Former Chilliwack, B.C. MP Chuck Strahl dies at age 67

Former Chilliwack-Fraser Canyon MP Chuck Strahl has passed away at the age of 67, according to his family.

According to a family statement posted on social media by his son, Chilliwack Hope MP Mark Strahl, Strahl passed away after a battle with mesothelioma, a rare type of cancer.

“Our loss is deep and heavy,” the family said. “He was our best friend, our greatest advocate, our biggest booster and our rock.”

Mr Strahl has served as a Member of Parliament for over 17 years, winning six consecutive elections, and was first elected to the House of Representatives for Fraser Valley East in 1993.

During his time in government, Strahl served in several roles in former Prime Minister Stephen Harper’s cabinet, including minister of agriculture and agri-food, minister of transport, infrastructure and communities, and minister of Indian affairs and northern development, a role then called that of minister.

He helped with the negotiations Tsawwassen First Nation Final Agreementan agreement between the Tsawwassen First Nation and the province of British Columbia in Canada that outlines the country’s jurisdiction. During his tenure, Strahl also proposed legislation to overhaul how the federal government manages oil and gas discovered on Indigenous lands.

“He never let his work define him,” his son’s statement read. “He never lost sight of what was truly important to him: his faith, his family and his friends.”

He worked as a logger and businessman.

Strahl was born on February 25, 1957 in New Westminster, British Columbia. House of Representatives websiteAccording to his son, Strahl’s family moved around rural British Columbia before settling near Ryder Lake in Chilliwack when he was 10 years old.

There, Strahl met his wife, Debbie Bateman, and the two married in 1975 and have four children and 13 grandchildren, the statement said.

Earlier in his career, Strahl worked as a logger and businessman in British Columbia.

He was elected as a Conservative Party of Canada to represent the new constituency of Chilliwack-Fraser Canyon in 2004 after the boundaries of his previous constituency, Fraser Valley East, were changed.

Mr. Strahl was also a member of the Reform Party of Canada and the Canadian Reform Conservative Alliance during his time in government, as was former Member of Parliament for West Vancouver, Sunshine Coast and Sea to Sky Country, John Reynolds.

“He was a great guy to know,” Reynolds said. Coastal Wednesday. “Of all the people I knew in the political world, I remember Chuck as just being a good friend.”

In 2005, at age 48, Strahl announced that he had lung cancer. In July of that year, Strahl said his lung had collapsed and was hospitalized for a second time.

He retired from the House of Commons in 2011 and subsequently served as chair of the Security Intelligence Review Board, which oversees the Canadian Security Intelligence Service, until he retired in 2014. The board ended in 2019, the same year the federal government established the National Security Intelligence Review Agency.

Since his diagnosis, Strahl has made several departures from the party and spoke out against the export of asbestos from Canada, a mineral that can cause mesothelioma if exposed.

Pierre Poirievre, leader of the Conservative Party of Canada, said in a post on Twitter that he was saddened to hear of Strahl’s passing.

“Chuck’s unwavering commitment to our movement and deep love for Canada were part of everything he did,” Poirierbre wrote. “He was a man of conviction, integrity and compassion, and a founding member of our Conservative Party.”