Lindor Marion Rose Heuvel Reynolds

Sadly, on October 17, 2014, Lindor Marion Rose (Heuvel) Reynolds, succumbed to brain cancer. She was predeceased by her father, Jack Heuvel, and brother John Scott Heuvel. She leaves behind her beloved husband Neil Dempsey and the extended Cristall family, mother Gloria and adored daughter Kate McPhaden (Alex), who was the light of her life. She also leaves behind cherished stepdaughters Haley, Emma and Jill Dempsey and is survived by her best friend, Cate Harrington and wife Karen Teese. Lindor grew up in West Kildonan, spending her entire childhood at 4 Teakwood Ave., the small bungalow her parents transformed into a home. She mythologized coming home to fresh bread, her mother's perogies, garden vegetables and home-cooked meals. When she left home, it was with the idea that cooking is love. Indeed, when she met her future stepdaughters, she told them that anytime they came home to the smell of diced garlic simmering in olive oil, the chef was in a good mood. She wanted to be a journalist from the time she realized real people could have this exciting life. She briefly considered the ministry but ultimately chose the right path. Lindor got her first article published in the Free Press when she was 17. She followed that up with a job in the composing room on the hopes that she'd "be discovered" (there might have been a bit of a 1950s box office musical thinking going on here). When that didn't happened, she got her B.A. at the University of Winnipeg, married and then attended Carleton University's Bachelor of Journalism program. The promised fame, fortune and job with the Globe and Mail did not follow, and she came back to Winnipeg and worked for the fledgling Winnipeg Sun. Following The Sun, Lindor briefly took a job with the Province of Manitoba before realizing she'd taken a serious wrong turn. She and first husband Randy Reynolds quit their jobs, sold their house, his business and all their possessions and moved to Montserrat, an island paradise in the British West Indies. It was an idyllic time, highlighted by Lindor's pregnancy with Kate. The future family came back to Canada for Kate's birth and moved to St. Croix in the US Virgin Islands when she was 10 months old. Kate took her first steps on an airplane to her mother's eternal pride. When they returned to Canada, it was time to rebuild. Lindor started actively freelancing. She wrote four books of non-fiction for a U.S. publisher, penned The Green Guide to Winnipeg, wrote and voiced documentary screenplays and built her newspaper and magazine portfolio. In 1994, the Winnipeg Free Press hired her as a columnist, a dream come true for the hometown girl. Lindor saw her column as an ongoing conversation with Manitobans. She wrote about her passions - protection for vulnerable children and women, the ongoing need to see other people's children as our own, justice, the need for protection for the mentally ill and the rights of the poor. She was impassioned, and she covered stories that would not otherwise have been told. She earned a bookcase filled with awards including three Michener nominations for Meritorious Public Service in Journalism, a 2013 National Newspaper Award and The Will Rogers Humanitarian Award, given for her philanthropy which included running the paper's Pennies From Heaven campaign for a decade and co-chairing Victoria General Hospital's Medicine and Miracles fundraising campaign. She discovered the life of a travel writer and saw the world, a childhood ambition. She visited Senegal, Kenya, Norway, China, Malaysia, Dubai and many other spots on the map. Travelling made her happy, and she bragged endlessly about her carryon-bag-packing abilities. She faced her course of radiation and chemo treatment with grace and dignity. She was a fighter, a survivor and braver than she'd admit. Her strong Christian faith helped her endure the early months following diagnosis. Lindor raised thousands of dollars for CancerCare Manitoba and Free The Children following her diagnosis. She gathered friends easily, people drawn to her kindness and sincere interest in them. When she was diagnosed with brain cancer in 2013, an amazing group of women rallied to drive Lindor to her appointments, cook family meals and keep her company. The family thanks these wonderful angels. Lindor's life changed forever when she met her beloved Neil Dempsey, the kindest, gentlest, strongest man she'd ever know. There was compassion in his hazel eyes that seemed there just for her. He was her b'sheret and she, his. Their marriage was marked by tenderness and mutual respect. Funeral services will be held at Holy Trinity Anglican Church, on the corner of Donald and Graham, at 10:00 a.m. on Wednesday, October 22. Burial will be at St. John's Cathedral Cemetery. In lieu of flowers, please consider a donation to the University of Winnipeg Foundation, Winnipeg Harvest or Agape Table. Maclean's Magazine called Lindor a "Winnipeg institution" after her brain cancer diagnosis. Winnipeg mourns a daughter today. A gathering of family and friends will be held at the Dempsey/Reynolds household from Wednesday, October 22 to Tuesday, October 28, from 2:00 to 4:00 p.m. and 7:00 to 9:00 p.m.