Obituaries
ARTHUR SIDNEY GILLMAN born January 28, 1934 – died March 30, 2019
Arthur was the eldest son of Maurice and Ida Gillman; brother of Alec Gillman and Thomas Harold Gillman, who predeceased Arthur and Alec.
He leaves behind his wife of 60 years Louise (Fineblit) Gillman; children Avery Gillman (Winnipeg), and Susan Kayesar (husband Tal, Kfar Warburg, Israel); and beloved grandchildren Eitan, Shaked, Hadassah and Ilan Kayesar.
Arthur was loved and admired by many relatives; and numerous friends across Canada, the US and Israel. He was a true Renaissance man who read widely and thought deeply about public policy, mathematics, systems analysis, music, history, philosophy, politics, education, chess, mind-body integration, economics, statistics, self improvement, Shakespeare, … “the universe and all that”.
Arthur’s great joy was sharing his insights, his wisdom and knowledge with anyone who would listen and hold a conversation about it, especially his grandchildren. “Let me send you a reference about that” was a frequent phrase. He read voluminously. When the Internet came along, it opened huge horizons of knowledge to Arthur. He was a man with no vanity, strong intellectual curiosity, and was interested in people from all walks of life and all over the world. He was always trying to repair the world’s injustices by improving the systems, not just patching up parts. His motto was: “To thine own self be true. And it must follow, as the night the day, Thou canst not then be false to any man.” (Shakespeare).
Arthur was very family oriented. He valued his friendships. He was a violinist and a chess player. He was a strong follower of the Feldenkrais method of mind-body integration. Arthur had many hobbies and interests, too numerous to list here. He was a strong supporter of Israel and Judaism.
After reading the Club of Rome’s Report – “The Limits to Growth”, in 1972 and Rachel Carson’s “Silent Spring”, Arthur was persuaded that we humans are damaging our planet and did what he could to raise awareness. He helped to mitigate some of that environmental damage during his consultant days.
Arthur’s career path had many twists and turns. He delivered two newspapers as a boy. He became a disk jockey at a drive-in movie theatre. He was an itinerant photographer – taking photos of people at their work and selling them the pictures. Of course, he had his own darkroom and did his own developing. When Arthur dropped out of high school before completing it, he became a cook’s helper at the Bay. Eventually Arthur figured out this was not working well for him. His grandfather, Isaac Gilman, persuaded him to become a Chartered Accountant. Upon completion, Arthur worked for the tax office for a while, and then opened an independent office.
After Arthur and Louise married in 1959, Arthur enrolled at the University of Manitoba where he was able to follow his lifelong interests in Philosophy, Mathematics, Economics, and Statistics. His Master’s Degree thesis was on water resources management. After that, he taught Econometrics for a couple of years in the Faculty of Agriculture. Arthur then returned to pursue his PhD.
Before completing his doctoral thesis he was lured away to the Manitoba Civil Service to work at the Economic Development Advisory Board. Those were the glory days of the Ed Schreyer NDP government, which attracted many well educated social reform idealists from across Canada, who perceived an opportunity to improve people’s lives. They developed many new social initiatives.
Arthur started the Manitoba Bureau of Statistics which he used as a springboard to establish a number of innovative projects. Arthur was called the Father of Autopac, now MMPI.
Arthur ran a very successful trial in Dauphin to provide a Guaranteed Annual Income. Sadly, the Conservative government that succeeded the NDP closed the project down before the data were published.
When he left government, he started his own consulting company, Delphi Consultative Surveys and Research (International) Ltd. He developed his own methodology based on advanced mathematical, statistical and econometric foundations. He wrote his own computer software analytical programs for the data he collected. He did significant work for clients throughout Canada, the US and Great Britain. He did pro bono work for social organizations that were in keeping with Arthur’s values.
Many of his clients and people he met while traveling became his good friends over the years.
As Arthur’s health declined from the effects of Post Polio syndrome (he had Polio when he was seven years old) and hereditary diabetes. He traveled less but still continued his research, teaching and networking, closer to home and over the Internet.
Sadly, Arthur developed serious new health problems following surgery on April 2 this year and ended his days in the Palliative Care Unit 3 East at Riverview Health Centre, still trying to impart the importance and excitement of Fuzzy Logic and Bayes Theorem as well as the philosophical aspects of death and dying to his young doctors and nurses and his visitors. Arthur was buried June 2, 2019 at Bnay Abraham Cemetery in Winnipeg
We salute you Arthur! When you were around, life was full of wonder and interesting ideas.
Your ironic sense of humor got us through a lot of challenges.
Rest in peace.
