Tributes for Darlene Dziewit

Darlene Dziewit, seen here with her husband Mike, officially stepped down as President of the Manitoba Federation of Labour on October 4 during the MFL Convention in Brandon. During the course of the convention, numerous tributes were paid to Darlene and all that she has accomplished for the benefit of the labour movement.

A more formal Farewell to Darlene was held on October 14 at the Fort Garry Hotel in Winnipeg. More than 200 union members, friends, and colleagues from the labour relations field, plus many of her family members including her son, daughter-in-law, sister, and mother came out to honour Darlene as she steps into retirement following five years as President of the MFL. A number of speakers paid tribute to her tireless efforts to promote the interests of working people, union members, women and the New Democratic Party over her working lifetime.

Among those who paid tribute to her were Susan Hart-Kulbaba and Robert Ziegler, seen listening to Darlene pay tribute to many of the people she worked with during her nearly 40 years of activism in the labour movement. Ziegler, who is currently President of UFCW Local 832, was one of Darlene's co-workers at Local 832 for about 25 years. Hart-Kulbaba, who was the first woman president of the MFL and now works at Local 832, also worked with Darlene at Local 832 - as well as working on numerous MFL activities with her.

Showing her usual concern for working men and women, Darlene had requested that all proceeds from the retirement dinner be donated to Workers of Tomorrow, an organization that engages in various activities to teach young people about the importance of workplace safety.