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cityparkbob
Tom and I shared a love of The National Gallery in London. We talked about every room in the gallery. When I was in Paris I sent photos of bizarre things in gallery windows. I know only a little. He knew a lot. He told me his aunt encouraged his love of art. Wise woman.
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jcard12002@yahoo.ca
I have just posted photos of Tom. Unfortunately I am finding this a difficult task. Sorry for the duplicates.
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jpkennedy
It is said that one of the measures of a good man is the relationship he has with animals. Here is Tom with my pup Bear. They had a bond for sure.
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jcard12002@yahoo.ca
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flavio
A great memorial. Thanks. Flavio
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jcard12002@yahoo.ca
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flavio
How handsome he was as a young man. Thanks for posting all these wonderful photos. Flavio
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jcard12002@yahoo.ca
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jcard12002@yahoo.ca
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wfang
Mr. Maunder was an inspiring educator and person, sharing lessons that extended beyond the walls of his classroom. I will never forget how he motivated us, his students, to embrace our creativity.
A memorable experience dear to my heart was when he accompanied a group of aspiring young poets to an afterschool poetry reading. He saw fear in my eyes as my turn came along, so instead he voluntarily marched up to the auditorium stage, and shared my piece on the power of hope (fortunately for him this was before the advent of smartphones and viral YouTube videos).
Mr. Maunder expressed his support in countless ways. To this day, I am sure many of his students (myself included) still kept his handwritten cards of encouragement. He will be dearly missed.
Wendy Fang
(Pennamed UC12 by Mr. Maunder)
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spkingmixer
🕯 I met Tom Maunder while working at City Park Co-op. Whenever Tom and I crossed paths we would have interesting conversations about life in general. Tom brightened up my day. Sometimes I would stop by his yoga classes just to say hi. Sometimes I would find Tom sitting on the bench in the courtyard. Now every time I pass by the courtyard I will remember Tom. I'm going to miss our conversations. R.I.P.
Steven Parsons
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jcard12002@yahoo.ca
I have just posted photos of Tom. Unfortunately I am finding this a difficult task. Sorry for the duplicates.
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choulden
Tom loved coming to Oro-Medonte, to share stories, to shop the antique stores, and then to enjoy a morning coffee on the deck. It was an extra bonus for him if there was a spectacular electrical storm to enjoy in the evening.
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tex
Very sorry to learn of Tom's passing. I am certain he made a lasting impression on everyone who had the pleasure of meeting and knowing him.
I know I'll never forget my initiation into the personality that was Tom . Some years into my teaching "career" Tom joined the staff and our department head brought him round to each member present to make the introductions. I stood up, extended my hand and cordially said, "Hi, Tom. Nice to meet you."
Tom regarded my hand for a moment, and then took it with the enthusiasm reserved for picking up a dead rat. I believe his verbal greeting was, "Hmm." He warmed up to me ... eventually.
Tom, I will miss your intelligence and wit.
-- Chris Armstrong
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flavio
I loved the way Tom looked me each time I saw him, like he was studying me anew and deciding whether I was worth the time we would be spending together. It was the way he looked at art, deciding whether he wanted to spend more time with this piece or that. I loved his slow way of speaking, chewing each word with the enjoyment of a gourmand before delivering a startlingly precise, curmudgeonly caustic assessment. He was irascible, mischievous, funny, deeply intelligent, considerate, and committed to excellence. He earned all that he accomplished. I loved him for his passion for collecting art. A passion we both shared. I will miss him deeply. And Toronto has lost a champion of young talent.
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jcard12002@yahoo.ca
🕯 I met Tom in 1971 when I first came to Toronto. As I loved the cinema I was a regular customer at Cine Books, Tom's store. I guess that means I have know him for 49 years. Because, I was there so often, we became friends. Soon Tom got to know many of family and friends, and became a part of our life.
Over the years Tom was present for many of the most important invents im my life. In 1981, Tom attended a baby shower for my son and gave him a beautiful yellow satin comforter and a beautiful teddy bear, both which he still has today. A couple of weeks after his birth we made a visit to Cine Books and I remember how thrilled Tom was to meet him. Many years later he attended his wedding. Tom didn't like weddings, so we were so happy he came. Over the years he attended many birthday parties, Christmas season parties, retirements and even came for Christmas dinner. I figured Tom had to have a soft spot for me or he wouldn't have shown up to so many social events.