We have so many people that we are grateful for:
Thank you to the Home Care aides who looked after Arthur with such care and kindness while he was at home, especially Rolando, Hailu and Gomeches. Thank you to the Home Care nurses, especially Ksenja, and to his Case Coordinator, BiNa.
Thank you to Arthur’s barber Sharon, and his foot care nurse Lori, who provided cheerful caring services to him at home.
Thank you to the knowledgeable doctors at Health Sciences Centre who tried to save Arthur but couldn’t.
Thank you to family and friends who have surrounded us with love and support and offerings of food, companionship, rides and other things – especially my brother Allan, sister Shirley, and friend Lynne.
Thank you to the friends living far away from Winnipeg who sent messages that I read to Arthur. Your words gave us both great pleasure. Thank you to two Toronto friends who attended Arthur’s funeral – Doug and Nathan.
Thank you to our daughter Susan who brought our grandchildren from Israel for a magical 10 day visit during which we laughed together, sang, told stories, and gave Arthur the chance do his final teaching.
Thank you to our son Avery who had his own health challenges at the same time that Arthur got sick but visited and offered support as best as he could. Thank you to friends and family who helped Avery with transportation.
Thank you to all the wonderful staff of 3 East – doctors, nurses, aides, students. You offered Arthur comfort, compassion, respect and dignity while dying. You helped us immeasurably to make the best of a bad situation. A special thanks to Dr. Robin McClure who really “grocked” Arthur.
Thank you to our new friend Kathy, who provided massages to Arthur in his last days that made him say: My body feels like air.
Thank you to Shelley at Etz Chaim Synagogue who helped us to arrange the funeral and burial; and to Rabbi Kliel Rose who conducted the funeral with great sensitivity.
If I have left someone out of the list, please know that we are grateful for your help and kindnesses.
If you wish to honor Arthur’s memory, please send donations to a fund that we have set up at the Riverview Health Centre Foundation. It will provide financial help to give alternative integrative care to patients on 3 East, the Palliative Care Unit, who could not otherwise afford it. This is comfort care beyond what basic health care offers. To donate, you may phone the Foundation at 204-478-6271 or online at www.give2rhcf.ca or mail to Riverview Health Centre Foundation, 1 Morley Ave, Winnipeg, MB R3L 9Z9
Obituaries
SALLY ANN NARR
Sally Ann Narr, born September 5, 1935, passed away peacefully on February 10, 2025, at the age of 89.
Sally was born and raised in Winnipeg’s North End, and attended William Whyte school and later St. John’s Tech. At 18 years old, Sally bravely made the decision to leave her family and friends in Winnipeg, and head to Los Angeles, California where she hoped to pursue a career in Hollywood. After arriving in LA, Sally got a job working at Farmer’s Insurance, until she landed her dream job at Capitol Records at Hollywood and Vine.
Sally absolutely loved her job at Capitol Records and often found herself partying with some of the most famous celebrities.
At a New Year’s Eve party in 1958, Sally met the love of her life, Frank, and they were married the following year on December 12, 1959. Sally and Frank were married for 65 years and were overjoyed when they welcomed their daughter, Heather on October 1, 1965. It was in 1969, some years after the Watts Riot in LA that Sally and Frank made the decision to leave LA and return to Winnipeg to raise their daughter. Once back in Winnipeg, Sally and Frank resided in the West Kildonan area for 43 years until they bought a condo and moved to the south end of the city to be close to their daughter and grandchildren.
Sally lived a full and rich life. Some of her fondest memories were going on a Caribbean cruise for hers and Frank’s 50th wedding anniversary with her family, going to Hawaii for her 80th birthday, and attending her granddaughter’s wedding in 2019. Beyond all of this, Sally’s greatest joy in life was when her two grandchildren were born. She was overjoyed to become a grandmother and said it was the best job in the world.
It was shortly after the arrival of her first great-granddaughter in 2022 that Sally became a resident of the Simkin Centre, a place she would call home for almost three years until her passing. The staff treated her with the utmost care and respect and helped guide her family through her battle with Alzheimers and in the last few months of her life, cancer.
Sally’s quality of life would not have been what it was if it was not for her devoted caregiver, Oxana. From 2020 to 2025, Oxana provided wonderful care for Sally through her compassion and dedication and love for both Sally and Frank. There are not enough ways to thank Oxana for everything she did for Sally and her entire family over their five years together.
Sally was predeceased by her parents, Ann and Nicholas Dutkevich and is survived by her husband, Frank Narr, her daughter Heather Cantor (Ed), granddaughter, Lexi Cantor (Dan Robillard), her grandson Ryan Cantor, great-granddaughters, Parker and Blake and her brother Joey Dutkevich (Karen).
