UFV honorary degree recipient Halldor Bjarnason returns to UFV on Wed, Feb 22 for the President’s Leadership Lecture Series.

Bjarnason will speak at 4:30 pm in the Student Union Building. Admission is free and the public is welcome.

His topic will be spotting and seizing opportunities.

Bjarnason’s visit coincides with Pink Shirt Day activities at UFV.

Bjarnason knows all about overcoming barriers and persevering to seize opportunities. The cerebral palsy he was born with affects his movement and his speech. It crushed his dream of becoming a firefighter, a profession for which he still cares deeply.

Halldor was a bright child, and his mother fought to get him into regular school in an era when children with disabilities were often segregated.

He excelled and eventually became a lawyer. But even that wasn’t easy.

Law school at Queen’s University went well, but he had a hard time finding a firm to take him on full time after articling. Undaunted, he built his own practice in Vancouver, specializing in estate issues affecting families with dependents with disabilities.

Along the way Bjarnason became an elite athlete, competing with the Canadian National Disabled Cycling Team, including at the 1998 and 1992 Paralympics in Seoul and Barcelona. In Seoul, he set the 1500m tricycle sprint world record and won the gold medal.

Find our more about Bjarnason here.