Morden YOLLES

1925 - 2024

MORDEN YOLLES 1925 - 2024 Morden Yolles died peacefully at his home, surrounded by family, on Monday, January 22, 2024, in his 99th year of life. Mordy was the son of Leon and Dora; the devoted husband of Edie; and the loving father of Eric and Dylan. He was the youngest brother of Burle, Ruby, Sylvia and David; and had a special bond with his sisters-in-law, Louise Yolles and Gerry Wasserman. He was the beloved uncle of Catherine, Ian, Joanne, Vanessa, Jeffrey, Hal, Aaron and Michael, and their partners and children. Mordy was an internationally renowned structural engineer. His engineering philosophy is summed up in a quote from the 2002 publication Yolles: A Canadian Engineering Legacy, by Beth Kapusta and John McMinn: 'To enter the artistic realm, the work of a structural engineer must go beyond the application of technical knowledge and skills and achieve a collaborative balance of the visual, innovative, economic, and functional.' With his partner, Roly Bergmann, the Yolles firm was responsible for engineering notable structures in Canada and abroad, including the Katimavik and Polymer Pavilions at Expo 67, the Ontario Science Centre, Trent University, the Toronto Zoo, the Toronto YMCA, the Galleria at BCE Place, and the McKinsey & Company offices. His team of engineers developed a specialty in tall buildings, including the 72-storey First Bank Tower in Toronto, World Financial Center in New York, and Canary Wharf in England. He was awarded the Order of Canada in 2002 in recognition of his role as one of Canada's leading structural engineers. While attending a Sigfried Giedion lecture at the University of Toronto, he met his wife, Edie Wasserman, with whom he had two children, Eric and Dylan. Edie, who had studied with Marshall McLuhan, expanded his passion for all aspects of the arts - music, literature, dance, art - and ultimately food, as they opened the celebrated Scaramouche restaurant in Benvenuto Place in 1980. Through his long rich life, Mordy had an almost childlike way of remaining endlessly curious- qualities he retained and strengthened even after the death of Edie in 2001 and Eric in 2003. He followed many passions and paths, with an abiding love of travel. As a younger man, he was a mountaineer; he finally gave up his habit of running through the city's streets and ravines in his eighties; and he was devoted until his final days to the dry sauna, which he called his 'schvitzeria.' A prolific amateur photographer who had multiple gallery exhibitions, he scoured the world for compelling visual portraits of its people and underbelly, with a particular love for graffiti and found objects. A generous philanthropist, Mordy oversaw the Leon Yolles and Dora Yolles Foundation, supporting Jewish charities, shelters, schools and causes, and he set up the Edie & Eric Yolles Research Fund for cancer research. He also contributed to diverse architecture, arts, education and healthcare charities. Mordy was known for his quips and aphorisms that his friends and family referred to as 'Mordyisms.' A selection of his Mordyisms and photographs were gathered in the 2020 book, I Know the Answers. But I Don't Know the Questions! He might have said of this obituary: 'There is only one problem with it: it couldn't have been better.' His warmth and lively spirit, and his sense of humour will be deeply missed by his family, his broad, multi-generational circle of friends, the Yolles Engineering and Scaramouche families, his caregivers, and others who were so much a part of his life, including Victoria Banagen, Vicki Dunleavy, Katharine Harvey, Peter 'James Boswell' O'Brien, Jade Rude, Ted Susel, and the late Lucy Mitchell. The family is grateful for the dedication of Dr. Scott Gledhill at Medcan, Dr. Samir Sinha at Mt. Sinai Hospital, and Dr. Vanita Jassal at Toronto General Hospital. Donations can be directed to the Edie and Eric Yolles Cell Therapy Research Fund at Princess Margaret (416-946-6560, supportthepmcf.ca/ui/DonateNow/donations/start) or the Geriatrics Program at Mt. Sinai Hospital (416-586-8203, press 2; www.supportsinai.ca). A funeral service was held at Benjamin's Park Memorial Chapel on Friday, January 26, 2024. Interment at Beth Tzedec Memorial Park.