List of members of the Order of Ontario

The following is a full list of members of the Order of Ontario, both past and current, in order of their date of appointment.

Members

1987

• John Black Aird – 23rd Lieutenant Governor of Ontario
• Aline Akeson – poverty activist
• J. M. S. Careless – historian
• Hon. William G. Davis – Premier of Ontario (1971–1985)
• Celia Franca – founder of National Ballet of Canada
• Harry Gairey – civil rights activist
• Duncan Gordon
• Roger Guindon – university administrator
• Dianne Harkin – founder of Women for the Survival of Agriculture
• Cleeve Horne – portrait painter and sculptor
• Benjamin Sinclair Johnson – sprinter
• Franc Joubin – prospector and geologist
• Johnny Lombardi – pioneer of multicultural broadcasting in Canada
• Clifford McIntosh – public speaker, author and founder of the Quetico Centre
• Oskar Morawetz – composer
• John Polanyi – Nobel laureate
• Al Purdy – poet
• James Swail – researcher and developer of assistive devices for the blind
• Bessie Touzel – social worker and teacher
• Whipper Billy Watson – professional wrestler, supporter of children's charities

1988

• Alex Baumann – competitive swimmer, Olympic medalist
• June Callwood – journalist, author and social activist
• Floyd Chalmers – editor, publisher and philanthropist
• Robertson Davies – novelist, playwright, critic, journalist, professor, founding Master of Massey College
• Reva Gerstein – first woman Chancellor of the University of Western Ontario (1992–96)
• Charlotte Lemieux – teacher and public servant
• Walter Frederick Light – business executive
• Gordon Lightfoot – singer and songwriter
• Dennis McDermott – trade unionist, Canadian Director of the United Auto Workers (1968–78), and president of the Canadian Labour Congress (1978–86)
• Pauline McGibbon – 22nd Lieutenant-Governor of Ontario
• Don Moore – activist and immigration advocate
• Bernice Noblitt – President of the Federated Women's Institute of Canada, women's rights activist and teacher
• John C. Parkin – architect
• Beryl Potter – activist for the rights of people with disabilities
• John Josiah Robinette – lawyer
• Murray Ross – founding president of York University
• Robert B. Salter – Orthopedic surgeon and professor
• John Weinzweig – composer

1989

• Louis Applebaum – composer
• John W. H. Bassett – publisher, media baron
• Dorothy Beam – advocate for the rights of the Deaf
• Leonard Birchall – decorated RCAF pilot (World War II)
• Violet Blackman – black rights activist
• Morley Callaghan – author & playwright
• Paul Charbonneau – priest and founder of Brentwood Recovery Home
• Charles George Drake – neurosurgeon
• Anne Gribben – nurse and labour activist
• James Ham – engineer, administrator and President of the University of Toronto
• Kenneth Hare – climatologist
• Daniel Iannuzzi – broadcaster
• Norman Jewison – film director, producer, actor and founder of the Canadian Film Centre
• Basil Johnston – Anishinaabe writer & storyteller
• Cliff Lumsdon – world champion marathon swimmer
• Janet Murray – nun, educator and hospital administrator
• Laure Rièse – educator; first female faculty member to obtain a PhD from University of Toronto
• Harry Thode – geochemist, nuclear chemist, and academic administrator
• Eberhard Zeidler – architect

1990

• James Archibald – veterinary surgeon, organ transplant pioneer
• Margaret Atwood – writer
• John Bailey – physician and community organizer
• Maxwell Enkin – refugee advocate
• Maureen Forrester – contralto
• Ursula Franklin – metallurgist, research physicist, author and educator
• George R. Gardiner – businessman, philanthropist and co-founder of the Gardiner Museum
• Stanley Grizzle – trade union activist
• Karen Kain – dancer
• Vicki Keith – marathon swimmer
• Wilbert Keon – heart surgeon, scientific researcher
• Dr. Robert McClure – surgeon, missionary, Moderator of the United Church of Canada (1968–71), social activist
• Roland Michener – 20th Governor-General of Canada
• Roderick Moran – paediatric dentist and organizer of specialized care clinics for disabled children
• Brian Orser – figure skater (Olympic medallist/world champion)
• Clifford Pilkey – trade union leader
• Wilfrid Sarazin
• Herbert Smith – engineer and educator
• Kathleen Taylor – the first woman to chair the board of a major Canadian bank
• Jean Woodsworth – social worker, women's and seniors' rights activist

