CHEEKTOWAGA, N.Y. (WIVB) - A Cheektowaga woman looking forward to enjoying her retirement was killed in a house fire early Wednesday morning.
In the early morning hours of Aug. 6, a house fire on Yeager Drive in Cheektowaga took the life of 64-year-old Connie Gwinner.
Fire crews arrived just minutes after the call and found Gwinner inside of the home. While responders attempted life saving measures, she died from her injuries.
Loved ones are now sharing their memories of her, calling her a shining light.
"She made the world a better place," said Joseph Muschaweck, who said Gwinner took him in at a young age. "She made people not feel bad for being themselves."
"She saved my life. She was a role model," he said. "She was my mom and she didn't have to be, that was her."
Muschaweck remembers Gwinner as a loving and giving person.
"No matter who you were, didn't matter, you could make the biggest mistake of your life, she saw you as hope, as potential, as a good person," he said.
Muschaweck said Gwinner had retired from her role at Independent Health just days before her death.
"She retired Aug. 1 and she was so happy and so proud of herself," he said. "She deserves something, she deserves not this. She deserves her retirement wishes."
A childhood friend who grew up next to the house on Yeager Street said she recently reconnected with Gwinner and that Gwinner was ready for her next adventure in life.
"She was starting her own business to help elderly people and I thought with her experience in social work and Independent Health, she'd be someone who could really help older people, so it was a big loss for the community," she said. "She died an angel, she really did."
Maryvale High School Alumni said in a statement on Facebook that Gwinner was a class of 1979 graduate who showed a strong love and dedication for the school. They said they are sending their love and comfort to Gwinner's family at this time.