Honourable senators, last month, Canada lost a great man. Chuck Strahl served in the House of Commons for over 17 years, with the utmost of integrity, proudly representing the people of the Fraser Valley in British Columbia. He will be greatly missed by all who knew him.

First elected as a Reform MP in 1993, Chuck came to see the need for a strong national Conservative party and was an important figure in reuniting our two legacy parties. In 2004, he was appointed Deputy Speaker and Chair of Committees of the Whole in the other place, a sign of the respect and admiration in which he was held by colleagues from all sides of the House.

On August 22, 2005, Chuck’s regular newsletter to his constituents contained terrible personal news. After his lung had collapsed twice that summer, doctors discovered cancer in the lining of the lung, likely caused by an exposure to asbestos while he was working as a logger in his youth. Chuck told his constituents:

Cancer is a serious disease, but those of us diagnosed with cancer don’t want to be rushed off the playing field and sidelined any too soon.

Chuck made the decision to stay in federal politics, and Canada is better for it. He went on to win re-election two more times and became the first agriculture minister in prime minister Stephen Harper’s Conservative government, giving marketing choice to western barley producers. As Minister of Indian Affairs and Northern Development, he signed a historic apology given by Prime Minister Harper to former students of residential schools. Last month, the Manitoba Métis Federation remembered Chuck:

. . . as a man who believed in our cause and included us in conversations, at a time in our history when very few federal politicians had the knowledge and education to understand the unique role of our Nation in Canada’s history . . . .

After taking on his final cabinet portfolio as Minister of Transport, Chuck stepped away from politics in 2011, yet he remained a respected voice within our party and our country.

There are so many reasons why Chuck will be missed: his kindness and decency, his humble spirit, his unfailing positivity and wonderful sense of humour. Chuck spoke with a distinctive baritone voice, which he put to good use singing in a barbershop quartet with fellow Conservative MPs, along with another caucus member who left us too soon due to cancer, Mark Warawa.

When Chuck revealed his cancer diagnosis 19 years ago, he wrote these words:

I simply can’t be bitter about it, because so many people are expressing their love in so many ways to me and Deb, and we are so glad our Christian faith is mature and well-grounded. Things will be fine.

Honourable senators, it’s my hope that his family continues to draw on their deep faith at this time of great sorrow. On behalf of the Conservative caucus in the Senate, I extend our sincere condolences to Chuck’s wife of nearly 50 years, Debby, and their four children, Karina, Loni, Kyla and Mark, who followed in his father’s footsteps as a Conservative member of Parliament for B.C.

May Chuck rest in God’s eternal peace. Until we meet again.