With a heavy heart, we announce the passing of our husband, tata and dida, Duro Hudaj. He is survived by his loving wife of 60 years, Katica, sons Robert (Branka) and Ernest (Karen), grandchildren Natalie, Cassie, Chelsea and Roman.

At the age of 14, Duro left his small town of Dragalić, Slavonija for Zagreb where he lived with the nuns under the Dinamo stadium and worked to maintain their residence. He soon found full time employment at Jugorapid and later Ikom which is still in business after 67 years.
He met Katica in 1961 and they were soon married a few months later on Dec 30th . In 1967, Duro, Katica and 18 month old Robert, fled for Austria and on to Toronto where they welcomed Ernest six years later.
Duro held numerous part-time jobs and eventually started working at Dominion Bridge where he was a fitter-welder and later a foreman. Duro was involved in the construction of the Toronto Skydome where he and Katica attended the opening ceremonies.

Duro had strong convictions about his catholic beliefs. As a parishioner of Our Lady Queen of Croatia Parish in Toronto he became a member of the Church Counsel and volunteered his time and talents by helping with Sunday collection. He dedicated his time to Fond Slavonija and other charitable organizations. He put his steel construction and welding talents to use by constructing the steel spikes used for pig and lamb roasts and fixing the church swings in Father Kamber Park in Mississauga. He would take his grandchildren to see the pigs and lambs roasting and would laugh as the grandchildren thought they were “dinosaurs”. Dida Duro started a tradition where every labour day weekend, for Natalie’s birthday, he would roast a pig. The family would gather to watch and enjoy dabbing bread to collect the juices from the pig.

Duro loved to make his “kobase”,“kulen” and “špek” along with a perfect pairing of his homemade wine. Nothing gave him more pleasure than sharing the fruits of his labour with family and friends.
Duro also had a love for soccer. He easily recited every score of the Italian league which he watched every weekend. He would proudly sport his Croatian jersey anytime Croatia played.
Duro’s passion for auctions and a good bargain was legendary. He famously quipped “how much did you pay for that? I would have paid much less!” He could easily tell you the price of any precious metal down to the cent per pound.

When it came to family and grandkids, there was no higher priority. He will fondly be remembered by his grandchildren as the fruit stand owner who owned shares in Kraš (the large Croatian Confectionary company) because of routine deliveries of strawberries, clementines and assortments of Kraš products.
His generosity was limitless and he always thought of everyone before himself.

Our hearts are broken and we will forever remember the love, sincerity and kindness we experienced from our tata and dida and he will forever be in our hearts and memories.

Friends may call Turner & Porter Yorke Chapel on Sunday, January 30, 2022 from 1-3p.m. & 5-7 p.m. Due to covid restrictions you must sign up for both the visitation and service (LINK BELOW). Funeral Mass will be held at Our Lady Queen of Croatia Church on Monday, January 31, 2022 at 10 am. Interment to follow at Assumption Cemetery.

LINK TO REGISTER: https://forms.gle/ioZoJqRfe1tpVACq9