Obituaries
HELEN KAHANE
June 16, 1920 – November 11, 2018
With deep sadness we mourn the death of our beloved mother Helen Kahane who passed away November 11, 2018.
She graced our lives with her generosity of spirit, diamond sharp intellect and golden care. Helen elevated us all right until the end of her 98 years. Funeral services were held at the Shaarey Zedek Synagogue on Nov.13, 2018 led by Bill Weisman and her grandson Rabbi Ariel Goldberg. Pallbearers were her grandchildren Lorence Bryans, Hava Goldberg, Avi Goldberg, Lisa Goldberg Najman, Alicia Kutner Goldenberg and Mike Katz.
Interment was at the Shaarey Zedek cemetery. Donations may be made to the Helen and Maurice Kahane Fund of the Jewish Foundation of Manitoba and Canadian Hadassah-WIZO. Thank you to Dr. Colin Fletcher, the WRHA Palliative Care and the Grace Hospital Internal Medicine teams. We will always be grateful for her loving caregivers from “Friendly Caregiver Seniors Care” in her final few years and the support of the Shaftesbury Park Retirement Residence.
Born in 1920 in Winnipeg, eldest child of Sarah and Jacob Diamond, Helen grew up in Plum Coulee, Manitoba along with her brothers Lazar and Harold. Z”l. Her parents were instrumental in the community as the owners of the Queen’s Hotel and she was raised in the heart of the community with strong Jewish values, work ethic and loving kindness. At age 16, Helen moved to Winnipeg to complete grade 12 at Wesley Collegiate and went on to earn a BSC at the University of Manitoba, trained as a RN and became the head of Obstetrics at the Misericordia Hospital. In 1946 Helen married the love of her life, Maurice Kahane and devoted herself as a wife and mother of her four daughters; Barbara (Stephen Kutner of Holliston, MA), Ruth (Harvey Goldberg of Ottawa, Ont.), Debra(Sheldon Goldberg of Lions Bay, B.C.), and Joan (Paul Bryans of Salt Spring Island, B.C.)
Her immediate and extended family were the focus of her loving attention. She was a guiding force in each of her grandchildren’s lives and will be greatly missed by Ariel (Francesca), Hava (Mike), Avi(Amy), Lisa (Jonathan), Alicia (Teddy), Blake( Meredith) and Lorence. When she was not being the unsurpassed hostess to her family members, she travelled across the continent to visit them. She was an essential part of every family milestone. She was thrilled to be a great-grandmother to Sage, Rye, Elliott, and Olivia.
During the past few years she enjoyed having her brother-in-law, Leonard Kahane also living at the Shaftesbury. She loved and treasured her in-laws, nieces, nephews, cousins and their families. She became the matriarch of the Kahane/Diamond/Kluner and Jacob families and was cherished by everyone whose lives she touched.
Helen invested countless years volunteering and naturally rose to leadership roles, a pillar in the community, making an imprint on organizations such as Canadian Hadassah-WIZO, Shaarey Zedek Synagogue Sisterhood and the River Heights Community Centre.
Helen was a lifelong learner and taught her children to be strong, kind and honest. She lived a meaningful life. May our mother Helen’s memory be a blessing always.
Obituaries
EDITH LANDY
June 30, 1920 – July 2, 2025
After a long and fulfilling life, our Mother passed on July 2, 2025. Born in Winnipeg, she grew up as part of a large extended family.
Mother was predeceased by her parents, Joseph Mayer Freiden and Rivka (nee Fordman), our father, David Landy, and her sisters Syma Katz and Jennie Rich. Edith is survived by her five children and their families: Laurie Landy and Nora Spinks, Barbara and Paul Livingston, Bob and Rhonda Landy, Mark Landy and Jenifer, and Martin Landy, her grandchildren Saralyn, Adam, Alex, Joshua, Ethan, Caitlin, David, Alicia, Lily, and six great-grandchildren, her cousins Norma Chernick and Shlomo Mayman and her many friends and relatives.
Mom grew up as part of a large extended family in the North End of Winnipeg, guided by her father’s values of service, community and the importance of family. She entered the School of Nursing at the Winnipeg General Hospital, now the Health Sciences Centre. She progressed from general duty nurse to nursing supervisor and served as the Assistant Director of Nursing for 15 years until her retirement in 1983. Over the course of her five-decade nursing career, she raised five children, managed a household, cared for many extended family members and remained actively involved in the community.
Community was a foundation of Mom’s life. Mom was very proud of her volunteering at the Winnipeg International Children’s Festival, Winnipeg Folk Fest and other community events. She and David were patrons of the arts, including the Royal Winnipeg Ballet, the Royal Manitoba Theatre Centre and the Manitoba Opera. In 2024, she was recognized as the longest continuous subscriber to the Winnipeg Symphony Orchestra.
