Connie Magnusson Schimnowski, MSW

Raised in Gimli, Connie Magnusson Schimnowski is a third-generation Icelander whose grandparents arrived in the Gimli area in 1876.

After attaining her master’s degree in social work from the University of Manitoba, Magnusson Schimnowski worked as a community services outreach coordinator for seniors and later as a social worker for the Middlechurch Home of Winnipeg. In 2005, she became the first palliative care support coordinator for the northeast Interlake region.

Connie’s volunteer activities included sitting on CancerCare Manitoba’s board of directors and membership on the CancerCare Advisory Council representing rural cancer concerns. She was a former board member of the Elizabeth Fry Society, working as an advocate for women in conflict with the law.

She is the past chair of The Betel Home palliative care committee.

Magnusson Schimnowski is a recipient of the Nellie McClung Award in 2016 and the Queen Elizabeth II Diamond Jubilee Medal.