Lynne Woolstencroft, a longtime politician who spent one term as Waterloo’s mayor, has died of cancer at age 69.

Her husband, University of Waterloo political science professor Peter Woolstencroft, says politics may have been her chosen career, but she could have done anything she wanted.

“She was an extraordinary teacher,” he tells CTV.

“She was a very talented person, writer, singer, musician. She could have been a doctor.”

Born in Saskatoon, Lynne Woolstencroft was first elected to office in 1970 as a trustee with the Waterloo Region District School Board.

She spent more than a decade on the school board, including three years as board chair.

In 1985, she ran unsuccessfully for the Progressive Conservatives in a provincial election, losing to Liberal candidate Herb Epp.

Not long after that, Woolstencroft was elected as a Waterloo city councillor, where she became known as an advocate for environmental concerns.

“I think her greatest legacy to the City of Waterloo was her environmental perspective,” says current Waterloo Coun. Karen Scian.

Runs for the federal Progressive Conservatives in 1993 and 1997 were also unsuccessful, but in 2000, she succeeded Joan McKinnon as Waterloo’s mayor.

In 2003, her bid for a second term ended with voters once again preferring Epp after the RIM Park financing fiasco came to light under her watch.

Woolstencroft’s political colleagues likewise remember her fondly as an elected official who never forgot the voters who put her in that position.

"Lynn was a great person to work with," recalled regional chair Ken Seiling.

"She was real, she was sincere, she loved her community. She loved people; she loved listening to them."

Seiling tells CTV Woolstencroft was unfairly criticized over RIM Park, saying she did the best she could with a situation she inherited.

Waterloo Coun. Scott Witmer says he remembers Woolstencroft as somebody who made decisions based on the needs of the community, whatever her own personal opinions.

“She had a very strong social conscience and she used that when she was deciding what way to move forward on a decision – how it would affect the community, what opportunities would it mean for the people in Waterloo,” he says.

Visitation for Lynne Woolstencroft will take place Friday from 2 p.m. to 4 p.m. and 7 p.m. to 9 p.m., at Erb and Good Funeral Home on King Street South.

A memorial service will be held Saturday at Parkminster United Church on Erb Street East, starting at 11 a.m.