapturing a lot of old memories. That's how I'll remember him, Healthy Happy and doing what he loved.
Mary Anne, Bob and Family
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Francis Oliver posted a condolence
Thursday, November 30, 0002
I'm so sorry for your loss... Robin always spoke highly of Dennis and even though I never had the pleasure to meet him, I'll miss that chance... My condolences and prayers are for him and the rest of your family...
Frankie Oliver...
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Buzanko Family posted a condolence
Thursday, November 30, 0002
Dear Janice, We are so very sorry for your loss. Our thoughts and prayers are with you at this time.
Dave, Robin, Warren & Katelyn Buzanko
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Crystal (Country inn) posted a condolence
Thursday, November 30, 0002
Dear Janice, Christine and Matthew:
i Only got to know your family in recent times. but from the moment i met you i could see the love compassion and care you had for each other. it was a blessing to see because not only could i see that .. but it is contageous and i instantly felt the same for you.. as if you were my very own family.. and so i say this MAY EVERYTIME THE WIND BLOWS IT IS dENNIS TELLING YOU HOW PROUD OF YOU HE IS AND HOW MUCH HE LOVES YOU DEEPLY
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Fred Ford posted a condolence
Thursday, November 30, 0002
Dear Janice, Matt and Christine,
Thanks for our chat on Friday, Janice. I know there are no words to fill the void in your lives right now, but I hope you find some comfort in the knowledge that Dennis was loved and will be missed by the many people he touched during his life.
A few years ago, as our 50th birthdays approached, Dennis reminisced about how quickly time had passed and how it seemed like yesterday we were in grade 7 together. We were good pals then and we shared many adventures, along with the trials and tribulations of adolescence (and some excellent wrestling matches on our front lawns). Memories have been flooding back in the last few days since I heard the news. I feel very fortunate to have been back in touch with Dennis in recent years and to have learned what a great life you and Dennis had made for yourselves and for Matt and Christine.
Although he has left us far too soon, I know that Dennis accomplished a lot in his life and that he shared the gift of his passion and enthusiasm with many people - friends, family, students, aspiring rowers and others. He was a proud son, dad and husband and he was a true and faithful friend. What I will remember most fondly about Dennis is his openness, his sincerity and his joy. He made himself vulnerable through these traits and was able to laugh at himself. Dennis was also a proud person who wasn’t afraid to assert himself. Dennis was his own man.
I’ve been looking back through old email notes from Dennis and what comes shining through is his big heart and the value he placed on relationships. He often signed off with the salutation "friends forever�. A little corny-sounding, perhaps, but from Dennis I appreciated it as a sincere expression of love, friendship and remembrance. I am fortunate to have been a friend of Dennis' and I'll never forget him.
Love,
Fred
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Wendy Laslo posted a condolence
Thursday, November 30, 0002
Dear Janice and family,
While it's been some time since our Ad & Sales days and the last time I saw Dennis, I'll always remember him as a sweet, kind, funny, "all around great guy". My heart, and prayers of comfort, go out to you.
Wendy Laslo
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Alison and Ron Kohut and family posted a condolence
Thursday, November 30, 0002
Dear Janice, Christine and Matthew. We were very saddened upon hearing of the passing of Dennis. Undoubtedly, he will be missed by a large portion of the community. His passion for the sport of Rowing, and giving back to the sport through his coaching has inspired many people in our community. Dennis was Stephen's first rowing coach and spoke of him fondly. He inspired Stephen to work hard. Our thoughts are with your family.
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Melissa Bates posted a condolence
Thursday, November 30, 0002
Dear Matt and Christine
I am so sorry to hear about the loss of your Dad. Dennis was a great man, coach and great joke teller! He will always have a place in my heart. My condolences, prayers and thoughts are with you and your family. sincerely, Melissa Bates
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Rick, Anne-Marie & Anne White posted a condolence
Thursday, November 30, 0002
To the Benvenuto Family:
It is with sorrow that we send this message. Our prayers are with all of you during this very difficult time.
Anne White, Rick & Anne-Marie
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James Richardson posted a condolence
Thursday, November 30, 0002
I want to thank everyone for coming here today to help celebrate Dennis' life. In the last two days, getting together with old friend, I've heard recounted many great stories of Dennis…; events in the life of an incredible man. Most of these stories have made me laugh 'til my face hurt. For you to have come and shared these memories with each other is testimony to the great effect a life well lived has had upon you. Welcome.
I met Dennis in grade nine at Denis Morris. Along with Neil Smith, Alec Edmonstone, Mike Mclean, Fred Ford, Bryon Ball, Tom Kent, and Dennis we played midget basketball.
