Former B.C. Lt.-Gov. Iona Campagnolo dies at 91
Campagnolo died at the age of 91. In a press release announcing Campagnolo’s death, B.C. Lt.-Gov. Janet Austin called her radiant and tireless, an apt description for a woman said to have given 350 speeches per year in her role as lieutenant-governor.
She was a consistent, passionate, intelligent advocate all her life, said former B.C. premier Mike Harcourt.
She had a charisma, a charm, she was articulate … and tough-minded, all the things you want in a politician. She always was consistent in advocating for First Nations and Northern and rural communities, and she was very strong on conservation and climate change.
She was born Iona Victoria Hardy in Vancouver on Oct. 18, 1932 and spent her early years on Galiano Island. When she was eight she moved up the coast when her father got a job at the North Pacific Cannery, located on the Skeena River near Prince Rupert.
At 19 she married Louis Campagnolo, and the couple raised two daughters in Prince Rupert before divorcing. She was interested in education issues and was elected to the Prince Rupert School Board in 1966. She also was elected to Prince Rupert city council.
