Ione Christensen

The Honourable
Ione Christensen
Commissioner of the Yukon
In office
January 20, 1979  October 6, 1979
Prime Minister Pierre Trudeau
Joe Clark
Premier Chris Pearson
Preceded by Frank Fingland
Succeeded by Douglas Bell
Senator for Yukon
In office
September 2, 1999  December 31, 2006
Nominated by Jean Chrétien
Preceded by Paul Lucier
Succeeded by Daniel Lang
Mayor of Whitehorse, Yukon
In office
1976–1979
Preceded by Paul Lucier
Succeeded by Art Deer
Personal details
Born Ione Jean Cameron
(1933-10-10) October 10, 1933
Dawson Creek, British Columbia
Spouse(s) Art Christensen
Residence Whitehorse, Yukon

Ione Jean Christensen, CM, née Cameron (born October 10, 1933) is a former Canadian Senator.[1]

The daughter of former North-West Mounted Police constable Gordon Irwin Cameron, and Dawson City born Martha Ballentine Cameron, her family moved to Whitehorse in 1949. Christensen graduated from high school in 1953. She received an associate in arts degree in business administration from the College of San Mateo in California. In 1968, she married Art Christensen, a geologist.

In 1971, she was appointed the first woman justice of the peace and judge of the juvenile court in Yukon. In 1975, she was elected the first woman mayor of Whitehorse;[2] on the same day, Yolanda Burkhard was elected as the first woman mayor of Dawson City.[2] In 1979, she served as the Commissioner of the Yukon, being the first woman to be appointed as Commissioner of the Yukon.

In 1980, she ran unsuccessfully as a Liberal candidate, in the federal election for the riding of Yukon. She lost by 101 votes to Erik Nielsen.

In 1994, she was appointed a Member of the Order of Canada. Her father was also a member. In 1999, Christensen was appointed at the recommendation of Prime Minister Jean Chrétien to the Senate.

On December 31, 2006, Christensen resigned from the Senate to assist her ailing husband.[3]

References

  1. Ione Christensen – Parliament of Canada biography
  2. 1 2 "Two women elected mayors in Yukon vote". The Globe and Mail, December 13, 1975.
  3. Christensen retires, Qonfusion, December 15, 2006. Retrieved on March 3, 2007.
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