MLA: Hon. Bill Barisoff - Penticton - Speaker of the House

We are grateful Lord for MLA: Hon. Bill Barisoff and his many years of unselfish dedication to the public good of the people of the Okanagan Valley in particular and also to the citizens of this great province of British Columbia which is doubly blessed by incredible beauty and vast resources. We pray for him and his family that they shall sense the uplifting power of the prayers that are being sent heavenward for them. May they realize that the very God of the Universe is vitally interested in  their well being and wants to gift them with  patience, clarity of thought and purity of action. As speaker of the Legislative Chamber MLA Barisoff is  under intense pressure to rule carefully and impartially therefore we pray that he be endowed with the wisdom of Solomon as he oversees the ebb and flow debates in the house. In the mighty name of our Savior we pray.  Amen

Bill Barisoff was first elected Speaker on September 12, 2005, and re-elected to this position on August 25, 2009. He also served as Minister of Water, Land and Air Protection and Minister of Provincial Revenue.

Mr. Barisoff previously held a variety of critic roles for the Official Opposition, including agriculture, transportation and highways and aboriginal affairs. He served on the province's Motor Carrier Commission and was a member of the Select Standing Committees on Aboriginal Affairs and on Agriculture.

He was first elected in 1996 to represent the riding of Okanagan-Boundary and was re-elected in 2001 and in 2005 as the Member for Penticton-Okanagan Valley. In 2009 he was re-elected as the Member for Penticton.

Bill, who was born and raised in Oliver, owned a trucking firm before his election to the Legislative Assembly.

He served as a school trustee for 18 years, including eight as chair of the Southern Okanagan school board; was a volunteer firefighter in Oliver for over 25 years; and sat on the Okanagan Labour Relations Council. He was also chair of the Oliver Recreation Commission for one year.

Bill and Edna Barisoff live in Oliver. Their family includes sons Glen, his wife Hilary, and grand-son Benjamin Charles; Michael; Darren, his wife Eliza, and grand-daughters Kayla Ramos Barisoff and Allison Elizabeth Barisoff.