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Former senator Joyce Fairbairn dies at 82

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Political trailblazer Joyce Fairbairn dies at 82
WATCH: Tributes are pouring in for a political pioneer from southern Alberta who spent decades on Parliament Hill. Former senator Joyce Fairbairn died on Tuesday, nine years after retiring from the Senate. Danica Ferris takes a look back on her life and legacy – Mar 30, 2022

Former Liberal senator Joyce Fairbairn has died at the age of 82.

She began her career as a journalist working in the parliamentary press gallery before entering the political realm, becoming an adviser to then-prime minister Pierre Trudeau.

During her nearly three decades in the upper chamber, Fairbairn was the first woman named government leader in the Senate.

Read more: Senator Joyce Fairbairn resigns

She retired from the Senate in 2013.

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Fairbairn was also a well-known supporter of the Canadian Paralympic Committee and was inducted into the Canadian Paralympic Hall of Fame as a builder in 2011.

In 2000, she helped found and became chair of the Canadian Paralympic Foundation, an organization that aims to ensure long-term financial support for athletes.

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