WINNIPEG — Manitoba Education Minister Nello Altomare has died after a battle with cancer.
Altomare, who was 61, worked as a school principal before being elected in 2019 to represent Winnipeg's Transcona riding for the New Democrats in the legislature. He was appointed to cabinet after the NDP won the 2023 election.
Altomare was diagnosed with Stage 2 Hodgkin lymphoma shortly after his first election and underwent chemotherapy.
He went on leave last October as his health worsened.
Premier Wab Kinew paid tribute to Altomare on Wednesday, praising his work to expand school nutrition programs across the province.
"Working side by side with Nello to help Manitoba kids was one of the greatest times of my life,” Kinew said in a press release.
“He had a larger-than-life personality, a huge smile and a love for teaching young people that will never perish."
The government will introduce a bill to enshrine Altomare's school nutrition program in law, Kinew added. The government dedicated $30 million in last year's budget to the effort.
Flags outside the legislature were lowered to half-mast.
The Manitoba School Boards Association said Altomare was a proud and outspoken supporter of public education.
"He was refreshingly direct when necessary, always respectful and possessed a keen sense of humour," association president Sandy Nemeth said in a written statement.
"His presence at Manitoba School Boards Association meetings and events underscored our collaborative efforts, and he always made time to engage with trustees."
Kelvin Goertzen, a longtime Progressive Conservative politician who was education minister in the former Tory government, recalled having coffee with Altomare, who was the NDP education critic at the time.
"We shared ideas and viewpoints. Later we both took some jabs from some for doing this," Goertzen posted on the X platform, formerly known as Twitter.
"But more of it should happen. Nello was a good example of what we can all be. Better."
This report by The Canadian Press was first published Jan. 15, 2025.
Steve Lambert, The Canadian Press