As both he and I became busy with work and life in general we would talk by phone or meet up for lunch when his schedule would allow. He always seem to be doing something or going somewhere. Both being teachers, we would talk about the state of education and our frustrations with it. We also talked about cinema. Tom was a big fan of the golden age of cinema and loved Natalie Wood, Tuesday Weld, and Kim Novak. He gave me a photo of Natalie Wood taken in Toronto which hangs in my living room. At one point, I gave him my Tuesday Weld scrapbook which I had from my childhood. He loved it. Recently he sent me a link to a Turner Classic interview with Kim Novak. He insisted I watch it and we spent and hour talking about the career of "the fabulous Kim, as he called her.
Tom claimed to not be a big fan of birthdays. I probably have been sending him birthday cards since about 1975 and one year I forgot. I was on vacation and I forgot. I lguess when it didn't come he was surprised, or maybe, even disappointed. As he couldn't reach me, he called my sister to see if I was sick. It was only then that I realized that he did really like to be remembered.
I will miss Tom. I have let many of our mutual friends and my relatives know about his passing and I have already heard back from several who were sad to hear of his death.
Tom was funny and sarcastic, but he was also kind and generous. He was a good friend, someone I could always talk to about life. He certainly played an important part in my life and I am certain he did the same in the life of his other friends and of his students.
Julia Cardone
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choulden
From Janet Thorsley:
Tom sent the best birthday cards! Not sure where he got them or how much time he spent selecting them but they were always perfect and made me laugh so hard when I got them. Will miss his chatty, humorous christmas emails too. I will miss him!
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sammys
Tom was a unique person. He was an wonderful English teacher, and anyone who experienced his class, as a student, was always very fortunate. I observed Tom teach, when he taught an all boys English class. I was in awe of his skills, knowledge, care, and ability to hold the attention of all 30 boys. Tom was a master teacher in the true sense of the word. His memory will be everlasting to his friends and students.
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kil.wucey@gmail.com
From Pat Boyle
Tom was a colleague and friend. I will miss his droll wit and verbal flamboyance. We both had a love of teaching, literature and art, and I wish we could share more lunches and laughs...
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jpkennedy
I met Tom (Mr. Maunder) in the Spring of 2012. I had just moved into a unit on the floor he lived on in City Park Co-op. I am a fairly outgoing person and since I had learned his name from others, I greeted him one day at the elevator with “Hi, Tom”. His response: “It’s Mr. Maunder”. I knew right away we were going to be friends.
I gained so much from my friendship with Tom. He was, among other things, a confidant, a teacher and my greatest cheerleader.
We served together on the Aging in Place Project in the co-op. This picture represents a playful side of Tom that many would never have the pleasure of knowing.
My life has been enriched from knowing Tom and I miss him greatly. As I type those words, I can just hear him saying “Oh Jo-Anne, don’t be so sentimental”, and I smile.
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nikidracos
Tom was a man of many words. We met in 2012 at Art Toronto and became friends once we got past the initial stare down and interview. He was a great supporter of young Canadian artists and his visits to the gallery were always memorable. I appreciated his intelligence, frankness and his sense of humour. Tom always remembered to ask how my family and my dog were doing. Only days prior to his passing we spoke on the phone about women in the workplace, education as the solution to all our problems and the reality of being a teacher. He spoke passionately and even called me back to elaborate on our discussion. He eluded to dying in our conversation and concluded by saying, “I am not going to live forever you know Nik.” I replied, "oh stop, you have a ways to go", little did we know.
Forever grateful for Tom's friendship and support.
R.I.P. Tom, you will be missed. Our condolences to his family and friends.
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jcard12002@yahoo.ca
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kil.wucey@gmail.com
Tom spent weekends roaming the galleries across the city. LE Gallery, Katherine Mulherin, Erin Stump Projects, Feheley Fine Arts, General Hardware, and Ingram were all stops on the tour. He always said he nailed "the look" in this photo at my gallery from the early 2000's
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superliz
Tom officiating Wil's nuptials... orange pants and all.
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kingfresh01
Mr. Maunder was one of my high school teachers at L'amoreaux. He left a great and memorable impression on me. I hope every student can have such a teacher in their life. I regret that I didn't look him up sooner to catch up with him before he passed.
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stephenbritton71
🕯 I met Tom during a major upheaval in my life. He had a reputation around City Park. He was very frank at times, and had a sharp tongue. The truth, though, was that was a quite sensitive and caring man. Tom was a great help to me personally. Like many others who called him a friend, I will miss him dearly.
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choulden
I thought Tom screened all his calls, all the time. Perhaps it was just mine! Over the years we got into the habit of arranging an appointment for me to call him.