The North Centennial Seniors Association played an important role in our parents’ later years. She ran her kitchen crew, supervised Hot Dog Day and provided food for many bus trips. Mom’s legacy was the Grandma Grandpa Swim Club, which she established, raised funds for, and built into a strong organization.
After a long and remarkable life of service and giving care, Mom accepted the need to receive care. The Family would like to thank Melita and Nelissa for their care and dedication, as well as the staff of the Simkin Centre, especially on Weinberg 2.
We cannot put into words how much she will be missed.
In lieu of flowers, donations can be sent to the Joseph Freiden Scholarship for Jewish Studies at the Jewish Foundation of Manitoba.
A service was held July 4, 2025, at Chesed Shel Emes – Winnipeg.
Obituaries
SUSAN DIANA FRANKEL
In the kitchen above her to-do list, Susan Diana Frankel kept a comic strip of a mother bird encouraging her baby to take its first leap into flight. “Go for it!” reads the speech bubble above the mother bird. But a second bubble shows her thinking silently to herself: Just don’t go too far.
I’ve always thought that image perfectly captured our mom. She was our biggest cheerleader and greatest supporter – and out of sheer love, she wanted to spend as much time with her family as possible: Matthew and Elly, Robby and Rae, Jed and Eugenia, and our devoted dad, Harvey, her partner of 45 years. In addition to being a loving mother and spouse, she was a perfect grandmother – or “Boba” – to her three granddaughters: Romi, Esti, and Aria, whom she loved obsessively. Our mom passed away at home on June 4. She was our best friend, and to say we are devastated or that we will miss her greatly feels wholly inadequate.
Predeceased by her parents Max and Esther Weinstein and her older brother Joel (Cathie), she will forever be loved and remembered by her brothers Sidney (Grace) and Barry (Sharon), her sister Ronni (Michael), her confidante Edie (Marcel), as well as dozens of nieces, nephews, cousins, and very close friends.
Susan was born the youngest of five children on February 8, 1958, in Winnipeg. The Weinstein family lived in Melville, Saskatchewan, until 1963 before settling in Winnipeg for good. She spent summers in Gimli and at BB Camp, attended both Joseph Wolinsky Collegiate and the University of Winnipeg Collegiate, and later earned a bachelor’s degree from the University of Manitoba (as well as spending a semester at the University of Miami while visiting her parents at their winter condo in Florida – Go Hurricanes!).
My mom married our dad, Harvey, in 1981. They were a shining example of a loving partnership – completely devoted to each other in sickness and in health. They raised us three boys to be close and family-oriented. It feels strange to reduce some of my mom’s favourite places and memories to a list, but that list would include: the family cottage in Gimli, traveling to Palm Springs, Florida, Toronto, Hawaii, Italy, and Las Vegas, shopping and dining with friends and family, playing Mahj, chatting about movies and shows, dragging my dad to social outings and making him change his outfit before they left the house, watching Winnipeg Jets games, and constantly rewatching videos of her granddaughters.
Our mom had a way of making people she’d just met feel like part of her inner circle. She was genuinely interested in what you were doing, how it was going, and how she could help. She asked questions (sometimes a few too many!) because she cared – never because she was nosy. She had a wonderful sense of humour and truly loved to laugh. When something was really funny, you’d sometimes get a snort and even a tear or two. She was simply the best.
Our family would like to thank everyone for the outpouring of love and support we’ve received during this extremely difficult time. A special thank-you to the healthcare workers who gave our mom such a remarkable quality of life despite living with stage 4 cancer for more than seven years: Dr. Marshall Pitz, all the nurses and staff at CancerCare, her homecare worker Lisa, and our family’s incredible friend and caregiver, Gemma Marciano.
Obituaries
SIDNEY RITTER
August 30, 1936 – June 20, 2025
Surrounded by his loved ones, Sidney left this world peacefully on Friday, June 20, 2025.
He is survived by his children Michael (Flynn Gerb), Beth Goldberg (Bobby), Alan and Andrea, and his sister-in-law Elsa Swedko (the late Norman). His memory will live on in his grandchildren, Zachary Goldberg (Karlene), Jessica Goldberg (Rhys Sharkey) and Stefanie Steigerwald (Alex), Halley Ritter, Brianna and Madeline Ritter, Francie and Sari Goldenberg, and great-grandchildren Brooks Goldberg and Ava Steigerwald.
Sidney was born and grew up in Rouyn-Noranda, Quebec, where he forged many lifelong friendships. He moved to Winnipeg following his marriage to the love of his life, Hinda, of blessed memory. Together, they built a beautiful home for their family, filled with love and caring for their community. Sidney’s commitment to making his world a better place is evident in his extensive volunteer work with the Chai Folk Ensemble, his synagogue, Folklorama and the Folk Arts Council, and his exemplary 62 years of perfect attendance at the Rotary Club of Winnipeg.
Funeral services were held on June 23, 2025, at the Rosh Pina Memorial Park. Contributions in Sidney’s memory may be made to The Jewish Foundation of Manitoba, or to a charity of your choice.