Obituary of Carol Mae Greenfield

It is with deep sadness that we announce the passing of Carol Mae Greenfield, on April 23, 2024, after gracing our lives for 79 years.

Carol is predeceased by her parents, Muriel and Leonard Greenfield, and her brother Ken Greenfield.

She will be greatly missed by her son Richard McKinley (Tiffany), sister Dawn Lariviere and brother-in-law Bob Lariviere, nephew Rob Lariviere, niece Jackie Rodricks (Winston), niece Karen Lariviere, nephew David Greenfield, niece Leanne Poirier Greenfield, grandchildren Shea and Kady McKinley, great nieces Michelle, Sarah, and Laura, great nephews Christopher and Chase, great-great nephew Eli, as well as many friends, neighbours and local pets.

Carol was proud of her roots, growing up in Winnipeg, in her family’s house on Hull Avenue in St. Vital. She would often reminisce about her life in their small home, the love she had for her parents, and stories about growing up with her sister Dawn and brother Ken. In 1968, Carol married Richard McKinley and a few years later had their son Richard (Jr.), whom they raised in Fort Gary. In the late 80’s, she moved back to St. Vital as a single mother and began the next chapter of her life.

Always a hard worker, she worked many years in the family dental laboratory business with Richard’s father. Afterwards, she found a rewarding job at Top Hat Florists working for her friend Jim. A career in the jewellery industry followed, starting as a salesperson at Ben Moss before moving to Appelts Jewellery. Consistently a top salesperson, she was promoted to Assistant Manager and then to Store Manager until her retirement. Carol found her niche and truly loved working in sales, customer service, and retail management. She was so warm and genuine, customers would often become friends, returning frequently to check in with her. People loved to work with Carol and many of her coworkers also became close friends.

She loved her son Richard so much and took on her role as a mother very seriously. While raising Richard, Carol’s schedule was always filled with sports. From soccer to hockey, track and volleyball, she never missed her son’s sporting events and would reliably be seated in the stands cheering him on. She unselfishly sacrificed her time and money so that he could follow his own passion for sport and competition. Rich was so lucky and so proud to have her as a mom. Later when Rich met his wife Tiffany, another special relationship was formed. Mom and Tiff talked often and bonded over recipes, gardening, and the shared love for our family, becoming a daughter to her as well as a good friend. Her caring nature extended to Rich’s friends as well, especially good friend Johnny who she considered part of her family.

Carol had a lifelong love affair with sports which she happily inherited from her athletic family. Mom loved the underdog in both life and sports and lived for those special times when the underdog came through to defy the odds. Football, hockey, golf, soccer, curling, the Olympics, and anything with Team Canada, were marked on her calendar to watch. She was a long-time Blue Bomber season ticket holder with her good friend Judy. She never missed a Winnipeg Jets game and enjoyed discussing the details with Rich, during and after the game. She was a proud Canadian and anyone watching with her, knew to stand and take off their hat for the Canadian anthem. One of Rich’s favourite memories with his mom, is watching the ‘87 Canada Cup and the joy of celebrating together; jumping, hugging and cheering after Lemieux scored the winning goal against the Soviet Union.

Having respect and love for nature was always important to Carol, values that she passed on to her son. She loved her cottage in Boulder Bay and some of her best memories were made there. She had a green thumb and took great pleasure in her garden, frequently tending to the flowers and plants inside and around her home. Assiniboine Park was one of her favourite places in Winnipeg, where she loved to spend time with family and friends. It was a tradition to spend Mother’s Day there with her son, and later with him and his family.

Carol valued the friendships she had with her neighbors and looked forward to visits from the neighborhood dogs, cats, and especially her little buddy Mylo. She also loved to feed the birds, squirrels, chipmunks and even deer would somehow always find their way to Carol’s place. She loved animals and they loved her. She had many pets throughout her life, including dogs, cats, and even a rescued bluejay.

Carol was blessed with the best sister imaginable. Dawn was her best friend and always there for her. Their friendship was a constant throughout her life, and she cherished Dawn more than words could say. Carol’s love extended to Dawn’s family as well. Rob, Jackie and Karen, along with their families, were so very special to her. Carol loved having Bob as her brother-in-law, always treating her with such respect, love and generosity. Dawn and Bob brought Carol with them on numerous vacations to various places throughout the years, making memories and bringing her so much joy.

One of Rich and Tiff’s favourite memories is the day Carol found out she was going to be a grandmother and how over-the-moon happy and proud she was. She adored her grandkids Shea and Kady, and we see her resiliency, independence, kindness and love of animals in them both. She absolutely loved watching Shea play hockey and was completely thrilled to see her mother’s musical talents and beautiful voice passed down to Kady.

We will all miss Carol so very much. We will think of her often, especially every time we go down to the cottage, plant a flower, fill the bird feeder, or cheer on the Bombers or Jets. If you find yourself wishing to honour her, in lieu of flowers, she would have greatly appreciated a donation to Winnipeg Humane Society or to your favourite animal shelter. She would be thrilled to be honoured in such a way.

Cremation has taken place and a private family Celebration of Life will be held at her cottage, her special place.