In 1923, two brothers, Frank and Vincent, started the O'Connor Bros. Funeral Home at 1786 Danforth Avenue to primarily serve the funeral needs of Catholic families in east-end Toronto. Despite the hard economic times, Frank and his wife Ethel perservered with the business, moved it in 1933 to 1871 Danforth Avenue, and took up residence in the apartment upstairs. Frank's son George ("Bud") joined the family business and became a licensed funeral director in 1945.
In 1959, BudO’Connor with his wife Audrey
purchased what had become the
pre-eminent Catholic funeral home in east--end Toronto.
Their son Tim, the third generation O’Connor,
joined the family business in 1974 as a licensed funeral director. Audrey
purchased the business from her husband in 1983, and continued to work
tirelessly on serving the Catholic community until her passing in 2005.
In 2009, after 86
years and three generations of service, the O’Connor
family decided to sell what then was the longest serving Catholic funeral home
in east-end Toronto
as well as being the last family owned funeral home on the Danforth.
The O’Connor Bros. Chapel
is named to remember and honor the three generations of the O’Connor family for their outstanding funeral service to generations of
families of all faiths and for their exemplary service and support of the
Catholic Church.
