Canadian Senator, Entrepreneur. He served in that position representing the Province of Manitoba in the Canadian Senate from August 2, 2005, to August 2, 2013. He was born one of three children (he also had two brothers) as Rodney Anthony Allen Zimmer in Kuroki, Saskatchewan, Canada, to Joseph Isadore Zimmer, a farm implement dealer, and his wife Josephine Marie "Joey" Reit Zimmer, a nurse. He was educated locally and by the Benedictines at St. Peter's College in Muenster, Saskatchewan, Canada. While growing up he was a champion swimmer, diver and water skier. While attending university he got a taste for politics and business pursuits when he worked as an assistant to Saskatchewan's Liberal Party Welfare Minister Cyril Pius "Cy" MacDonald from 1968 to 1971. He received his Bachelor of Commerce Degree from the University of Saskatchewan in Saskatoon, Saskatchewan, in 1973. Following his education, he decided to pursue politics further and served as an Assistant to James Richardson, the Minister of Defence during the 1970s. He also served as the Manitoba Chair for the Federal Liberal Party Campaign in 1980. During this time period, he also became involved in many business pursuits and he served in several different positions including as Vice President of the Corporate Communications for CanWest Capital Corporation from 1979 to 1983, Director of Marketing and Communications for the Manitoba Lotteries Foundation from 1985 to 1993, President of the Royal Winnipeg Ballet from 1989 to 1991, Member of the Board of Directors for the Winnipeg Blue Bombers Football Team from 1981 to 1993, President of The Gatehouse Corporation beginning in 1993, and as Vice President for the Festivals for the Pan American Games Society Incorporation from 1995 to 1998. He was also Director of Project Management for the Canadian Sports Pool Corporation, and Lead Director of the Magna Corporation International Development. He was reportedly selected to be one of the final two candidates along with journalist and politician Peter Liba for the posting of Lieutenant Governor of Manitoba in 1999. The Prime Minister of Canada at the time the Honourable Jean Chretien personally chose Peter Liba and in the end, he was chosen as the 22nd Lieutenant Governor of Manitoba beating out Rod Zimmer on March 2 of that year. He then joined politician Paul Martin's Liberal Party leadership fundraising committee campaign race to become the next Prime Minister of Canada (which he won and served until 2006) in 2003, and served a term as Revenue Chair for the Liberal Party of Canada in the Province of Manitoba from 2004 to 2006. He also helped to raise funds for former National Hockey League goaltender great Ken Dryden's leadership campaign in 2006. He was appointed to the Senate of Canada on the recommendation of the Prime Minister of Canada Paul Martin on August 5, 2005. A Member of the Liberal Party, he served as Party Member, Senatorial Region Member, and Senator for a total of 2923 days over eight years of public service. He was also on the Senate Standing Committee for Aboriginal People and also undertook significant work among others relating to economic development, education and housing. In 2005, he also retired as President of The Gatehouse Corporation after twelve years of service. On August 27, 2011, he married Maygan Sensenberger in Ottawa, Ontario, Canada. On August 12, 2012, during a flight, the couple had an argument that required the flight crew to intervene. His wife was arrested and charged with causing a disturbance and uttering threats against him, as well as endangering an aircraft that was later dropped. A court order forbade the couple from communicating in person, restricting them to only phone and Internet, including Skype. His wife eventually pleaded guilty to causing a disturbance on a flight and was given a 12-month suspended sentence with probation and must seek counseling and an addiction assessment. The charge of uttering threats against him was withdrawn. Following the incident that made national headlines, he returned to his work. During his time in office, he began to suffer from ill-health. He ended up spending time in the hospital in the spring of 2013. He was diagnosed with cancer and ended up developing pneumonia and respiratory ailments. He reportedly told then-Prime Minister of Canada Justin Trudeau of his intentions to resign because of his ill health from the Senate of Canada and he put in a letter of resignation to then-Governor of Canada Adrienne Clarkson. His resignation was accepted on August 2, 2013, exactly eight years after his appointment to the Senate of Canada by Prime Minister of Canada Paul Martin and it was to take immediate effect. In 2015, while he was dying from cancer, he was audited by then-Auditor General Michael Ferguson and it was determined that he had inappropriately claimed $176,012 in expenses that were not repaid. He passed away from cancer in Ottawa, Ontario, Canada, on June 7, 2016, at the age of 73. He was cremated and a national memorial service was be held at the Royal Bank of Canada Convention Centre (or RBC) in Winnipeg, Manitoba, Canada, on June 23, 2016. A funeral Mass in the presence of his ashes was also celebrated at Holy Spirit Roman Catholic Church in Saskatoon, Saskatchewan, on June 25, 2016. His ashes were then buried with his parents at the Woodlawn Cemetery in Saskatoon, Saskatchewan, Canada, on August 26, 2016. For his contributions to business and politics in his native country of Canada, he was awarded the Canada 125 Medal and the Queen's Golden Jubilee Medal.