Mario Paradis (1961-2022): ‘For us, he will always be Super Mario’

Mario Paradis, Concordia’s procurement systems analyst, died on February 25, 2022. He was 60.

Paradis joined Procurement Services, the department responsible for acquiring the university’s goods and services, in 2012, and began at his most recent position in 2016. But from the late 1970s until the early 2000s, he worked at various part- and full-time positions for Distribution Services, Printing Services and Computing Services — now Instructional and Information Technology Services.

Paradis’s Procurement Services colleagues remember him fondly for his dedication to his work and his good nature.

“Mario cared about people, and he had a kind heart,” says Caroline Bogner, senior director of Procurement Services.

“Professionally, he was extremely knowledgeable, and I could always count on him. He was integral in providing support to the university community and he was dedicated to his work, his procurement team and the whole university,” she says.

“Even when Mario was in palliative care, he was calling me to schedule a meeting to explain something work related that he felt he missed. His dedication was incredible.”

“Mario was a wonderful colleague and friend,” says Daniela DiPaola, senior buyer. “We will remember Mario for his kindness, his soft nature and his wonderful sense of humour.”

“For us, he will always be Super Mario,” adds buyer Josy Filyon.

Erin Clahane, an assistant buyer, has many warm memories of Paradis. She relates his “love of weak coffee, schlepping around the office trolling for used coffee pods.”

Clahane also reveals that Paradis enjoyed his “15 minutes of fame” thanks to his appearance on La Guerre des Clans, the French version of Family Feud.

Hilary A. Asaba, a buyer, recalls a more recent, emotional encounter with Paradis.

“I remember going to visit him at the hospital in Saint-Hubert, thinking I will see a beaten Mario,” he says. “On the contrary, we parted ways with Mario making me feel better than I had in days.”