The family requests that donations be made to the Alzheimer Association or the Simkin Centre in honour of Sally.
Obituaries
DR. ROBERT CORNE
It is with profound sadness that we announce the passing of Dr. Robert Corne on February 5, 2025.
Dr. Corne was married to Irene (née Genser), for 66 years; father of Lesley Corne Wolman, (spouse-Jeff Wolman), Janet Corne, (spouse-Michael Katz), Maureen Slama, (spouse-Avi Slama), and Eric Corne, (spouse-Aimee Corne).
Grandfather of Ariel Slama, Yale Wolman (spouse-Ashlie Sapiro), Serena Wolman, Liav Slama, Neeve Slama, Ira Corne and Lilly Corne.
Born in 1936 in Winnipeg, Robert was the only child Hy and Yhetta Corne. He attended both River Heights Elementary School and Kelvin High School. He entered University of Manitoba Medical School at the age of 18, winning the Ibsen scholarship. He married Irene Genser in 1958.
In 1960, Robert, Irene, and daughter Lesley, moved to Rochester, Minnesota, where Robert was a Fellow in Internal Medicine (1960-63) and a Fellow in Cardiology (1963-64) at the Mayo Clinic. Robert’s research interest was in cardiac pathology and in 1964 he received a Master’s in Science from the University of Minnesota. In1964 the young family, now including daughters, Janet and Maureen, moved to San Francisco where Robert spent a year at the Cardiovascular Research Institute, University of California San Francisco. Robert became a fellow of Royal College of Physicians of Canada, a Diplomat of American Board of Internal Medicine, and a Diplomat of the American Board of Cardiology.
The family returned to Winnipeg in 1965 and Robert joined his uncle, Dr. Norman Corne and Dr. Mossy Lehmann in private practice for three years. In 1968, he joined the Faculty of Medicine in the department of Cardiology at University of Manitoba. For several years he worked with Dr. Frank Matthewson in a natural history study of cardiac disease in Canadian Air Force pilots whom they followed for over 30 years. Robert also pursued a special interest in heart disease in women.
In 1977 Robert was appointed as The Lady Davis Professor of Medicine at the Hebrew University of Jerusalem, and the family, now including son, Eric, moved to Israel for the year. where Robert opened the department of Nuclear Cardiology at Hadassah Hospital in Jerusalem. He was privileged to take part in the first heart scan in Israel and participated in a cardiac evaluation of Prime Minister Menachem Begin.
The Corne family returned to Winnipeg in 1978, and Robert became the co-Director of Nuclear Cardiology and Director of Cardiac Ambulatory Care at Health Sciences Center. Teaching was an exciting and rewarding part of his academic life, and he became a full Professor of Medicine at the University of Manitoba. His research has been published in both the American Heart Journal and The American Journal of Cardiology.
Robert’s volunteer commitments included a seat on the Board of the Winnipeg Chapter of Hebrew University and was instrumental in launching the Academic Affairs Initiative. He was the Governor of the Prairie Provinces of American College of Cardiology, a councilor of the Canadian Cardiovascular Society, and a Member of the Council on Clinical Cardiology of the American Heart Association.
Despite his overwhelmingly numerous academic and professional achievements, he would say that his greatest accomplishment was his family: his four children and their spouses, eight grandchildren and sixty-six-year marriage to his beloved wife, Irene. He was a loving and caring husband, an exceptionally devoted father and an interested and involved grandfather who shared a unique relationship with each of his children and grandchildren. He was a loyal friend to many and a trusted colleague to all who worked alongside him.
Obituaries
EARL (ARIE) PERLMUTTER
We are saddened to announce the passing of our dear friend and cousin Arie Perlmutter at the age of 77. Arie died peacefully after a brief but difficult struggle with cancer on April 12, 2025.
He was predeceased by his parents, Hymie and Thelma and by his beloved sister Sheila.
Arie developed and maintained many close friends throughout his life. He attended St. John’s High in the 60s and kept in touch with many of his classmates. He began his working life as a delivery driver for City Bread. This was followed by a career of over 20 years at Advance Electronics, where he was a well-respected and expert sales associate. He hung out at North End Sals, for virtually his entire life, discussing (arguing? kibitzing?) with many people too numerous to name, the issues of the day but especially about sports, and most especially about baseball.
In his retired life, he was a member of Larters Golf Club, golfing with much enthusiasm and passion, if not prowess. Arie donated to and volunteered at the Winnipeg Humane Society for many years.
His family and friends would like to thank the staff at the St. Boniface Hospital whose compassionate and caring attention to Arie in his final days was truly a great comfort to him.
In keeping with Arie’s wishes, cremation has taken place and no funeral will be held.
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