State funeral for Grace McCarthy
Posted June 7, 2017 11:11 am.
Last Updated June 7, 2017 8:07 pm.
This article is more than 5 years old.
VANCOUVER (NEWS 1130) – The sound of bagpipes echoed through Christ Church Cathedral on Burrard Street in Downtown Vancouver as BC honoured and said goodbye to a trailblazing politician.
Grace McCarthy is carried into Christ Church Cathedral #bcpoli pic.twitter.com/l2mdn7GZsL
— Lasia Kretzel (@lkretzel) June 7, 2017
Near full congregation as we await state funeral of Grace McCarthy. Beautiful brass orchestra #bcpoli pic.twitter.com/rzE81maVN7
— Lasia Kretzel (@lkretzel) June 7, 2017
Friends, family and politicians — both former and current — packed the small church to pay their final respects to Grace McCarthy. Among the hundreds there, Lieutenant-Governor Judith Guichon and Premier Christy Clark were among those in attendance.
McCarthy died on May 24th after a lengthy battle with a brain tumour. She was 89-years-old.
Known as “Amazing Grace,” McCarthy first entered politics as a Vancouver Park Board Commissioner in the 1950s but her prominence grew after she became the MLA for Vancouver-Little Mountain in 1966.
She was known for her strong and feisty spirit. McCarthy was a Social Credit Party cabinet minister who led the way for other women in politics and business.
Mary Parsons says her mother had vision and boundless energy, and she would be the first to say thank you to those people who made her dreams a reality.
She was a member of the Order of British Columbia, served in the Legislature from 1975 to 1988 and, in 1975, became the first woman in Canada to serve as deputy premier.