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kil.wucey@gmail.com
Tom loved his tennis, and would screen his calls during any tournaments. He agreed to join me at Rogers cup for a few matches. He brought hard boiled eggs to eat in the stands.
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kingfresh01
🕯 A candle was lit in memory.
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superliz
What a loss to anyone who never had the pleasure of meeting this legend. Tom and I met at a summer school gig about 20 years ago and became fast friends as I would make him lunch and had a car. He tolerated me and my wild personality to get to many an art show, antique market, cemetary or restaurant that didn't have ttc access or he prefered to be chauffeured... either way it was my absolute pleasure to be deemed worthy of his company. Tom was a master teacher and was a genuine professional who could reach the most difficult of students. He was a brilliant colleague who would share and advise you on methods and content.
He introduced me to many an art dealer and started my love for pochoir styled pieces. He was always willing to introduce me to a fabulous restaurant as well. I will missed being introduced as, "ignore her, she is on a day pass," or the critique of my messy car as, " I like what you've done with the place!" Tommy was also the best gift and card giver and I will treasure my special Tom gifts and cards now, more than ever. He even wrote a short essay on a dinner I made for him in my basement apartment years ago.
Always on his own terms Tom was a true gem of a gentleman. I will miss my Tom Cat. curmudgeon, dry witted, master minded friend. He was truly one of a kind and I am so glad he was part of my world.
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kil.wucey@gmail.com
I'll miss our times spent discussing the art market, Francis Bacon, antiquing and of course, discovering parts of Toronto you were convinced had no redeeming qualities.
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flavio
Condolences and thank you for a lovely tribute. He emailed me the same Kim Novak interview with the same insistence.
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saraohearn
I knew Tom through a large part of my childhood, as he was a close friend of my mother's for several years back in the 80s. I love reading everyone's memories here, as they are so consistent with my own - a gruff exterior and sometimes sharp tongue, but underneath it someone with deep, sensitive feelings who tried in their own way to express love. He had a great love of books and movies and a quick sense of humor. I know that many of his suggestions and ideas still influence me today. I'm glad to know that he had good friends around him towards the end of his life. He and my mother played endless games of scrabble, and sometimes there were "strong disagreements" about words and points. I'm not sure if it was that or something else that drove a wedge between them, but they drifted apart and I had only seen him very occasionally over the past few decades. It's been good to remember all the best parts of Tom and I feel lucky to have known him growing up. This photo is my favorite of Tom and my mother.
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jcard12002@yahoo.ca
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cityparkbob
Tom and I met 9 or 10 years ago. We became friends quite quickly. We made each other laugh and found humour in odd situations. We both screened calls and his answering machine drove me crazy. He will be missed!!
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superliz
Together at a party... in a public spot... who would have thought.
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kil.wucey@gmail.com
From Luxshana Maheswaran:
Mr. Maunder was my grade 12 English teacher at L'Amoraux High school from Jan -June 2008. He is so funny and flexible when comes to assignments. He never pressures anyone and always encourages them to do the work. If he knows that you are trying your best, he will pass you. I still remember one of my friends was getting 43 marks in grade 12 English class in June and she always skips classes, Mr.Maunder said to her come to class I will pass you. But my friend never showed up and, in the end, she failed. During the class time, he always shares with us about his personal life, I remember he said that he is the only child to his parents and father die at a young age and he is very close with his aunt. The aunt is a teacher too. She is the one who always encourages him to read books and because of her, he is a teacher. I still remember he said once he is happy that he didn't get married but at the same time he not happy that he didn't get married. Last time I saw Mr.Maunder on Aug 2010 and Aug 2020 I am writing this. Once I broke his pencil sharpener in the class and every time, I see a pencil sharpener I always think about him. Even at the beginning of this month I saw a pencil sharpener in Walmart, I was thinking about him. He was a great educator. His focus on critical thinking and the importance of having an opinion beyond what the test reads is such a great tool to help mold young minds. Rest in peace, Mr. Maunder.
Luxshana Maheswaran
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courtney cann
I met Tom while I worked in the office at City Park. We quickly got on as we shared the same dry wit and humour. We became friends over the course of my time there and I saw Tom almost daily whether it was in the hallway, courtyard (where he always had a book in hand) or arguing over the use of an oxford comma in the minutes I had taken at a board meeting. Tom was one of my great confidants in Toronto - I was new to the city and sometimes felt lonely. Whether it was advice, demanding to know what book I was reading or a shared eye roll over a particular frivolous topic at a board meeting, Tom was always there for me. After I left Toronto and back to my hometown we still kept in touch and he always seemed happy to hear how my life was going. Tom - you will be missed! You had a great impact on my time in Toronto and I am so glad I was able to call you a friend.
