Penni Mitchell -- feminist, friend, fighter: 1959-2026

My friend Penni Mitchell has died. I knew her as feminist, writer, editor and all-round face of feminism in Winnipeg and beyond. She was a force, taken by cancer much too young. 

I credit Penni with encouraging me to write and to think about myself as Writer, as I told her in this letter I dropped into her mailbox a couple of years ago.

May 17, 2023

Dear Penni:

This weekend, I took stock of my writing by creating a ‘record of publication’ that lists what I’ve written and where it’s been published. Doing this made me realize that you played a major role in setting me on this track of writing and then submitting it and then, sometimes, seeing it published. The first piece on my list is the one I wrote about Norma Scarborough for the summer 2009 issue of Herizons.

You may or may not recall it as starkly as I do. It went like this: I called you to say that Norma had died and that Herizons should write a tribute or look-back over her life. You said, Why don’t you write it, Amanda? What? thought I, but you persuaded me, so then I said, ok, I will. And I did. And that piece set me on the path that I am continuing today — only with significantly more time and expertise to give to my writing these days.

This note is to say thank you for that vote of confidence in me at that time for that piece. I think I wrote items before that piece, but it is that tribute piece that I view as the start of my journey to being a Writer, rather than being just someone who could write and who did write occasionally for Herizons. It’s all in the mind, I guess.

Penni made a difference in my life and in the life of countless others, through her advocacy, writing and presence in the community and on this planet. Her death notice tells the full story; you can read it here. And you can read a profile of her in Herizons, published on the occasion of her retirement from the magazine.