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Alexandra Mason may not have been a teacher, but she taught hundreds of elementary students how to fight climate change during her too-short life.
Alexandra was only 21 when she died Feb. 21.
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Her family says their daughter had lived with a complex chronic-health condition for the last four years. Despite the fact Alexandra was in constant pain, they say she continued to meet the world with such a smile that most who saw her wouldn’t have known she was in ill health.
“She coached, she nannied, and she even swam on her hardest days,” they said.
“We are devastated that our time with her was far too short. We are endlessly grateful that we got to love her, learn from her, and be loved by her.”
Alexandra went to College Beliveau and Nelson McIntyre Collegiate and was such a good student she was accepted into the collegiate’s Propel program and became an environmental advocate.
She was only 17 when she wrote and illustrated a children’s book entitled The Circle of Climate Change: We Can Help!
Alexandra also created a community outreach project, known as Project VEG (Visionary Educational Gardens) which saw her teach lessons to students in Grades 1 to 4 at six local schools about sustainability and climate change.
As a Free Press story in 2022 detailed, Alexandra’s lessons, which she wrote, “cover an entire science and biology unit that explores growth and change in plants.”
As part of the program, Alexandra also constructed wooden garden boxes which she donated to each of the schools she did her lessons at so the students could try their hands at gardening.
“My goal is to give youth the opportunity to see how they can make a positive impact on our world,” she said at the time.
“My favourite thing is going into the classes and watching how excited the students get about planting and the lessons. I just really love seeing that.”
Her Propel teacher, Patrick Hansen, described Alexandra in the article as “unrelenting in her ambition.”
“She’s a hard student to describe because she’s so good at so many different things,” Hansen said.
“She has this intrinsic drive to help others and I think that’s where she gets all (her) energy from.”
Alexandra also loved going to the family cottage at Victoria Beach. Often she was known for being the first to swim in the lake in the spring and the last to come out of the water in the fall.
Not surprisingly, her greatest passions were synchronized swimming, also known as artistic swimming, and swimming in general. She competed numerous times, found joy in being upside down in the water, travelled across the country as a national soloist, and went on to coach and be a champion for others.
She also worked as a nanny.
In her nanny bio, Alexandra said she was “experienced, dependable and passionate about providing exceptional care.
“Whether your child needs assistance with schoolwork, a bedtime story, a playmate, or simply a comforting presence, I’m here to help,” she said.
Besides that, Alexandra worked several summers at the Victoria Beach Club as a recreational assistant and head.
Her family wants to thank “everyone who cared for her, swam with her, laughed with her, and held space for her.
“She made a real difference and her light will stay with us always.”
To keep keep that light shining, and to continue their daughter’s love of helping others, the family set up a memorial fund in her honour at The Winnipeg Foundation.
Alexandra is survived by her parents, her younger sister, and numerous other relatives.
Read more about Alexandra.
How They Lived
Margaret Strachan was a teacher in Grenada — but unfortunately that didn’t help her here.
Margaret, who was 83 when she died Feb. 21, faced many closed doors as an immigrant. She was able to get jobs in health care and office administration and, while her children were young, she was able to go to university.
After graduating with an education degree from the University of Manitoba, she was then finally able to get back into teaching. She worked for years at Gordon Bell High School and helped change the lives of students, including some who were immigrants like herself.
Margaret was actively involved in the community and she was a founding member of both the Grenadian Association of Manitoba and the Council of Caribbean Organizations of Manitoba.
She was also instrumental in the formation of the Caribbean Cultural Centre, was an ambassador for the Caribbean Pavilion during Folklorama, and was elected to the board of the Folk Arts Council of Manitoba.
For her community work, Margaret was honoured with several awards including the 2025 King Charles III medal and the Premier’s Award for Volunteerism.
Read more about Margaret.
Maureen Hemphill came close to being the first woman to be Premier.
Maureen, who was 89 when she died Feb. 22, ran but lost the NDP leadership to Gary Doer in 1988.
Before that, she was a nurse in British Columbia and Alberta before moving to Winnipeg. Together with three other moms who had children in school, they became concerned with education and decided one of them should run for school trustee. Maureen was chosen, she won and served on the Assiniboine South School Board.
She also became the first female president of the Manitoba Association of School Trustees.
Maureen ran for MLA, losing first to Tory leader Sterling Lyon in Charleswood, but winning in 1981 after her family moved into the Logan riding. She was appointed as the first female Education Minister by Premier Howard Pawley, helping to bring in programs, including early years/headstart and EAL programs, before also serving as Minister of Housing, Small Business Development and Tourism, and Community Services.
Read more about Maureen.
Alvin Herman spent his entire career with the Hudson’s Bay/NorthWest Companies.
Alvin, who died March 1, at 91 years of age, joined the company as a shipper receiver in 1954 and worked until he retired as a district manager in the Winnipeg Home office in 1992.
He was posted in Atikokan and he met the woman who would become his wife in Pine Falls. He transferred there and they were married.
The couple’s family grew during his various postings: his sons were born while they were in Thompson, and his daughters when they were in Peace River.
After retiring, Alvin was contracted to do store closings across the country from 1992 to 1995.
Read more about Alvin.
Roberta Vincelette grew up in Saskatchewan and came to Winnipeg to get her teaching degree.
Roberta, who was 81 when she died Feb. 13, went on to have a long career in education.
She also served for several years as president of the Friends of Austria Club in Winnipeg.
Read more about Roberta.
Carol Whitcombe was an artist.
Carol, who was 83 when she died Feb. 12, had a long career in graphic design and portrait painting.
She preferred to paint with water colours and her work was displayed in the National Art Gallery.
Carol also helped create sets for the Royal Manitoba Theatre Centre and opened the Spirit Song Gallery in Mahone Bay, in Nova Scotia, to sell her portrait works.
Read more about Carol.
A Life’s Story
Lawrence Haraldur Johnson was one of the world’s preeminent nuclear waste experts.
Scientist Lawrence Johnson, seen in here in Newfoundland in 2023, died in September at the age of 75. (Supplied)
Lawrence authored more than 120 publications on the subject and he worked at Atomic Energy of Canada Ltd.’s former research site in Pinawa for two decades before going to Switzerland to work at the National Cooperative for the Disposal of Radioactive Waste.
Read more about Lawrence’s life.
Until next time, I hope you continue to write your own life’s story.
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