Obituaries
MIA COHEN NIMCHONOK
With great sorrow, we announce the death of our wise, beautiful, and wonderful mother, grandmother, and sister Mia Cohen Nimchonok who passed away on May 19, 2023, at St. Boniface Hospital.
Miriam, known to all as Mia, was a child of the Holocaust, born less than a month after the outbreak of WWII to Rosa and Lazar in Czernowitz, then Romania, today Ukraine. In the winter of 1942, the Romanian authorities expelled Jews who could not prove family presence in the country for the ‘previous hundred and fifty years.’ Among them were Mia, her mother, her birth father, and her grandmother Shayveh. The expelled Jews were forced across the Dniester River into the killing fields of German Nazi-occupied Poland. Along the way, Babeh Shayveh, with many others, was murdered by the Germans, and father Lazar escaped back to Romania. Arriving in the Borszczow ghetto Rosa and Mia met Moshe, the man Rosa would marry after the war and who would become Mia’s true father. When the ghetto was liquidated in the Spring of 1943, Moshe, Rosa and Mia escaped together into the surrounding forests, where they were eventually discovered by a Ukrainian peasant named Bevsky, who took them in and hid them until, with the help of a smuggler, they returned to Czernowitz. In 1944, when Moshe was in Bucharest arranging ‘illegal’ aliyah for them to Eretz Yisrael, the Red Army occupied Czernowitz, and contact with Rosa and Mia was lost. From then until 1947, Rosa and Mia survived, wandering through Romania and Hungary, and Austria ending up in a DP (displaced persons) camp in Germany. Moshe found them there and brought them to Eretz Yisrael. In 1950, after Israel’s War of Independence, the family moved to Winnipeg, joining Moshe’s sister Gusty, who had emigrated there in 1929.
Mia spent the rest of her life in Winnipeg, establishing and caring for her family. She worked for over twenty years as a caregiver at the old Sharon Home, deeply loved and cherished by residents and colleagues alike. Notwithstanding the hard times, Mia persevered and devoted endless energy to raising her children, educating them, and protecting them from the vagaries of life. She also loved animals and especially the dogs of her later years, Amanda and Mandy.
Through adversity and in better times, Mia remained the kindest, most giving, loving person, whose strength of character and goodness were the anchor for her family and a boon to all who benefitted from her friendship and acquaintance. Above all, she retained a strong sense of humour, tinged with a smidgen of irony that allowed her, quoting Shakespeare’s Hamlet, to deal with ‘the slings and arrows of outrageous fortune.’
All who knew her give thanks for having shared time with her on earth and celebrate the life of our heroine Mia’le.
Mia is survived by her children, Lenore, Rita, Fred, Sam, and his spouse Larissa; her granddaughters Taylor and Jordynn; her brother Zev, his spouse Rita and children Jonathan and Ron; and her brother Haim, his spouse Clila and children Eyal and Libbi.
Obituaries
ESTHER MINUK Dec. 27, 1932 – April 3, 2026
Esther Bat Hershel Ve Devorah
It is with deep sadness that we announce the passing of Esther Minuk, beloved matriarch of our family. She was predeceased by her bashert, her beloved husband, Julius; her parents, Doris and Harry Golub; and her sister, Evelyn (Herbie).
Esther was a loving and proud mother, Baba, and Great-Baba to her children Yale, Rhonda (Tom), Perry (Abby), Jody, and Marla (Franklin); her grandchildren Jordan (Amy), Daniel (Allie), Allie (Jordan), Hannah, and Lily; and her great-grandchildren Julian, Aidan, and Eddie.
Known to many as `Queen Esther’, she led with kindness and integrity, always seeing the good in others. Her home was open and welcoming, filled with warmth, laughter, and love. She was sharp, compassionate, and deeply devoted to her family. We are heartbroken and forever grateful for the love and legacy she leaves behind. She will be eternally missed by her family.
Memorial donations may be made to B’nai Brith of Canada Foundation, 416-633-6224, https://bit.ly/4bRsabI or Sunnybrook Foundation, 416-480-4483, www.sunnybrook.ca/foundation
Obituaries
MILTON FREEDMAN
It is with profound sadness and much love that I announce the passing of Milton Freedman on October 30th, 2025, three months after we celebrated his 100th birthday. Milton was predeceased by his parents, Helen and Peter, his older brother Sam, and his younger brother Sid, with whom he shared a very special relationship. He is survived by his wife Joanie, his sister Ruby Donner, nieces and nephews, great nieces and great nephews, and a great-great nephew.
Family and friends meant everything to Milton, and there wasn’t anything he wouldn’t do for them. He was gentle and kind, quiet and dignified, thoughtful and wise. He gave the best advice, but only if asked.
Milton and I liked to travel, and for many years spent the winter in Palm Springs. We also travelled to Europe and England, and felt most at home in London. We reminisced endlessly about the river cruises we went on, and the amazing places we had the opportunity to visit, whether it was having dinner at a restaurant overlooking the North Sea, or attending a private concert at a palace in Vienna, or tasting Black Forest cake especially prepared for us, while we were in Germany’s Black Forest region. It all was stunning, magical, delicious. But it was the people we met along the way, who made everything even more special, and we never forgot them.
Milton was an avid reader, inhaling newspapers, magazines, and books as if they were oxygen. Remarkably, he remembered much of what he read, and it wasn’t unusual for him to quote a passage from a book that he had read years earlier, if it was relevant to a conversation. It was not to show off…that wasn’t who he was.
Milton was a runner, and for years ran ten miles, three times a week. On the days he didn’t run, he walked outdoors for two and a half hours. Eventually, he gave up running, preferring to walk seven days a week no matter the season, no matter the weather. This continued until he was well into his 80’s. And even in his 90’s Milton remained determined to walk, at first using one cane, then two, then a walker. When he was asked, how he did it, Milton simply said, “Just keep putting one foot in front of the other.” On occasion he might add, “And eventually you’ll get to where you’re going.”
Sage advice.
Milton is deeply missed, and will forever be remembered.
Obituaries
MARLI REBECCA SILVERMAN
Marli Rebecca Silverman passed away on March 11th at the age of 43 from end-stage renal disease. She lived her life with meaning, courage, and resilience, and touched everyone who knew her with her strength, warmth, and spirit.
She leaves behind her beloved daughter, Rylee, who was the light of her life; her father, Bruce; her brother, Matthew; Rylee’s father, Drake; and many family members and dear friends who will carry her memory forward with love.
Marli will be deeply missed and forever remembered for the impact she made on those around her.
May her memory be a blessing.
Donations in Marli’s memory may be made to Breakthrough T1D (breakthrought1d.ca).