Minnesota loses ‘Mr. Positive’ to meso
16 Feb 2009 by Wendi Lewis under News, People
A former Minnesota state legislator dubbed “Mr. Positive” by those who knew him because of his can-do attitude has passed away due to mesothelioma. Dennis Newinski served in the Minnesota House of Representatives. He made a bid for U.S. Congress in 1994, but was defeated, ironically, by Bruce Vento, who also passed away due to mesothelioma, in 2000.
Remembered as a man of strong faith, Newinski spent the past two years, while battling mesothelioma, speaking about his faith and explaining how it brought him peace in the face of such a dire diagnosis, according to a story in the Minneapolis-St. Paul Star Tribune.
Despite three missed attempts at a U.S. House of Representatives spot, the Republican was well-respected nationally, and was invited to give the invocation at the State Republican Convention in 2008, as well as serving as an alternate delegate for the 2008 Republican National Convention in St. Paul, Minn.
Newinski died last Tuesday, Feb. 10, at age 64. He made his home in Maplewood, Minn., and is survived by his wife, Sharie, two sons, Greg and Mark, two daughters, Julie Keenan and Cindy Nybakke, as well as five brothers and nine grandchildren.
