Former Delta-Richmond East member of Parliament and former leader of the BC Conservative Party John Cummins has passed away.
Cummins died at Royal Inland Hospital in Kamloops on Sunday, March 2 after being in and out of hospital for more than a year.
His wife Sue told the Richmond News while his body was getting weaker – he had had a spinal stroke in August 2020 – his mind was sharp to the end.
He still watched the news and read the newspapers, keeping up with current events, Sue said.
Cummins served as the MP for Delta-Richmond East from 1993 to 2011, winning six elections, first a Reform MP, then as a Canadian Alliance MP and finally as a Conservative Party of Canada MP.
In the end, Sue said he was getting tired of flying back and forth between the West Coast and Ottawa, as it was taking away from family time.
After not seeking re-election in federal politics, he took up the reins of the BC Conservative Party from 2011 to 2013.
Cummins was born in Ontario in 1942.
After working in the pulp and paper industry, in the Alberta oil fields and helping to build the Bennett Dam, he worked as a school teacher in Delta all the while fishing in the summers.
Sue called him a “died-in-the-wool Conservative.”
“John had strong family values, and he had strong ethics and he stood for what he believed in,” she said.
He also stood up for his constituents, even though at times it went against party policy.
“He was not a man to sit on the fence,” she added.
His friend, Richmond resident Bob Ransford, said on X (formerly Twitter) that Cummins “didn’t just sit around and expect people to love him because he was elected.”
“He championed issues, he spoke out loudly and, when speaking wasn’t enough, he took action,” Ransford said in the post.
Ransford said Cummins “fought for the rights of others,” and would take other politicians to task. He didn’t spend time on the “social circuit,” he added.
“He would rather be fighting for someone who deserved the attention of government or fight for an issue he believed was important,” Ransford posted.
After retiring from politics, the Cummins family moved to Langley where they had a farm. They then lived in Ladysmith before moving to Kamloops to be near family.
A celebration of life will be held at the South Delta Baptist Church on Saturday, March 29 at 2 p.m.
Cummins leaves behind his wife Sue Cummins, children Martin Cummins, Carolyn Cummins, Kristina Calihou and Erin Jensen as well as his grandchildren Christian Cummins, Grayson Cummins, Scout Cummins, Charlie Cummins, Hannah Calihou, Seth Calihou, Rachel Calihou, Marley Jensen, Kate Jensen and Brooke Jensen and his great-grandson Samuel Cummins. He’s also missed by his brother and sisters and other family.
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