Patricia Janet Mella ( MacDougal; born August 29, 1943) is a

Canadian Canadians () are people identified with the country of Canada. This connection may be residential, legal, historical or cultural. For most Canadians, many (or all) of these connections exist and are collectively the source of their being ''C ...

politician and former teacher. Mella was

Prince Edward Island Progressive Conservative Party The Progressive Conservative Party of Prince Edward Island (PEIPC) is one of three major political parties on Prince Edward Island. The party and its rival, the Prince Edward Island Liberal Party, have alternated in power since responsible gove ...

(PC) leader from 1990 to 1996 and an elected member of the

Legislative Assembly of Prince Edward Island The Legislative Assembly of Prince Edward Island () together with the Lieutenant Governor of Prince Edward Island, lieutenant governor of Prince Edward Island form the General Assembly of Prince Edward Island. The Legislative Assembly meets at ...

from 1993 to 2003.

Early Life

She was born Patricia McDougall in Port Hill,

Prince Edward Island Prince Edward Island is an island Provinces and territories of Canada, province of Canada. While it is the smallest province by land area and population, it is the most densely populated. The island has several nicknames: "Garden of the Gulf", ...

(along with her twin sister, Peggy) and was educated at

Saint Dunstan's University :''St. Andrew's College, Prince Edward Island'' redirects to here. St. Dunstan's University (SDU) is a former university which was located on the northern outskirts of Charlottetown, Prince Edward Island, Canada. SDU merged with Prince of Wales C ...

and the

University of Prince Edward Island The University of Prince Edward Island (UPEI) is a public university in Charlottetown, Prince Edward Island, Canada, and the only university in the province. Founded in 1969, the enabling legislation is the ''University Act, R.S.P.E.I 2000.'' H ...

. A teacher and lecturer, she married Angelo Mella while teaching at St. Patrick's College in

Ottawa Ottawa is the capital city of Canada. It is located in the southern Ontario, southern portion of the province of Ontario, at the confluence of the Ottawa River and the Rideau River. Ottawa borders Gatineau, Gatineau, Quebec, and forms the cor ...

. Mella is a sister of Canadian businessman Don McDougall, who was a founder of the

Toronto Blue Jays The Toronto Blue Jays are a Canadian professional baseball team based in Toronto. The Blue Jays compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the American League (AL) American League East, East Division. Since 1989, the team has p ...

Career

Mella entered political life, having been an unsuccessful candidate in the 1989 provincial election as a member of the Prince Edward Island Progressive Conservative Party. She served as the Leader of the party from 1990 to 1996 and Leader of the Opposition from 1993 to 1996. She represented

3rd Queens 3rd Queens was an electoral district in the Canadian province of Prince Edward Island, which elected two members to the Legislative Assembly of Prince Edward Island The Legislative Assembly of Prince Edward Island () together with the Lieutena ...

from 1993 to 1996, and then

Glen Stewart-Bellevue Cove Stratford-Kinlock was a provincial electoral district for the Legislative Assembly of Prince Edward Island, Canada Canada is a country in North America. Its Provinces and territories of Canada, ten provinces and three territories exten ...

from 1996 to 2003. Elected with the government of Premier

Pat Binns Patrick George Binns (born October 8, 1948) is a Canadian diplomat, the 30th premier of Prince Edward Island from 1996 to 2007 and Canadian Ambassador to Ireland from 2007 to 2010. Binns has a long history of public service, most notably being ...

in 1996, she served as Provincial Treasurer (Minister of Finance) until 2003. Mella retired from the legislature before the 2003 provincial general election and did not reoffer. In 2004, Mella was appointed with Douglas MacArthur and Matt Power to chair the Prince Edward Island

Conservative Party of Canada The Conservative Party of Canada (CPC; , ), sometimes referred to as the Tories, is a Government of Canada, federal List of political parties in Canada, political party in Canada. It was formed in 2003 by the merger of the two main Right-wing ...

federal election campaign.

References

Entry from Canadian Who's Who
1943 births Living people Women government ministers of Canada Female Canadian political party leaders Ministers of finance of Prince Edward Island Members of the Executive Council of Prince Edward Island People from Queens County, Prince Edward Island Progressive Conservative Party of Prince Edward Island MLAs Progressive Conservative Party of Prince Edward Island leaders Female finance ministers Women MLAs in Prince Edward Island 20th-century Canadian women politicians 21st-century Canadian women politicians 20th-century members of the Legislative Assembly of Prince Edward Island 21st-century members of the Legislative Assembly of Prince Edward Island {{PrinceEdwardIsland-politician-stub