Anita Tatar was a woman of strength, resilience and unending optimism. She arrived in Canada in 1977 at the age of 24, along with her husband, two-year old daughter, two suitcases and the hope for a better life.

Settling in Toronto, she built an incredible life. She learned English alongside her daughter, incorporated and weaved Canadian traditions into the family's Polish heritage and cultural practices, and created a sense of home for her family. She became the centre of and organizer for her numerous social circles, some of which spanned different generations. She travelled, loved food, soccer, decorating, fashion and the Leafs, and was a deeply proud Canadian. She was a vocal advocate for women's rights, and a proud mom of a Queen's University grad with her own collection of tricolour paraphernalia.

Anita was also a trailblazer. She joined an engineering consulting firm in 1977, never imagining that she would essentially remain with the same company for almost 40 years. She started as a draftsperson, and moved into health care and fire protection design, becoming one of the first women to work in the field. She helped design medical gas and fire protection systems in some of Canada's newly built and renovated health care facilities.When speaking of completed projects, she would proudly explain how her work helped improve medical care for patients. She became a leader and mentor in this specialized field.

She loved life and lived it to the fullest.

Anita passed away in 2016 at the age of 64; one year before her retirement and one year before she would have celebrated the 40th anniversary of her arrival to Canada.

Anita would be honoured to have a scholarship in her name at Queen's University, and proud to continue to assist others on their own incredible journey.

Please make your gift to the Anita Tatar Legacy Fund to honour the life of this remarkable woman.

Be sure to fill out the commemorative portion of the form entitled "Dedicate my gift." This will allow Queen's to notify Mrs. Tatar's family of your thoughtful donation to the Anita Tatar Legacy Fund.