To Plant a Garden Is to Believe in Tomorrow

Tomato seeds—from mother to son.

We took a pause from the JANK blog in August. Frank’s mother, Rosalina, passed away on August 6, 2025, at the age of 95, and the month was filled with family, visitors, and the many details that come with saying goodbye. It only feels right that our return to this space is with a story about her — part epitaph, part tribute.

Audrey Hepburn once said, “To plant a garden is to believe in tomorrow.”

For us, that quote has always been tied to Rosalina — Frank’s mother — who lived her life with that exact blend of grit and resilience. She came from Italy in 1955 to join her husband John, who had already arrived in Canada two years earlier. Together, they raised four sons, grew enough food to feed the family, and the neighbours. They also sold much of their fresh produce to La Stella Market on Erie Street. For decades, their vegetables were the kind preferred by Italian grocers in town. John would often say, “After I die, 1,562,364 people will starve.”

In her 88th year, Rosalina won second prize for her tomatoes at the Harrow Agricultural Fair. Her response? “Next year, I will win first place.” At 88, she was still thinking about tomorrow.

Second prize at the Harrow Fair.

Rosalina lived that cycle for nearly a century. In her 92nd year, she planted 92 tomato plants, one for each year of her life. The following year, she finally, and somewhat reluctantly, passed the seeds on to Frank and Jamie before moving west to British Columbia to be near her other three sons.

She lived three more years beyond her last garden, surrounded by grandchildren and great-grandchildren. On August 6, 2025, at the age of 95, Rosalina’s planting has come to an end, but her legacy lives on in her children, grandchildren, and great-grandchildren — each of us carrying forward the resilience she planted long ago.

To plant a garden is to believe in tomorrow. Among many lessons, Rosalina reminded us that it’s always good to have something to look forward to.

At her funeral, Frank’s song Come In She Said dedicated to his mother, was played. You can listen here: https://tinyurl.com/ym9kma24