Renée Savoie

Renée Suzanne Savoie - was born on January 9, 1967, in Toronto, Ontario, and died after a long and valiant battle against apathy, ableism and homophobia on October 24, 2023, at the age of 56 in St. John's, Newfoundland. Renée is survived by her loving wife, Erika Nordstrom, her guide dog, Freedom, and her chosen daughter, Mariana. Regretfully, efforts to reconcile with her biological daughter Nicole did not bear fruit before her passing.

Renée was a proud, unapologetic, disabled French-Canadian dyke who would give you the shirt off her back or an intimidating mouthful, depending on which side of justice you were on. A sharp advocate, she was always ready to fight for the underdog.

Her greatest joys included her guide dog Freedom; the colour purple; Moulin Rouge; rescuing animals; Star Wars Lego sets; the sports of goalball, karate and paddling; and eating steaks so rare, you could still hear them moo.

Renée spent much of her life in Ontario and considered the Village in Toronto home. She overcame many barriers to be trained as a paralegal and ran her own practice before moving to Nova Scotia.

While she was chronically under-employed in Nova Scotia due to her visual impairment, she made excellent contributions working for the provincial government. She is best known for her role as Co-Chair of the Nova Scotia Disability Employee Network (NSDEN), where she championed disability rights within the workplace. Renée was also passionate about empowering women and took great pride in seeing those she cared for advance professionally, often thanks to her support and advocacy.

Renée unofficially adopted her NSDEN Co-Chair Mariana as her daughter. Together they stirred many proverbial pots and helped each other survive personal and professional challenges. She was particularly proud of the NSDEN podcast they produced called PossAbilities.

Renée married her Norwegian wife Erika Nordstrom on May 17, 2022. Poetically, she fell in love with a Viking woman while paddling on her local Blind and Partially Sighted dragon boat team. Together, they embarked on what became their final adventure together: the purchase of a dream home with a dream kitchen in St. John's, Newfoundland. Renée was wildly proud of this move and her ability to enjoy it was tragically ended far too soon.

A memorial service for Renée will be held on October 19, 2024, from 2-4 pm at the Kiwanis Graham’s Grove Community Building in Dartmouth, NS.

To participate virtually, contact this hyperlinked email by October 18th for a free, direct link to the broadcast which will be sent out shortly before the event. Please be aware that scammers have been known to impersonate online memorial services. We will not ask you for any personal information or payment to participate.

DONATIONS

Donations in Renée's memory may be made to the Lions Foundation of Canada Dog Guides.