Susan Ann Thompson OM was the 40th mayor of Winnipeg, Manitoba. She was born on 12 April 1947.[2] She was the first and first to date only woman to serve as mayor of Winnipeg, serving two terms from 1992 to 1998.[3][4]
Susan Thompson | |
|---|---|
| 40th Mayor of Winnipeg | |
| In office 1992–1998 | |
| Preceded by | Bill Norrie |
| Succeeded by | Glen Murray |
| Personal details | |
| Born | 1946 or 1947 (age 77–78)[1] |
| Nationality | Canadian |
| Alma mater | University of Winnipeg (BA) |
Thompson graduated with a BA from the University of Winnipeg in 1971.[2] Thompson worked at Eaton's and Hudson's Bay Company in Winnipeg, Calgary, and Montreal.[2] Because of her father's decline in health, she came back to Winnipeg in 1980 and bought the family's business Birt Saddlery.[2] While running Birt Saddlery, she worked hard to promote women in business and became involved in Rotary and the Chamber of Commerce.[2]
Thompson's second term saw the 1997 Flood of the Century; she was instrumental in directing the fight against the raging river.[2] She choose not to seek a third term, but in 1999 she became Canada's Consul General in Minneapolis, United States - the first woman to have this position in its thirty years of existence.[2] In this role she steadfastly promoted Canadian business and political interests.[2] In 2003, she became first and founding president and CEO of the University of Winnipeg Foundation.[2] She remained in this position until 2011.[2]
In 2014, Thompson made local headlines after a 30-minute speech she gave to the Winnipeg Chamber of Commerce. In it she outlined her ideas for the city's future which included a laser pyramid Portage and Main.[5]
In 2017, a building at the Winnipeg City Hall Campus was renamed the Susan A. Thompson Building after her.[6]
The City of Winnipeg Archives has the Susan Thompson Fonds including of textual records, photograph albums, framed memorabilia, and artifacts.[2]
References
edit- ^ Sinclair, Gordon (2011-10-06). "The never-retiring Susan Thompson moves on". Winnipeg Free Press. Retrieved 2017-06-23.
- ^ a b c d e f g h i j k "Thompson, Susan A. - Winnipeg in Focus". winnipeginfocus.winnipeg.ca. Retrieved 2018-03-03.
- ^ Reynolds, Lindor (5 June 2010). "Thompson bears scars from her time in office". Winnipeg Free Press. Retrieved 23 April 2012.
- ^ Razin, Eran; Smith, Patrick J. (2006). Metropolitan Governing: Canadian Cases, Comparative Lessons. University of Alberta. pp. 132–. ISBN 9789654932851. Retrieved 23 April 2012.
- ^ Kives, Bartley (18 January 2014). "Is that Winnipeg under a laser beam? Ex-mayor Thompson has some interesting ideas". Winnipeg Free Press. Retrieved 19 October 2014.
- ^ "Winnipeg building renamed for city's first female mayor | CTV News Winnipeg". Winnipeg.ctvnews.ca. 2017-06-19. Retrieved 2017-06-23.