DIANE BACKMAN

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DIANE BACKMAN

(nee MILNE)

January 11, 1943 - May 1, 2026

I raise a glass of Baileys, and cheers to you. I have lived a wonderful life, with great family and friends and even better dogs. It’s my turn now.

My memories of late took me back to growing up with my parents, Doris (nee Taylor) and Elmer Milne, and our dogs in our house on Balsam Street, in the Norwood Flats area of Winnipeg, Manitoba, and in our apartment before that. Our neighborhood friends, the 1950 flood and the camaraderie of the neighborhoods stay with me still.

My late husband, Dr. Winston Backman, and I built a fantastic life on Bryn Mawr Rd in Fort Richmond, Winnipeg. We had two amazing children, who not only kept us on our toes, but became impressive adults with incredible families and lives of their own. We had great parties at our house on Bryn Mawr, either those that the adults hosted or those epic parties that my son, Kristjan Backman, hosted that I "slept through." I’m grateful for our strong relationship with the local police and fire department that helped us manage complaints about the noise and people jumping off our roof into our pool, and the endless science experiments that may have gotten out of control once in a while, resulting in minor explosions.

While I didn’t have siblings, my cousins, in-laws and friends were family. My cousins, including Janie Marshall (nee Oliphant) and Jeff Oliphant, and I grew up together. Janie was like my younger sister, and lived with us while she went through nursing school. Our mothers and families were inseparable. My cousin, James Atkinson, though apart by distance, always made enormous efforts to travel and have weekly phone calls to ensure we stayed connected. We all had a lot of laughs together and I am grateful.

I married into an Icelandic family. While rumour had it that Icelanders were taciturn and stoic, my in-laws, including Charles Backman, Dorthy Hunter (Keith), Earl Backman (Candace), and their families, were warm and welcoming, and we had a lot of fun and shared a lot of laughter over the years.

I have been blessed with and have cherished many close friends. There isn’t enough room to name everyone, but please know that I loved you and our time together. To Marilyn Berman and her husband Dr. Barry Berman, you quickly became extended family when we met in the 1960s and continued our close friendship, love and support, to the final days. We got into more mischief and had more fun than people should be allowed (some of which may have been illegal). To their daughters, Gina, Sherri, and Lisa, I was so proud watching you grow up and seeing what amazing women you became. To Tricia and Seamus O’Hagan, who moved next door to our house on Bryn Mawr, we spent many weekends and weeknights raising a glass of wine and laughing until our stomachs hurt. Despite time and geographic distance we stayed connected and always laughed.

To all of my extended family and friends, named or not, I raise a glass to each of you, and keep you in my heart.

My son, Kristjan, was a force from the beginning and I’ve loved watching him become a phenomenal man, a leader in the business community and have the treasured family that he has. My daughter-in-law, Patti Backman (nee Bowles), could not have been a better match or a more wonderful complement to our family. Their children, my grandchildren, Abigail (Abby) and Charles (Charlie) Backman, are such smart and beautiful people. Kristjan, Patti, Abby and Charlie, you were always kind, supportive and giving of your time, particularly as I moved into the last few years of my life. I will miss seeing you take on the world, but I could not be prouder.

I spent 82 of my 83 years in or around Winnipeg, Manitoba and loved every minute. Winnipeg will always be home, but for the last year I packed up myself, my dog, Daisy, and my life, and moved in with my daughter, Paige Backman, and her family in Toronto when dementia robbed me of my independence. Good lord, what were we thinking! The thought of relying on family to take care of me was never something I was comfortable with, but my desire to stay with my dog until the end surpassed my pride. I often told Paige this was crazy, and she would just say "possibly, but let’s do this anyway," and we both laughed. We did, and it worked! I am so proud of Paige as a person, her successful career as a leader in Toronto’s legal community, and the family and life she has created.

While there, I was welcomed with open arms by my son-in-law, Michael Fortier, and his family. I was able to further an already great friendship with Maureen Fortier that started almost 20 years ago when we spent countless evenings sharing dinners while waiting for our grandchildren to be born.

I got to know Michael, and my grandsons, Kristjan and Tim Fortier better, and for that I am grateful. Kristjan and Tim are smart and kind young men, and they tolerated and cared for their demented grandmother with enormous kindness, grace, and a fantastic sense of humour (which was definitely needed). To me that’s remarkable and I thank them. I got a front row seat into their lives and who they will become as men. I am so proud of what they’ve already accomplished, and excited for their future endeavors.

Aside from my family and friends, of equal (some would say greater) importance to me were my dogs, as well as a few cats, gerbils, hamsters, rabbits, a horse, and the countless deer we would feed every day from the back door of our house in Anola, Manitoba. I never met an animal that I didn’t love, a rescue I didn’t try to save, and I cherished the unqualified love, laughter, and absolute mayhem they brought to our lives. Most of our dogs were rescues - Cole, Ben, Charlie, Misty, Flynn, Nick, Boots, Jorie, Rebel, Pee Wee and of course Daisy who was with me at the end. Every single one of them remains with me.

I was a nurse for over 40 years in Manitoba’s Health Science Centre. An operating room nurse, an emergency room nurse and then a nursing supervisor. I loved and respected my colleagues and patients, and I am grateful for the time I spent there. I always said nurses make the worst patients, and I’m guessing the people who cared for me in the last year will be yelling a resounding “Yes” to that! Apologies.

I was the President of Manitoba’s Block Parent program for a number of years, which we hoped provided a higher sense of community and safety for our children in Manitoba. The annual “Dunk Tank,” where we dunked police officers and community leaders in tanks of water, raised funds for the community but generated even more laughs and great memories.

I’ve been known to some as the Rottweiler. That’s ok, I love Rottweilers. They are loyal, intelligent, and protective. I don’t know if I’m all or any of those, but I’m certainly ok with the comparison.

I fought like hell not to leave this world, but wherever I am, I hope I’m with my family, friends, and my dogs and animals. As I drink my last sip of Baileys, and begin my next glass, I leave you with this. Know that while I have promised many of you that I will haunt you if you misbehave, that haunting will be in the form of me cheering you on! Illegitimi non carborundum.

As published in Winnipeg Free Press on Jun 06, 2026