Sylvia Barmakian (born Syrpouhi Tatigian), much loved and now deeply missed by a multitude of family and friends, passed on calmly and at peace in hospice care on March 27, 2023, four days shy of her 87th birthday. Sylvia no doubt enjoyed a joyous reunion and birthday celebration with her identical twin sister Lillian, who passed in 2020, and their husbands Vahan and Diran, also identical twins. Yes, in 1958 identical twins married identical twins, a rare phenomenon called a “quaternary” marriage. Sylvia and Vahan remained happily married for 60 years until Vahan’s death on Father’s Day in 2018. They lovingly raised three surviving children – Adreena, Nyree, and Adam – living with Lillian and Diran and their four daughters in spacious homes in Arlington and later in Winchester, MA.
Sylvia was born in Ville-Émard, Montreal to Ohonnes (John) and Youghaper Tatigian, who independently had left Armenia for Canada as youngsters to escape the genocide. They met, married, and created a successful life in Canada, first owning a French bakery and later moving to Lachine, where they operated a hamburger joint that served as a favorite local hang-out for teenagers. Sylvia loved working at the bakery and the restaurant with her twin and their father, a sociable jokester. And she was quite the mischievous prankster, such as the time she quietly poured marbles into the baker’s mixing bowl, destroying the French bread business for the day. Sylvia retained her inner child the rest of her life.
Sylvia traveled the world, but her favorite place by far was her summer home on Martha’s Vineyard, where she cherished every summer with the extended Barmakian families and many friends. In their later years, Sylvia and Lillian continually sat on their front or back porches while a steady stream of friends, family, and neighbors would stop by to chat. Syl and Lil were Oak Bluffs fixtures. Everyone loved their company.
Sylvia was an inveterate sports fan, primarily of baseball and hockey, but she was happy watching almost any sport; or in the days when all games weren’t televised, she would stay up well after midnight just to listen to radio broadcasts of West Coast games. Sylvia quickly became a Boston fan, replacing the Montreal Canadiens with the Bruins and causing frequent teasing with her brothers who remained in Canada, Charlie and Emile. Sylvia was a genuine fanatic. When the Red Sox heartbreakingly lost the 1986 World Series, she barely spoke for two days after constant cursing during the final two games.
Sylvia was a fabulous cook, especially of Armenian delicacies; an energetic gardener; and a talented athlete. She enjoyed badminton and golf and excelled at tennis and bowling in leagues well into her 70s. With her feisty sense of humor and enthusiasm, Sylvia made every activity fun. Her favorite quiet hobbies were painting, knitting, which she continued to her final days, and all manner of needlecraft. She was skilled at the most creative, intricate knitting patterns. Sylvia knitted countless sweaters and hooked many large rugs for her family. She knitted and donated hundreds of patches to be turned into quilts for charities.
A woman of understated elegance and uncommon grace and wisdom, Sylvia was humble and judgment-free, treating everyone magnanimously with the same warmth, compassion, and understanding. Out of respect for others, Sylvia was always smartly but simply dressed, even when ill. She was comically uninterested in jewelry, ironic considering that was the family business.
Although Sylvia had short-term memory issues in her last years, she retained and regaled family and friends with meaningful and entertaining longer-term memories. And she never ceased reminiscing about her idyllic childhood and teen years in Canada. Sylvia maintained her keen wit, delightful sense of humor, and love of family, friends, and community to the end.
In addition to her three children, Sylvia leaves Nyree’s husband, Eduardo Valdes; three grandsons, Evan Valdes (wife Sarah), Emil Valdes, and Oliver Valdes; four nieces, Lillian’s daughters to whom Sylvia was also a mother-figure, Sima (husband Bruce Seymourian), Liane (husband Edward Bush), Krista (husband Marc Janigian), and Deanna (husband Michael Jimenez); and grandnieces and grandnephews Ariana, Jacob, Gabi, Talene, Isabel, Greta, Leo, Lily, Diran, and Berj. Sylvia was a fiercely loyal and protective matriarch. Her love, warmth, and kindness are sorely missed.
Funeral and burial services were private. Memorial gifts may be made to Felix Neck Wildlife Sanctuary on Martha’s Vineyard. https://www.massaudubon.org/get-outdoors/wildlife-sanctuaries/felix-neck/support.