Obituary of Winifred Lipman

LIPMAN, Winifred Clare 1919-2016 Our beloved Win passed away peacefully at Mount Sinai Hospital after almost a century of advocating for the rights of women, seniors and persons with disabilities. Predeceased by her loving husband of 57 years, Gordon, she will be dearly missed by her children Penny and Peter (Barbara Lord, her "third child") and family. Win was an amazing, doting Nanny to grandchildren Julia (Drew Baker) and Derek, and treasured great-grandchild Gordon Ross Baker. Born up the street from Wembley Stadium in London, England, she worked on the home front during the Second World War and slept in the London Underground during the Blitz. In 1953, the family immigrated to Hamilton, ON, where Win made an outstanding contribution to women and seniors. A bookkeeper at Dominion Stores for 30 years, in 1966 she was elected the first woman District Chairman of RWDSU Local 414, a position she held until her retirement from the role in 1982. She was a member of the Ontario Federation of Labour Executive Board and a founding member of the OFL Women's Committee. Following mandatory retirement from Dominion in 1984, Win immediately threw her energies into creating Senior Peer Counselling Hamilton-Wentworth, a unique volunteer counselling service and outreach program. She acted as volunteer President, chief fundraiser and media spokesperson and assisted other communities in forming their own programs from 1984-1994. She was also a founding member of the City of Hamilton's Senior Citizens Council and was a member of the city's Long Term Care Coalition, steering committee for Hospitals and the Mayor's Race Relations Committee. After officially retiring in 1995, Win moved to Toronto to be close to her children and grandchildren and turned her focus to acting as her husband's primary caregiver. She also enjoyed having more time to spend with the family cats and surfing the net for the latest trends in cooking and baking. Always a political activist, as her mobility decreased Win supported now-Premier Kathleen Wynne's campaigns by baking for the volunteers. In possession of all her faculties and independent in her own home in her final year with the support of her daughter, Win delighted in celebrating Gordie's first birthday and voting for Prime Minister Justin Trudeau. Thanks to the wonderful staff at Bridgepoint Health and Mount Sinai Hospital for all your expertise and caring support this year. The family will receive friends at the HUMPHREY FUNERAL HOME A.W. MILES - NEWBIGGING CHAPEL, 1403 Bayview Avenue (south of Davisville Avenue) from 5:00 - 8:00 p.m. Thursday, January 21, 2016. Funeral service in the chapel on Friday, January 22, 2016 at 10:30 a.m. If desired, donations to Toronto Humane Society or Mount Sinai Hospital would be appreciated. Condolences and memories may be forwarded through www.humphreymilesnewbigging.com.