A staple in the world of Saskatchewan politics has died.
The death of Joe Garcea, a long-time professor and political scientist at the University of Saskatchewan, was announced on the Twitter account of the department of political studies Thursday afternoon. He was 64.
“It is with a heavy heart that we say goodbye to Professor Joe Garcea. A better colleague and friend we could not hope for. He will be terribly missed and always remembered,” the account posted on Friday.
Garcea, who was well known in the world of Saskatchewan politics, specialized in local governance, Indigenous-municipal relations and a wide array of other topics associated with Saskatchewan’s political realm.
It is with a heavy heart that we say good bye to Professor Joe Garcea. A better colleague and friend we could not hope for. He will be terribly missed and always remembered. <a href=”https://t.co/kQjWZIHpYB”>pic.twitter.com/kQjWZIHpYB</a>
—@usaskPolitics
Neil Hibbert, the head of political studies at the University of Saskatchewan, said Garcea’s passing will leave a “huge hole” in the department.
“We’re all still in shock at the moment,” he said, noting the entire department is keeping his family in their thoughts. He said faculty members have been sharing pictures and memories of Garcea as a way to remember him and celebrate his life.
“He was a firm believer that good government and good governance could make a difference in people’s lives,” he said.
Hibbert recalled that Garcea was a man who cared deeply about his work — not only the research and academics, but his pupils and peers.
“He was essentially selfless when it came to his students,” he said. “He would often go well above and beyond the call of duty in mentoring students and accommodating them when they were experiencing tough times.”
Hibbert says the spirit and passion Garcea brought to the department helped ensure it was a warm and welcoming place, noting his willingness to help his students also extended to his peers at the U of S and a wide network of colleagues across the country.
Along with holding the position of department head for a run of five years, Garcea was also awarded the University of Saskatchewan’s highest honour, the Master Teacher Award, in 2018.
‘A brilliant political scientist’: Mandryk
Murray Mandryk, a long-time political columnist with the Saskatoon StarPhoenix and Regina Leader-Post, said Garcea will be missed both as a great political mind, but also as a wonderful person all around.
“I’m just gutted to hear this news,” Mandryk said on Thursday.
“He was a brilliant political scientist that offered you, always, an unbiased and fair-minded perspective,” he said, adding that’s a characteristic not all political scientists have.
Mandryk recalled with fondness how Garcea handled heavy criticism in the early 2000s after he oversaw research that suggested Saskatchewan’s rural municipalities amalgamate.
“He took it so stoically, like such a gentleman,” said Mandryk.
“Such incredible abuse without batting an eye, just thinking he was presenting the right information and doing the right thing. I’ll never forget that as an exercise in restraint and just dignity that I’ve never seen the likes of in this province.”
Garcea’s cause of death has not been released publicly. In 2018, the University of Saskatchewan’s On Campus News reported he had battled health issues for years, after being diagnosed with stomach cancer in 1991.
SOURCE:- CBC.ca
