Plateau Pillar Robbed

My father Eduardo Nunes was born on a small island in the middle of the Atlantic in the Azores, Portugal. He moved to Montréal, Canada with his family when he was just a boy in the summer of ‘69. He barely even started high school when he had to make the tough decision to help put food on the table for his family. Having a younger sister and an autistic little brother that needed his help to provide for. Both his parents found jobs but being immigrants that barely spoke French and English they were very limited in their choices of work. He worked all kinds of odd jobs as a young teen. From pumping gas to bussing tables to being a security guard. Even when he was young he was providing for who he loved with great ambition. Until he opened his own jewelry shop when he was just 18 years old, it was nothing but a blooming flower back then. Rosas Jewelry store was born in 1981. He would focus his business efforts on catering to the Portuguese community and to always keeping a honest and transparent method of speaking and selling his jewelry. People started to love his realness, his character, his family values and of course his good deals! So they kept coming back. My father had created something of a cultural favourite in the heart of the plateau throughout the decades. He worked tirelessly day in and day out for his customers. My dad is a pillar in his community. Even being called “The King of Kensington” for his good will and empathy for others. Customer or not if someone in need would come to the store and ask for 20$ for food he would give it without even knowing if the person would come back and pay their due to him. I know this because I’ve seen it with my own eyes. I don’t even have to mention how much he’s done to work for home. My dads motto has always been that no one should go hungry. Even his three kids and his wife pitching in and helping him everyday because he has always been our breadwinner, because of him we were able to get by our whole lives. Amy the eldest child worked there for at least 5 years. Oldest son Andrew worked there upwards of a decade building the store up. Even me the baby of the family. I stepped up and helped out there whenever it was needed, I was set to take over my brothers position as he was moving onto his RCMP career. We’re a strong family that helps each other without fail. Now is our time of need. We’ve been hit by robberies before but nothing as bad as this one. He has been constantly setback in an upwards battle for health and wealth. He was diagnosed with stage 3 bladder cancer in 2012, which hurt the business and jeopardized his life and the balance of our family. Thankfully he pulled through and kicked cancers butt and went back to work the second he recovered. Other robberies happened in the 10’s two of them being significant losses that cost us the joys of life like going out to eat and going on vacations. Insurance for a jewelry store is extremely expensive and he never had enough to sustain a yearly expense like that. Every time we get robbed we take the loss fully. We still always regrouped and kept moving forward. Unfortunately, just last night we we’re robbed so mercilessly that my poor father has almost nothing to show for his life’s work. We were already gravely worried about the financial impact due to Covid-19 virus spreading fast and all non essential businesses being forced to close down here in Quebec. I would hear him talking about it all through the night with my mom about his concerns for putting food on the table and roof over our heads. If Covid-19 continues to ravage our community and our world. There’s a restaurant next door that was closed due to this and two thieves cut a huge hole through the restaurant stealing two huge safes that had all of his gold and precious stones and everything else they can get their hands on. All of his life’s savings to pass over to his children. 39 years of hard work down the drain in one night. It’s all my father knows how to do. He has been working since 9 years old and is truly the most honourable man I know. He doesn’t deserve to lose everything to the hands of thieves. We ask on everyone reading this to help us. My dad is a proud guy and wouldn’t even accept money if he knew I was doing this. We ask for the communities help now so that my father doesn’t go hungry.