2020 has come to a close, which, for some, was a devastating year.
This is the same for Prince George-Valemount MLA and BC Liberal Party Interim Leader Shirley Bond, who had tragedy strike during the summer.
Bond announced in June that her husband of 41 years, Bill, had passed away after suffering from a series of health challenges.
"His heart, kidneys, crushed vertebrae, the list goes on," she said in a social media post.
"He was a devoted husband, father, grandfather, son, brother, uncle and friend. He was my life partner and best friend. More later, but for now, rest well Billy, we love you to the moon and back!"
Bond says the struggles with Bill's health started essentially when COVID-19 had struck B.C., and she wasn't able to see her husband on what would end up being the last days of his life.
"It started virtually at the same time as the pandemic took hold in British Columbia with Bill being ill and eventually passing away. You can imagine the impact that COVID restrictions have on families and I watch it every day. People are separated from loved ones, they can't be together and that's been a very difficult part of the year for our family," she explained.
"Not being able to be with Bill directly when he was going through what turned out to be the last days of his life was one of the most difficult things we've had to face as a family.
"But I think coming out of that, has reminded me the absolute importance of family and the gratitude I have for having a life partner for more than four decades, so very grateful for that relationship, my best friend.
Despite the loss of her husband, Bond pushed forward in her position as MLA of Prince George-Valemount.
In September, Premier John Horgan announced a snap-election in the middle of the COVID-19 pandemic.
The move set off both the BC Liberals and BC Green Party, who the BC NDP held a minority government with, saying Horgan was mixing politics with a pandemic, at the risk of British Columbians and the move was self-serving.
"I think most British Columbians are disappointed that John Horgan chose to call a snap election during a pandemic," she also told PrinceGeorgeMatters shortly after the announcement.
"He had a full year left to govern and now during one of the most difficult times in our province’s history we are going to the polls."
In the end, Bond won her seat for a remarkable sixth consecutive time, easily beating out other candidates in the riding, claiming 55.62 per cent of the popular vote and finishing with 9,703 votes.
The other results in the riding were as follows:
- Laura Parent - BC NDP: 4,717 votes (27.04 per cent)
- Mackenzie Kerr - BC Green Party: 2,597 votes (14.89 per cent)
- Sean Robson - BC Libertarian Party: 287 votes (1.71 per cent)
“It's a very humbling experience to be elected once much less six times by the people of Prince George-Valemount," Bond told PrinceGeorgeMatters on election night after preliminary results showed she was the winner.
"I’m very grateful and obviously a very emotional night for me and my family."
Bond says 2020 will be straining for many to find positives to take away but believes residents showed their strength and true resiliency.
"It's been a very difficult year for people, but I think there are some things that we've learned in 2020 that I'm going to take out of this year," she said.
"One is the absolute resiliency of British Columbians. They always step up and I think my community, my riding. Despite difficult times, people managed to step up and continued doing the things that are important. I think about small businesses for example and how they've had to be innovative.
"If they want to survive, they've looked at things like curbside pickup and delivery and all of those things, so I think we've seen the strength of the spirit of British Columbia."
Bond saw how the community can come together and rally around people who are struggling after her husband passed away.
"I think the second thing is the compassion and generosity people share. If you raise an issue and there's someone who needs something, people just rally around that person and I've seen that first hand in my own life and with my family as we've lost Bill this year. We continue to be surrounded and cared for and I think those are strengths of our community, our province and I do think we have to see that as one of the bright sides of 2020."
Bond's political career then suddenly turned up a notch in November.
After a large defeat to the BC NDP, who secured a majority government, she was named interim leader of the party after Andrew Wilkinson announced he was stepping down immediately despite saying he would stay on until a permanent leader was chosen.
She says it's changed many aspects for her but she's ready for the challenge.
"Obviously, lots of work to do and it's been very busy. I think the most important thing and the first priority for me after being chosen as the interim leader, was to make sure that we could be an effective opposition, that we would go into the legislature, albeit with a smaller number of MLAs than we hoped for, but our team is 28 MLAs strong and I have just seen how incredibly capable and how strong they are.
"We now have a session underneath us. We've gotten through the session. We've held the government to account on a lot of issues. That was our first priority. Very proud of the team I get to work with and you know, we're going to be rolling up our sleeves in the weeks and months ahead to ensure that we will be the most effective opposition that's possible."
While B.C. has seen high COVID-19 numbers, hospitalizations and deaths recently, Bond hopes the vaccines being rolled out will help people be able to come together again with loved ones and have some kind of normal life in 2021.
"My biggest wish for 2021 is that we'll be able to be together again.
"I look at the impacts of being physically apart from people you care about for long periods of time and it is very challenging and it is very difficult.
"People long to be together again so my wish for 2021 is that the vaccination program works in British Columbia, that we have widespread availability of vaccines and eventually that leads to us being able to live a more normal life again. Perhaps not ever the same but more of a normal life.
