Those who knew her called her a force of nature.
Sheila Goldbloom was born and raised in New York. She met her husband, pediatrician-turned-politician Victor Goldbloom, and moved to Montreal with him 74 years ago.
After giving birth to three children, she decided to go back to school to earn a master’s degree in social work at McGill.
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She went on to teach in that field and served as a mentor to countless students and staff members for three decades.
After retiring from McGill, he would become involved in the development of organizations such as Meals on Wheels and the YMCA foundation and provided leadership to others such as the Queen Elizabeth Health Complex.
“When I went to visit her a few months ago, she was no longer feeling well, but she still asked how things were going at Queen E and how the foundation was doing,” said Miriam Green, deputy chairwoman of the Queen Elizabeth board. . “So, in the radiology and imaging department, we made a decision a few years ago, that we would name it after Sheila and Victor Goldbloom.”
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At 82, Goldbloom co-chaired a provincial government commission on the needs of Quebec’s growing elderly population.
And at 94, she wrote her first book titled Opening Doors, detailing her life and commitment to older people, different cultural communities, women, and more.
“He used his personal power, because he had power, but silent power, to help others connect with others,” said Sylvia Martin-Laforge, executive director of the Quebec Community Groups Network (QCGN).
“She was the connector.”
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His numerous contributions over the years earned him appointments to the Order of Canada and the National Order of Quebec.
Among his many accomplishments, Goldbloom played a key role in bringing the English community to Centraide and in creating the Fondation du Grand Montreal.
She and her husband have always striven for the French and English-speaking communities to work together, telling Global News in 2016 that the two can live together in harmony.
“I think we have to take advantage of the strengths that each one has instead of looking at the negatives,” Goldboom said.
So it came as no surprise to many that, at nearly 96, she still wanted to be a part of advocacy and change, attending May’s rally against the adoption of Bill 96.
Sheila Goldbloom at a Bill 96 rally in Montreal on May 26, 2022.
jonathan goldbloom
Her son, Jonathan Goldbloom, says that his mother was a strong woman, a role model for him and his siblings, but above all she was a mother.
“Both of my children are adopted and I can remember her telling me that the best thing about love is that it expands and can grow,” he said. “And that was her philosophy of life. That she took everyone into her heart.”
Goldbloom leaves behind three children, four grandchildren, two great-grandchildren, and her sister.
Her husband died in 2016.
A funeral will be held on Friday.
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