August 13, 1937 - July 9, 2018
Avanthia died at home on July 9th, departing the world peacefully, painlessly, and gracefully as she had traversed it. Born Aug. 13, 1937 in Medicine Hat AB, the first child of John Evangelos and Carrie Reeder, she was ever her father's girl. Very bright and equally attractive, she made an early impression on the stage, winning the provincial Dominion Drama Festival Best Actress award followed by scholarship study at the Banff School of Fine Arts.
Her young marriage produced 3 children, each of whose lives reflect her pursuit of love, beauty, and accomplishment. They were ever a source of pride for her.
When all the children were reasonably rooted in life, she returned to school and took an honours degree in History and Literature at York University, followed by a teaching degree. Rather than teaching she joined the ranks of Toronto's free-lance book editors, where she enjoyed many years creating clarity in textbooks, while sneaking in some writing of her own.
Retirement made possible the adventure of living in varied places. Based in the Cowichan Valley on Vancouver Island where she had three different homes - a great little acreage on Quamichan Lake, followed by a strange "hill" house on Anzio Rd, and lastly a modest bungalow near Maple Bay. But she also purchased and set up homes in the SE of England (Horsham), in Capetown SA (in Newlands and Sea Point) and in San Diego (La Jolla), while fitting in 2 years in a rental apartment on Bute St. in Vancouver's West End. Each of these homes reflected her magic taste in every aspect of decor and was crowned by her own distinctive art work.
Many will miss her, but none so much as her 3 children (GTA and Victoria) and her 2 brothers (Edmonton and Medicine Hat) and their families.
Her husband Joe looks back fondly and wistfully on over 60 years of happiness, adventure, and love.