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superliz
Tom and I at the now defunct Jersey Giant for my birthday party! Yes... he came!
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marlin51
🕯 Read the first sentence Flavio Belli's second entry
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marlin51
🕯 A candle was lit in memory.
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kil.wucey@gmail.com
From Ursula Carter:
Tom was indeed a crusty curmudgeon, but underneath that façade was a very caring individual. Our friendship over the years had its ups and downs, but it always somehow survived. Tom had a good sense of humor and a sardonic wit which always helped put things in perspective. I thoroughly enjoyed our occasional get-togethers and chats which were often informative and always fun. We were both lovers of books and a good read. Tom would frequently leave a copy of the New York Times Book Review supplement at my door. We were also both avid art lovers. I shall miss his presence at Citypark.
Bon voyage Tom.
Ursula Carter
CityPark
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kil.wucey@gmail.com
Many of you may not know that Tom did the honour of serving as the celebrant at my wedding. My now wife Vinna and I thought hard about how to include him appropriately. Since one of his biggest peeves was why people engaged in "paired domestic relationships" we thought it cunning to ask him to marry us. He agreed to his role grudgingly, and on the big day Mr. Maunder appeared in bright orange pants. Thank you for the memories Tom.
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kil.wucey@gmail.com
From Carol Glassman:
I am, like all of us, deeply saddened to contemplate life minus my friend Tom Maunder. This is possibly unnecessarily lengthy, but after knowing someone for 51 years, possibly longer than some of you have been alive, there are a lot of memories.
My friendship with Tom began in 1969, when we were assigned to teach at the same junior high school in North York. As we became acquainted, we quickly realized we shared the same sense of humour (irreverent) and opinions and philosophies about a lot of things, including teaching. Tom didn’t drive, so I used to pick him up and take him back from school each day. How I treasured those conversations we had! He adored the kids and they adored him. But our discussions didn’t stop there: we shared interests in books, politics, art. movies, and just about anything else you could name. I was going through the lowest, roughest period in my life at that time and I felt as if I had suddenly found a supportive brother in whom I could confide anything and always receive an honest opinion. Tom brought out the best in me and helped me to rebuild self-confidence as no one had ever bothered before.
Tom left teaching to join his friend David Beard at Cinebooks and when I was in the area, I would drop in and visit. He seemed very happy working there, fulfilled in ways that challenged his intellect -- ways that teaching might have ignored.
In the next few years, unfortunately, our lives took different paths and as often happens, we drifted apart and lost touch. The invitation to our wedding went ignored and I had no idea where he was - it was likely when he was in Europe.
I never forgot Tom, although marriage presented opportunities I never imagined and I periodically wondered what Tom would have thought about my new life. I also quit teaching, we moved out of Toronto to Belleville, Ontario, and then to Marco Island, Florida where I am today. I became occupied with competitive tennis and journalism, and worked 24/7, encouraged by my late husband, as a photo-journalist for two independent newspapers. One of my assignments was writing a popular weekly satirical column - and believe me, I thought of Tom often, hearing his voice in my ear saying, “That’s how you get your rocks off!”. Eventually a friend and I started an independent newspaper, Marco Island’s Coastal Breeze news.
Thanks to the Internet, when I was doing some totally unrelated research, I came across Tom’s name in reference to his antiques and art gallery. What a joy it was to contact him again! On my next trip to Toronto, just a few years ago, we had a heart-warming reunion such as you can only have with a near and dear friend, feeling as if time has stood still and you have never been apart. “Catchup” was both poignant and hilarious as you can well imagine. Tom admitted he had some health problems, but in his typical fashion brushed them off as inconsequential. Whenever I tried to pursue the topic he either ignored it or was deliberately vague. I knew, as many of us did, that he had recently bern hospitalized for tests. In his last e-mail to me, a week ago, he admitted: "Any heart surgery postponed for 6 months. Still living in hope of talking to a doctor who does not resemble some interplanetary traveller."
I cannot contribute more adjectives to Tom than the rest of you have already applied. All of us know what a unique, brilliant man he was.
In my faith, one’s ‘afterlife’ is determined by how one lived and the largest contribution one can make, in order never to be forgotten, is to live well and kindly. That is surely Tom’s legacy.
