Herman Harold Rolfes (born July 13, 1936) was a

Saskatchewan Saskatchewan ( ; ) is a Provinces and territories of Canada, province in Western Canada, western Canada, bordered on the west by Alberta, on the north by the Northwest Territories, on the east by Manitoba, to the northeast by Nunavut, and on t ...

educator and politician who has held provincial office, as a former member of the Saskatchewan provincial legislature. He has won a number of significant recognized awards and honours over his lifetime career.

Life before politics

The son of Joseph Rolfes and Josephine Heckmann, he was educated at St. Peter's College, at the

Saskatoon Teacher's College The Saskatoon Teachers' College, originally called the Saskatoon Normal School, was a facility in Saskatoon, Saskatchewan, Canada for training teachers. The school occupied temporary premises at first, then moved to a handsome brick and stone build ...

and at the

University of Saskatchewan A university () is an institution of higher (or tertiary) education and research which awards academic degrees in several academic disciplines. Universities typically offer both undergraduate and postgraduate programs. In the United States, t ...

. He served as principal for a number of elementary schools and as director of guidance for Holy Cross High School in

Saskatoon Saskatoon () is the largest city in the Provinces and territories of Canada, Canadian province of Saskatchewan. It straddles a bend in the South Saskatchewan River in the central region of the province. It is located along the Trans-Canada Hig ...

. In 1961, Rolfes married Myrna Josephine Hopfner.

Politics

Rolfes was a member of the

, Canada, branch of the

Co-operative Commonwealth Federation The Co-operative Commonwealth Federation (CCF; french: Fédération du Commonwealth Coopératif, FCC); from 1955 the Social Democratic Party of Canada (''french: Parti social démocratique du Canada''), was a federal democratic socialism, democra ...

(CCF), a

social democratic Social democracy is a political, social, and economic philosophy within socialism that supports political and economic democracy. As a policy regime, it is described by academics as advocating economic and social interventions to promote soci ...

political party, and its successor, the

Saskatchewan New Democratic Party The Saskatchewan New Democratic Party (NDP) is a social-democratic political party in the Canadian province of Saskatchewan. It currently forms the official opposition, but has been a dominant force in Saskatchewan politics since the 1940s. Th ...

(NDP). He was elected

Member of the Legislative Assembly A member of the Legislative Assembly (MLA) is a representative elected by the voters of a constituency to a legislative assembly. Most often, the term refers to a subnational assembly such as that of a state, province, or territory of a country. S ...

in the Saskatoon Nutana South

1971 * The year 1971 had three partial solar eclipses ( February 25, July 22 and August 20) and two total lunar eclipses (February 10, and August 6). The world population increased by 2.1% this year, the highest increase in history. Events Ja ...

to 1975 term and served with

Premier Premier is a title for the head of government in central governments, state governments and local governments of some countries. A second in command to a premier is designated as a deputy premier. A premier will normally be a head of governm ...

Allan Blakeney Allan Emrys Blakeney (September 7, 1925April 16, 2011) was the tenth premier of Saskatchewan from 1971 to 1982, and leader of the Saskatchewan New Democratic Party (NDP). Early life and career Born in Bridgewater, Nova Scotia, Blakeney took his ...

. Again he was elected for the

Saskatoon Buena Vista Saskatoon Buena Vista was a constituency of the Legislative Assembly of Saskatchewan. Long serving Saskatchewan New Democratic Party, New Democratic Party MLA Herman Rolfes represented the district throughout its entire existence from 1975 to 1982 ...

electoral riding for the

1975 It was also declared the ''International Women's Year'' by the United Nations and the European Architectural Heritage Year by the Council of Europe. Events January * January 1 - Watergate scandal (United States): John N. Mitchell, H. R. ...

until

1978 Events January * January 1 – Air India Flight 855, a Boeing 747 passenger jet, crashes off the coast of Bombay, killing 213. * January 5 – Bülent Ecevit, of Republican People's Party, CHP, forms the new government of Turkey (42nd go ...

when he was re-elected in the same riding again with

NDP NDP may stand for: Computing * Neighbor Discovery Protocol, an Internet protocol * Nortel Discovery Protocol, a layer two Internet protocol, also called SONMP * Nondeterministic programming, a type of computer language Government * National Deve ...

, and served until 1982. Under

he was appointed Minister of Social Services, Minister of Continuing Education and finally as

Minister of Health A health minister is the member of a country's government typically responsible for protecting and promoting public health and providing welfare and other social security services. Some governments have separate ministers for mental health. Coun ...

1982 Events January * January 1 – In Malaysia and Singapore, clocks are adjusted to the same time zone, UTC+8 (GMT+8.00). * January 13 – Air Florida Flight 90 crashes shortly after takeoff into the 14th Street bridges, 14th Street Bridge in ...

when he was defeated, and

Grant Devine Donald Grant Devine, SOM (born July 5, 1944) was the 11th premier of Saskatchewan from May 8, 1982 to November 1, 1991. Early life Born in Regina, Saskatchewan, he received a BSc in Agriculture degree specializing in Agricultural Economics i ...

, PC became the elected

. Herman Rolfes ran and won again in

Saskatoon South Saskatoon () is the largest city in the Canadian province of Saskatchewan. It straddles a bend in the South Saskatchewan River in the central region of the province. It is located along the Trans-Canada Yellowhead Highway, and has served as ...

1986 The year 1986 was designated as the International Year of Peace by the United Nations. Events January * January 1 ** Aruba gains increased autonomy from the Netherlands by separating from the Netherlands Antilles. **Spain and Portugal ente ...

and

1991 File:1991 Events Collage.png, From left, clockwise: Boris Yeltsin, elected as Russia's first president, waves the new flag of Russia after the 1991 Soviet coup d'état attempt, orchestrated by Soviet hardliners; Mount Pinatubo erupts in the Phil ...

. Herman Harold Rolfes was

Speaker of the Legislative Assembly of Saskatchewan The Speaker of the Legislative Assembly of Saskatchewan is the presiding officer of the Saskatchewan Legislature. Speakers of the Legislative Assembly of Saskatchewan *Thomas MacNutt 1906–1908 *William Charles Sutherland 1908–1912 *John Albe ...

or the presiding officer of the Saskatchewan legislature from 1991 to 1996. Rolfes was a member of the Board of Governors for the

1997-2003. Prior to his political career, he was a teacher in the Saskatchewan Catholic School system, elementary school principal and high school counsellor. He has also been a former appointed Saskatchewan Minister of Social Services, Saskatchewan Minister of Continuing Education, and Saskatchewan Minister of Health.

References

External links

Government Relations , Office of Protocol and HonoursSASKATCHEWAN SPEAKERS OF THE LEGISLATIVE ASSEMBLYMembers of the Board of Governors :: University of Saskatchewan ...UNIVERSITY OF SASKATCHEWAN BOARD OF GOVERNORS APPOINTED ...MINISTRIES FIRST MINISTRY
{{DEFAULTSORT:Rolfes, Herman Speakers of the Legislative Assembly of Saskatchewan Saskatchewan New Democratic Party MLAs 1936 births Living people Members of the Executive Council of Saskatchewan Politicians from Saskatoon