‘A steady and principled leader’: Former Calgary MP Bobbie Sparrow passes away

Bobbie Sparrow, P.C. elect for Calgary South applauds in Calgary on Sept. 4, 1984. (The Canadian Press/Pat Price)

Former Calgary member of Parliament Barbara “Bobbie” Sparrow has passed away.

Sparrow was elected in the riding of Calgary South in 1984 as a member of Progressive Conservative Party of Canada.

Redistributed ridings saw her running in the new ridding of Calgary Southwest in 1988, which she won.

However, Sparrow lost Calgary Southwest to the Reform Party’s Preston Manning in 1993.

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Her family says Sparrow passed away peacefully on Feb. 19 at the age of 90.

Her husband, Bob Sparrow, died in 1973.

The pair moved to Calgary from Ontario in 1956, the same year they were married.

Once in Calgary, Sparrow worked as a surgical nurse at the Holy Cross Hospital.

“By the early 1960s, Bobbie began what would become decades of extraordinary volunteer service,” her family said in a Friday news release. “She joined the Junior League of Calgary, serving in numerous leadership roles, including president in 1969.”

“During her tenure, she played a significant role in the league’s involvement in the planning and capital fundraising efforts that helped bring the Fort Calgary Interpretive Centre to life, a lasting civic landmark preserving Calgary’s early history.”

Sparrow later served as a residential chair at the United Way of Calgary and Area.

After her husband’s death, she turned to senior corporate leadership and board governance roles.

She served as the president of Argus Drilling and Argus Well Services and a director of Norcen Energy Resources Ltd., Enerflex Systems Ltd. and Aace Environmental Services Inc. before starting her career in politics.

“To her family, she was a devoted mother, grandmother, and great-grandmother who modelled courage, intellectual curiosity and unwavering integrity,” said family. “To her community, she was a steady and principled leader who believed governance was a form of service.”

A celebration of life will be confirmed at a later date.

In lieu of flowers, family is asking for donations to be made to Diabetes Canada or to an education charity of choice.