Thomas Earle Hickey

HICKEY, THOMAS EARLE, chartered accountant and business person; b. 20 October 1907 in Summerside, son of Joseph Charles Hickey and Mary Evangeline Gaudet; m. first 3 August 1938 Elizabeth Margaret McCardle of Middleton, and they had five children, James Earle, Robert Joseph, Ronald Gerard, Helen Elizabeth, and T. Earle; m. secondly 1972, Beatrice Beauregard, and there were no children; m. thirdly April 1980 Marie Holden Gordon, and there were no children; Roman Catholic; d. 2 March 1994 in Charlottetown. Hickey, a Liberal, was first elected to the Legislative Assembly in the general election of 1966 for 5th Prince. He was re-elected in the general elections of 1970 and 1974. In 1966 he was appointed Provincial Treasurer and served in this capacity until 1970. Hickey was also appointed Provincial Secretary on 28 July 1966 and continued in this position until 1972. Upon re-election in 1970, he was appointed Minister of Finance on 1 June and served until 1976. In 1973, the Island's Centennial year, Hickey was appointed Minister Responsible for Cultural Affairs and served in this position until 1976. He retired 30 June 1976. T. Earle Hickey received his early education in Summerside schools and continued his studies at Queen's University in Kingston, Ontario, and at the Institute of Chartered Accountants in Toronto. In 1939 he was appointed to the provincial Auditor's Department and served there until 1942, when he opened his own business in Summerside, T. E. Hickey and Company Chartered Accountants. He was active within the business community, and served as chair of the Summerside Chamber of Commerce and was a member of the Board of Industrial Enterprises. He was a member of the Economic Council of Canada, the Summerside School Board, and a member of the Summerside Lobster Carnival Organizing Committee. While living in Queens County, Hickey contributed as a member of the Public Utilities Commission, the treasurer of the Queens County Literacy Council, and the treasurer and tutor for the Queens County Laubach Literacy Council. Hickey was a member of the Queen Elizabeth Hospital Foundation and was a director of the Prince Edward Island Heritage Foundation. He was a member of the property and finance committee of St. Dunstan's Basilica. Hickey was active in the Knights of Columbus, acting as Grand Knight and State Deputy of the organization, and as a treasurer of the Knights of Columbus Mission Fund. T. Earle Hickey died 2 March 1994 at Whisperwood Villa. Elizabeth Hickey, the daughter of James McArdle of Middleton, died in 1970. Beatrice Hickey died in 1978. Marie Hickey survives her husband.