Councilor Renee Van Nett Hospitalized With Terminal Illness; Leaders Share Her Impact on Duluth

DULUTH, Minn.- People in Duluth and across the State of Minnesota are sending their thoughts, prayers, and support to Renee Van Nett and her family after it was announced she is in the hospital for a terminal illness.

Now some of those community members are looking back at the impact she has made in her time as a public servant.

The news came through a social media post from her friends and family Monday night.

“Renee’s been in the hospital for a couple of weeks now, and wasn’t able to make it to our council meetings last month,” said Duluth City Council President Arik Forsman.

Forsman has served with and grown close to Van Nett during his 4 years on the council.

“We met over breakfast at the Duluth Grill. I could tell instantly that we were going to let along well because she’s a straight shooter…She has a heart of gold, just takes in families, she takes in pets, she takes in people just in general and emotionally I mean she’s the go-to for so many people in our community and through her family and friends and it’s just a testament to who she is and she’s been a mentor of mine not just with Council stuff but with life in general,” said the Council President Monday.

“Just like when you work with somebody in your day job, often you become friends and sometimes really close friends and so she had that impact on lots of people and has had that impact on lots of people and there’s a lot of people who are thinking about her right now,” he said.

Van Nett served as the Council’s first-ever indigenous City Council President last year and is a member of the Red Lake Band of Chippewa and Leech Lake Band of Ojibwe.

“She was a voice for, a lot of people that didn’t feel like they had a voice,” said Beth McCuskey, President of the Duluth Central Labor Body. “She made a point of teaching and talking about community and how important that was to represent her people and her community.”

McCuskey met Renee back when Van Nett first ran for school board. They’ve also worked closely together with the labor community.

“She sat back and listened and paid attention and then would move forward after building relationships she wasn’t ‘I know everything’ she was a ‘tell me about it let’s have conversations and let’s work together,” McCuskey said.

COVID restrictions are keeping anyone not invited from visiting her in the hospital right now.

Forsman and McCuskey say the outpouring of support for Renee and her two young daughters, Tiara and Nevada, is a testament to all she’s accomplished and who she is. “She’s just a great person and that’s why it’s hard to find the right words,” said Forsman.

“We’d have difficult conversations and it didn’t get in the way of the continuing work or the friendship. And that’s, that’s what I’m really going to miss,” McCuskey said, holding back tears.

Friends of Van Nett have started a GoFundMe to help her daughters and raise money for her expenses. On Monday night it said:

Renee is still with us tonight – please honor her by helping support Tiara and Nevada.

More updates will be made there in the coming days.