Alisa will always be cherished in my memories as my Sunday School teacher back in the 1970's.
I have very, very fond childhood memories of Alisa taking our class out on day trips to the beach, park, or her home for home cooked meals. We'd spend the days just talking, laughing, singing (she had the most beautiful voice). She always had the biggest smile as anyone who ever knew her will know.
It's been too many years to recall when I saw her last, but I'll always remember Alisa as this wonderful, caring, very pretty girl who was looked upon with great admiration as our "Big Sister".
I met Alisa in 1983 when I was on of the first six people hired to work at Japan Travel Bureau International (Canada) Ltd.'s newly established Vancouver office. Alisa was hired around the same time and worked as a tour coordinator for package tours.... This is of course a few years before she became a lawyer and went on to do all the amazing things she did as a lawyer. I remember Alisa as a fun and bubbly personality. She was a hard worker, meticulous, professional, a smart dresser, a no non-sense person. she only worked at JTBI a couple of years but I would bump into her every now an then and we would catch up.
I was profoundly moved by today's celebration of life. Listening to the various heart-felt tributes from Alisa's co-workers, friends, and family brought me to tears. she was truly an amazing person... an inspiration... I left with a feeling of deep gratitude and a renewed determination to be a better person, a better partner, a better dad, a better friend...
This was Alisa's gift... A Boddhisatva's gift...
Thank you Alisa.
James C. Johnstone - Vancouver, Canada
Here are my speaking notes to Alisa's Celebration of Life in which I had the pleasure and privilege of sharing my memories of her with her family and friends.
Alisa
Winston Churchill said “If you’re going through hell, keep going.” I think that is sound advice. So it is through this extremely difficult time, like you, I am going to forge ahead and keep going.
When I think of Alisa, I think of honour, integrity, loyalty, laughter and passion because while we sometimes simply aspire to or talk about these ideals, she actually lived them in every aspect of her life. It never would have occurred to Alisa to live her life any other way.
She took on the cases and clients that other lawyers didn’t or wouldn’t. She took on causes with such single-mindedness and determination few of us have the courage to. And, she did it with panache and without ever compromising her principles, ethics, or values.
I think everyone here today will agree that she changed everyone she met. She had that way about her. You couldn’t help but get caught in her net. Her enthusiasm and passion for life was contagious. She constantly surprised me with the amount of energy she had. She didn’t just go to one concert during the recent jazz festival. Mark tells me she went to one every single night! And, she made time for everyone. She always took my call. She always met me for lunch. She was always there for me. And when we got together, she never acted distracted. Her focus was always on the conversation, she shared but she also listened.
There are so many things I love and admire about Alisa but today I would like to share the top three things with you. And I deliberately use the present tense because I will always love and admire Alisa.
First, I love how much she loved Mark and Juba. At some point our numerous conversations would inevitably turn to the stress and busyness of work and life. She would then role her eyes, purse her lips and say, “Oh thank God I have Mark! If I didn’t have Mark, I couldn’t do anything. I wouldn’t have anything. He’s my rock. I’m so glad he’s in my life.” I remember the first time she told me about how they met. You know, woman living alone, needs renovations done to her house, hires a workman. She tells me this really cute guy comes over, instant attraction. Next time she knows he’s coming, she decides to wear a really cute short skirt to maybe get his attention. Now that I think about it, this sounds more like the base storyline to a B-movie than anything else! But you know it ended well because they fell madly in love and lived happily ever after.
As for Juba, you just can’t imagine how much money she has spent on that dog. She worked to pay the vet bills for that dog. But I can’t fault her for it. I understand. I have a dog too and this shared love for our animals brought us closer together. Let’s face it. Sometimes Juba needed a breath mint, sometimes several. And sometimes, she needed a bath in the worst way. But, whether it was wiping Juba’s butt, cleaning her vomit at 3am in the morning or giving her a tomato soup bath after tangling with a skunk, Alisa did it as any mom would do for her child - unconditionally, matter of factly, with love, and oblivious to any possible or perceived shortcomings in her loved one.
