{"id":38173,"date":"2026-05-14T14:11:05","date_gmt":"2026-05-14T18:11:05","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newspapers-online.com\/auroran\/?p=38173"},"modified":"2026-05-14T14:11:18","modified_gmt":"2026-05-14T18:11:18","slug":"hundreds-pay-tribute-to-saberi-at-celebration-of-life","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newspapers-online.com\/auroran\/hundreds-pay-tribute-to-saberi-at-celebration-of-life\/","title":{"rendered":"Hundreds pay tribute to Saberi at Celebration of Life"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

Hundreds gathered at the Stronach Aurora Recreation Complex on Saturday, May 2, to celebrate the life of Sam Saberi, owner of the popular Tina\u2019s Grill, and Aurora\u2019s 2022 Citizen of the Year.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Saberi, who left behind a legacy of community building and giving, died suddenly on April 21, aged just 41.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Community leaders joined the Saberi family at the SARC where the floor of the arena quickly filled with residents from Aurora and beyond who had been touched by Sam\u2019s legacy of giving.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cSam was a respected member of the community, a wonderful friend, a trusted neighbour, and someone who genuinely cared about the people around him,\u201d said Aurora-Oak Ridges-Richmond Hill MPP Michael Parsa, who was one of several speakers paying tribute to Saberi at the podium. \u201cWhether it was through his kindness, his support, or simply a presence, Sam made people feel seen. He made them feel valued and simply supported.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

He was, Parsa said, a person people could always depend on, and someone who \u201cgave selflessly and genuinely.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cHe really cared about the people in the community,\u201d he continued. \u201cHis dedication to serving the community wasn\u2019t just something he did, it is who Sam was and the values he lived by every single day. His impact is reflected in the love, respect, and gratitude so many people in the community feel today.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Parsa said he first met Saberi when he went to Tina\u2019s Grill and \u201cknew right away he was a special guy.\u201d Noting his love for the Philadelphia Flyers, he noted that, in this community, only Sam could \u201cput up a whole bunch of posters and signs of another NHL team, get away with it, and be loved by everybody.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cTo the entire Saberi family, thank you so much for sharing Sam with all of us,\u201d he concluded. \u201cSam will be deeply missed, but he\u2019ll never be forgotten, and his memory will continue to inspire all of us. I learned a lot from Sam and I\u2019m sure others will tell you the same, and I know you\u2019re very proud of him because we all are. As a life-long Leafs fan, I\u2019ve never been known to cheer for any other team, but I\u2019ve publicly posted for the remainder of the NHL playoffs I\u2019ll be rooting for the Philadelphia Flyers, who have a special guest waiting for them.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Saberi\u2019s love for the Flyers was also noted in a moving eulogy offered by his niece, Maya Hamer, who was accompanied at the podium by her brother, Mason.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Maya recalled joining her uncle at a Leafs-Flyers game and the fun they had making special signs for the game. Hers said, \u201cGo Leafs Go,\u201d while Sam\u2019s simply said, \u201cI failed as an uncle!\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cLooking back on that day, he never failed me as an uncle; he was the best uncle I could ever ask for,\u201d she said, adding he was her number-one supporter. \u201cAlthough he never gave me a cousin, he did have a child of his own, which was Tina\u2019s Grill. He loved that restaurant, and loved everyone who supported it, especially at times like COVID. Everyone\u2019s support just pushed them through, and I know he appreciated every single one of you guys so much.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cI know Sam would really appreciate every single one of you for coming today, so every time you see the colours of orange or black together, every time the Flyers win, or the Eagles, or the Blue Jays, or the Raptors, still think of him. Every time Morgan Wallen comes on the radio or country music, think of him. Every time you witness silly pranks\u2026 think of him. Most importantly, every time you see someone that has a smile that fills the entire room, always puts others before themselves, and always shares kindness with everyone, think of him. That’s the legacy he left behind, and we must continue it.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cI encourage you to reach out and give back to the community. Commit acts of kindness and treat others with love, as that is what Sam would do. His name was big in Aurora, but his heart was even bigger.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Tina\u2019s Grill, located on McClellan Way, just east of Bathurst Street, re-opened for business, for the first time since Saberi\u2019s passing, on May 5.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Sharing a message from her grandparents, Hossein and Azar, Maya noted it was their way of keeping Sam\u2019s legacy alive in the community.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cWhen Sam went to heaven on April 21, we thought our lives were over too and there was no future for us,\u201d said Azar and Hossein in the message delivered by their granddaughter. \u201cBut after all of your support and the unbelievable comments, it gave us enough strength to follow his heart and legacy he had left behind. We go back to work to keep his name and legacy alive forever. We promise this from the bottom of our hearts.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

By Brock Weir
Editor
Local Journalism Initiative Reporter<\/strong><\/p>\n\r\n\"Facebook\"<\/a>\"twitter\"<\/a>\"mail\"<\/a>","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Hundreds gathered at the Stronach Aurora Recreation Complex on Saturday, May 2, to celebrate the life of Sam Saberi, owner of the popular Tina\u2019s Grill, and Aurora\u2019s 2022 Citizen of the Year. Saberi, who left behind a legacy of community building and giving, died suddenly on April 21, aged just 41. Community leaders joined the […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":3,"featured_media":38174,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_jetpack_newsletter_access":"","_jetpack_dont_email_post_to_subs":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_tier_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paywalled_content":false,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":"","jetpack_publicize_message":"","jetpack_publicize_feature_enabled":true,"jetpack_social_post_already_shared":true,"jetpack_social_options":{"image_generator_settings":{"template":"highway","default_image_id":0,"font":"","enabled":false},"version":2},"jetpack_post_was_ever_published":false},"categories":[4,5],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-38173","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-general_news","category-news"],"jetpack_publicize_connections":[],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"https:\/\/www.newspapers-online.com\/auroran\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/05\/2026-05-14-11.jpg","jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"jetpack_shortlink":"https:\/\/wp.me\/p3D2k4-9VH","publishpress_future_action":{"enabled":false,"date":"2026-05-21 16:44:30","action":"change-status","newStatus":"draft","terms":[],"taxonomy":"category","extraData":[]},"publishpress_future_workflow_manual_trigger":{"enabledWorkflows":[]},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newspapers-online.com\/auroran\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/38173","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newspapers-online.com\/auroran\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newspapers-online.com\/auroran\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newspapers-online.com\/auroran\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/3"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newspapers-online.com\/auroran\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=38173"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/www.newspapers-online.com\/auroran\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/38173\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":38175,"href":"https:\/\/www.newspapers-online.com\/auroran\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/38173\/revisions\/38175"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newspapers-online.com\/auroran\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/38174"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newspapers-online.com\/auroran\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=38173"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newspapers-online.com\/auroran\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=38173"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newspapers-online.com\/auroran\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=38173"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}