Redekop, Nancy (1941-2001)

Nancy Evelyn Redekop (née Goodmanson) was born on July 30, 1941, and grew up in Girvin, Saskatchewan. She graduated as a Registered Psychiatric Nurse from the Saskatchewan Training School (STS) in 1962. After a brief stay in Ontario she moved back to Moose Jaw, where she was employed at Valley View (formerly STS); she was a supervisor there for many years. Redekop was president of the Moose Jaw Branch of the Registered Psychiatric Nurses Association of Saskatchewan (RPNAS) from 1976 to 1979, and held positions on the national body. In the 1980s, she was among those responsible for establishing the Canadian Mental Health Association. She worked tirelessly for the organization at the provincial and national levels, and received an award from the provincial body in the summer of 2001 and a national award posthumously.

Redekop was a member of the Canadian Union of Public Employees, Local 600 and served many years as president of this local. She was a health and safety advocate and often taught Occupational and Safety courses at union schools. She was also the first woman elected president of the moose Jaw and District Labour Council—a position she held for many years, stepping down in 1997 just prior to her retirement from Valley View. She became Recording Secretary of the Saskatchewan Federation of Labour (SFL) in 1988, a post she held until 1996. She was appointed by the SFL to several boards, including the Minimum Wage Board and a special committee established in 1994 to create a “most available hours” system for part-time workers. She died on July 8, 2001, after a brief battle with cancer.

Barbara Byers