The second thing I love about Alisa was her bluntness. I will miss that very much. There is a Sicilian proverb that “only your real friends will tell you when your face is dirty.” And I know if mine was, she would tell me. She always told it like it was. You always knew where she stood and where you stood with her. I love the fact that she didn’t sugar coat things. I never wanted her to spare my feelings. I really wanted to know what she thought and I respected her opinion all the more for it. You may not have liked it sometimes, but you knew it came from a place of love and support. She was not capable of manipulation or hidden agendas. And, if you were on the other side of a case, watch out and don’t try any funny business because she would not let you get away with it. She was a formidable lawyer and advocate who would not let anyone push her around.
The third thing I love about Alisa is the way she took on the world - with full throttle. Whether it was her singing, her ballet, her law practice, her volunteer work at LEAF or the Nikkei Centre, her role as a wife, daughter, sister, aunt, friend, lawyer, board member, or mom to Juba, nothing about her was half way. And again, it never would have occurred to Alisa to do it any other way. It was always all or nothing. Or else what was the point.
I will remember her dried apple slices, her excellent taste in clothes, her giggle, the smile that took up her entire face, her warmth and generosity.
These images and thoughts of her are burnt into my memory. I will never forget her. She was a very happy person who shared her joy with everyone. She leaves a wonderful legacy.
Today with you, I honour her memory.
I will not remember July 3.
I will only remember how she lived.
I will celebrate September 14.
In retrospect now, I feel so proud and honoured that I was the first lawyer Alisa asked to join in her fledgling law firm. I live in Yaletown so it was a short 3 minute walk to her office. She was so excited. This was a new, huge step for her. While other lawyers her age were starting to think about or anticipate retirement, here she was advancing her law practice in a whole new direction. Any fear she had was far outshadowed by her drive and ambition. And true to her usual form, she made it a success. I remember our first Christmas firm party. At that time, it was just her, me and our secretary Linda White. As a gift, she gave each of us a beautiful aboriginal wood carving. Mine was a hummingbird. I still keep it on my desk. As a special celebration, we attended an intimate fundraising concert of the Rankin sisters held at Christ Church Cathedral downtown on behalf of Atira Women's Resource Society where I am a boardmember. After the concert we attended a chocolate dessert evening with the Rankin sisters. We took pictures with them and had them autograph their posters. for us It was so cool! I will attach photos of this event to this website soon. The following summer, we had our first firm retreat. By then, we were joined by Francine who at that time was Alisa's first articling student. We stayed at my family's place in Whistler. The first evening she made buttersquash ravioli and her famous, and super delicious pesto sauce. The next day until the early afternoon we all brainstormed about our vision for the firm. The rest of the afternoon was spent at Chateau Whistler's spa where Alisa treated all of us to a wonderful massage of our choice. The rest of the afternoon and evening was spent shopping in the village and a wonderful dinner out. She really knew how to treat us well! For our second Christmas together, Merry (her bookkeeper) joined us for a wonderful vegetarian Indian dinner at All India Sweets on Fraser street followed by a play at Langara College entitled "You Can't Take it With You". It was a very funny comedy but what made it most amusing was the woman who sat behind us with the most obnoxious, loud laugh that sounded like a tortured donkey! I kid you not. It was so bad that by the intermission I'm sure I wasn't the only one who had a screaming headache. And, it got to the point where I wished the comedy was a tragedy because I cringed everytime a funny line came knowing the lady in the back would laugh. We celebrated many times at her firm - when Francine got called to the bar, our birthdays, Francine and receptionist Stacey's pregnancies. We all worked hard, got along and had fun doing it. It was a very happy place to work. Girl power!!
Alisa, 50 years ago, as your family stood with joy at your birth, your crying began a journey where our lives would eventually touch and our love would be made eternal. Now it must be that you leave us in the joy of a life lived in full. We witness in tears your sudden departure, ever mindful of the contributions that you have made to our lives. We do not cry in pain, we cry with joy for the love, attention, friendship and for the sharing and the caring heart that you brought to us.
This is not good-bye, it's Thank You.
Paul and Bruna Caracristi
