On April 1st, 2024, Emilio Williams Portal passed away at his home in Sudbury, Ontario at the age of 85.
He was married for 47 years to his loving wife Suzanne (nee Bonin). He will be deeply missed by his two children Emilio Portal and Natalie Williams Portal, daughter-in-law Elyse Portal, his grandson Teo Sol Portal, and his entire extended family in Peru and beyond. He was the son of Emilio Williams and Leonor Portal. He was the beloved brother to Leonor Williams Portal, Alberto Williams Portal (deceased), Flor Williams Guerrero (sister-in-law), and uncle to Nancy Murphy, Claudio Alarcon, Arwilla Alarcon, Jacqueline Baum Alarcon, Guillermo Alarcon, Norka Williams and Alberto Williams Portal.
Emilio was born in 1938 in Callao, Peru. In his childhood and adolescence, he was prolific athlete who played soccer and basketball, and also enjoyed swimming in the Pacific Ocean with his brother. He was also an avid learner that excelled in his scholarly pursuits. This led him to be awarded a scholarship to study at the Universidad Nacional de Ingenieria in Lima, Peru, where he studied and graduated in mechanical and electrical engineering. In 1969, he had the opportunity to immigrate to Canada to further his career. In the 1970s, he completed a Masters of Electrical Engineering from the University of Toronto. Emilio was an expert in his field and worked internationally as an electrical engineer and senior consultant on a multitude of large-scale projects including power generation, transmission lines, energy conservation, mining and diverse industries.
He also had a hidden artistic side to him. Emilio had a profound love of music, poetry, singing, and dancing. He had a select collection of vinyl records from Peru and the Caribbean, which he would often be caught singing in Spanish to many of his favourite songs. Emilio’s professional endeavours and interest in travelling brought him to many destinations including the Americas, Europe, the Middle East and Africa. One of his more memorable recent trips was with his wife to visit their daughter in Sweden, Denmark and Spain. To him, family was everything and formed the crux of all he did in life. He will always be remembered for his measured, patient, charming and poetic demeanour.
Arrangements entrusted to the Lougheed Funeral Homes.