Unfortunately, competitively we were decidedly unremarkable. I really don't know whether it wwas that we had to get up at 5:45 to practice or that we really just stunk, but we won only one game that year by only two points. I guess we just stunk, aince we won only because a West Park forward on a half time tip off forgot which way he as going and scored on his own net.
As bad as we were, we still figured out how to have fun. Under Bryan Flannigan's tutelage we learned the value of teamwork, fair play, loyalty, dedication and perhaps most important of all, persistence. On this team
Dennis' friendship was like glue that cemented our group together both on and off the court. You just could not help but like this guy. He was not afraid of a laugh, even if it was at his own expense. He was sensitive to the fears and wants of those around him. Basically his friendship was infectious.
Dennis moved on from basketball to rowing where happily, he excelled…. Crews he was in medaled several times, most notably winning American Schoolboy in a 145 Eight.
Naturally, with all this healthy sporting excitement came girls. Dennis's athletic prowess and Italian Stallion good looks caught the eye of the cutest tiny blonde a year above us at DM. So, in 1972, Dennis chased Janice Morrison until she caught him, demonstrating what a romantic he'd become in the hunt by buying her a charm bracelet and filling it up with 12 charms in the first year of their dating, given one each month representing some significant moment in their developing commitment to love each other. Now that's dedication and persistence.
Athletically, where Dennis' star really shone was in his dedication as a coach. He was a DM rowing coach for over thirty years, a rowing recreation league coach and a baseball coach for at least 4 years while Matt his son turned from a boy into a young man. In this teaching capacity, Dennis touched many lives while returning wisdoms passed on from the likes of Bill Dick, Stan Lipinski, Pat Goodwin, Bruce Erskine and others. Many of you will remember a litany of colorful comparisons Dennis used to correct timing, posture or technique, none of which I will repeat here. (Ask Matt Miller)
Dennis was creative, brave, loving and kind. He was blessed with an immense capacity to give of his time and talents. This giving of self, putting others first created in him a discipline of humility.
All these qualities were a matter of Faith for Dennis: Faith that he had done as much as he could for you, faith that when he saw you off the dock before a race you would do your best to win, place or in the case or rec league rowers, just finish.
Those of you lucky enough to have been coached by Dennis will leave here today without the physical presence of your Coach. But his spirit will live in the hearts and minds and souls of all the people he touched. His spirit will move you and motivate you and comfort you for the rest of your lives.
I don't want to leave you with the impression that Dennis' love of and dedication for coaching took precedence over the time he dedicated to family. Of course, there were periods when Janice felt the tug on Dennis' available time left less for the family due to his responsibilities as a coach, but Dennis seemed to be able to give his all to the family too. All one has to do is look at the many albums of family pictures taken by Dennis (he loved photography too) to see that he adored Matt and Chris and was able to spend time doing innumerable special things with them. Dennis' family is unique in that they have each had the experience of being coached by him in life and on the water.
While our children were growing up, Neil Smith's, Dennis' and my own family would take turns hosting Christmas and often Easter Holiday celebrations. We welcomed new family arrivals together, became godparents to each other's children, watched them grow, guided them as best we could and in the process we built loving memories of lasting endurance together. So for almost forty years we have stood together literally through blood, sweat, more tears than we'd ever thought we would shed, but most important lots of laughter.
Each of us here today is a better person for having Dennis touch our lives. God has blessed us and I thank Him for giving us the opportunity to have loved Dennis. God's gift of life is a gift of love enabled through the love of our parents. I believe that it is our responsibility to return to our home with God through loving each other appropriately. I believe that by leading a life of unselfish dedication to others Dennis has found his way home to God. Dennis I salute you, and while I shall miss your earthly presence the love you shared with everyone you ever came in contact with is the thread which keeps us now and will ever keep us connected to each other and to you. Here … and here…� you shall always remain.
I want to take a moment to ask you to do something in the future. Saying goodbye to a loved one's earthly existence is often a numbing, painful experience. We must honour this pain so that grief is allowed to evolve through us naturally. Our rituals surrounding death, our faith and our family give us the energy to get through to the core of this pain. For the immediate family, this energy will fade and grief will replace it. Grief really is the other side of love. Think about it: Your love for a person is like a flow of energy and it is directed from you to them. But when God calls that person home- when their body dies--many of us don't know where to put the love/energy any more, and it gets backed up. This ultimately blocks our grief. Understanding Dennis' death, honouring it, accepting it and walking the long road through grief helps us move through that blockage and understand that our loved ones are still a part of our lives -- not apart from our lives. So -- what is it I'm asking you to do? When you have a moment that reminds you of something Dennis said or did for you, please take the time to call Janice, Matt or Chris and just say "I was thinking of Dennis the other day when…. thank you. " I can guarantee you it will not go unappreciated
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