Alberta Premier Jason Kenney tweeted Saturday that MLA Janice Sarich had died of cancer on Friday.
“She was a wonderful, giving and compassionate woman dedicated to her community, serving as both a Catholic school trustee and MLA,” he said, calling her a “good friend.”
Kenney said she received the cancer diagnosis three weeks ago.
Sarich was a Progressive Conservative MLA in the Edmonton-Decore riding from 2008 until 2015.
“Whenever she spoke in caucus, I was intrigued, and I watched her closely because her words were always very weighted and well-thought-out,” Christine Cusanelli, a former Alberta MLA and colleague, said.
“She was very serious about the work that she did and very dedicated.”
Cusanelli said Sarich always put her family first and loved her husband and two kids. Prior to her death, Sarich was working on a book about life in politics and how to handle life afterwards, Cusanelli explained.
Sarich was also an Edmonton Catholic School Board trustee from 2001 to 2007, according to her LinkedIn page.
“She would always have stacks of photographs of the students that would come to visit the legislature,” Cusanelli said.
“She would go and take the photograph and sign them and they would be sent out to each of the students that visited. She really did such a good job of ensuring kids and people in her constituency had this note. It was a personal touch. That’s the kind of person she was.”
Sarich was appointed to the board of governors at MacEwan University in 2019.