1991

• Gerald Barbeau
• John Basmajian – scientist
• Elisabeth Bednar
• Agnes Benidickson – first female chancellor of Queen's University
• Liona Boyd – classical guitarist
• Clara Bernhardt – writer, poet and composer
• A. J. Casson – artist, member of the Group of Seven
• Clifford Chadderton – veteran (World War II), CEO of The War Amps
• Frances Dafoe – figure skater, World Champion and Olympic medallist
• Dora de Pedery-Hunt – artist, designer of coins for Royal Canadian Mint
• John Craig Eaton – businessman
• John Robert Evans – pediatrician, academic, businessperson, civic leader, founding dean of McMaster University Faculty of Medicine
• Timothy Findley – author & playwright
• Mary Lou Fox
• Wilbur Howard – minister, the first black person to graduate from Emmanuel College and be ordained in the United Church of Canada
• William Goldwin Carrington Howland – lawyer, judge and former Chief Justice of Ontario
• Greta Kraus – Harpsichordist, pianist and teacher
• Sim Fai Liu – doctor and founder of the Mon Sheong Foundation
• Veronica O'Reilly
• Tom Patterson – founder of Stratford Festival of Canada
• Walter Pitman – president of Ryerson Polytechnical Institute (1975–80)
• Annabel Slaight – teacher, environmentalist and co-founder of OWL
• Arthur Solomon
• Louis Temporale – sculptor
• George Rutherford Walker
• Lois Miriam Wilson – first female Moderator of the United Church of Canada (1980–82)

1992

• Lincoln Alexander – 24th Lieutenant Governor of Ontario
• Bromley Armstrong – civil rights leader
• Boris Berlin – pianist, music educator, arranger, and composer
• Pierre Berton – author, journalist, TV personality
• Suzanne Rochon-Burnett – first aboriginal person in Canada to own and operate a private commercial radio station
• Linda Crabtree – writer, advocate and founder of CMT International
• Stefan Dupré – economist, teacher and administrator
• William Hutt – actor
• Germain Lemieux – folklorist and teacher
• Arthur Martin – justice of the Court of Appeal for Ontario
• Doris McCarthy – artist
• Terry Meagher – human rights and labour activist
• Raymond Moriyama – architect
• Fraser Mustard – physician and scientist
• Oscar Peterson – jazz pianist
• Serafina Petrone – writer, educator and philanthropist
• Nancy Pocock – activist, advocate for refugees and artist
• Harry Rasky – documentary film producer
• Judith Simser – teacher and advocate for the deaf
• Rose Wolfe – Chancellor of the University of Toronto (1991–1997)

1993

• Roberta Bondar – astronaut
• Pat Capponi – author and advocate for mental health issues and poverty issues
• Jean-Gabriel Castel – law professor and Professor Emeritus at Osgoode Hall Law School
• Tirone David – cardiac surgeon
• Colin diCenzo
• Budhendra Doobay – cardiologist, heart surgeon and philanthropist
• Grace Hartman – first female mayor of Sudbury
• Daniel G. Hill – civil servant, human rights specialist, and Black Canadian historian
• Thomas Hill – curator, writer, art historian, artist, actor, producer and traditional eskanye singer
• Karl Kaiser – wine maker and ice wine pioneer
• Murray Koffler – businessman and philanthropist
• Benjamin Lu – chemical engineering professor and Professor Emeritus at University of Ottawa
• Abbyann Lynch – teacher and ethics consultant
• Lois Marshall – concert soprano
• Isabel McLaughlin – artist
• Gunther Plaut – author
• Paul Rekai – doctor and co-founder of Central Hospital
• Mary Stuart – administrator and volunteer
• William Tamblyn – engineer, administrator and first President of Lakehead University
• Shirley Van Hoof
• Donald J.P. Ziraldo – wine maker and ice wine pioneer

1994

• Prasanta Basu – ophthalmologist, researcher and director of the Eye Bank of Canada (1955-1991)
• Joan Chalmers – philanthropist
• Martin Connell – businessman and philanthropist
• Elsie Cressman – missionary and midwife
• Lorna deBlicquy – aviator and Canada's first woman Civil Aviation Flight Inspector
• Selma Edelstone
• Nicholas Goldschmidt – conductor, first music director of the Royal Conservatory Opera School (University of Toronto)
• Martha Henry – actress
• Conrad Lavigne – media executive
• Donald C. MacDonald – politician
• Flora MacDonald – politician
• Edwin Mirvish – businessman, philanthropist and theatrical impresario
• Alice Munro – writer
• Phil Nimmons – jazz clarinetist, composer, bandleader
• Ted Nolan – hockey player and coach
• George Pedersen – president of University of Western Ontario (1985 to 1994)
• Ronald Satok – artist
• Nelles Silverthorne – pediatrician, researcher and vaccine pioneer
• Elizabeth Thorn
• Bryan Walls – dental surgeon, historian and author

1995

• Doris Anderson – author, journalist, women's rights activist
• Tim Armstrong – public policy advisor, legal counsel and author
• Harry Arthurs – lawyer, academic, labour law scholar
• Douglas Bassett – media executive
• Thomas Beck – entrepreneur and philanthropist
• Laurent Belanger – entrepreneur and administrator
• Marlene Castellano – teacher and researcher
• Shirley Carr – labour leader, first woman president the Canadian Labour Congress.
• Angela Coughlan – internationally ranked competitive swimmer, Olympic medallist
• Corinne Devlin – gynecologist and teacher
• Robert Filler – surgeon and researcher
• Ted Hargreaves – businessman and charitable fundraiser
• Elmer Iseler – conductor of the Toronto Mendelssohn Choir, founder of the Festival Singers of Canada and the Elmer Iseler Singers
• Heather Johnston – first lay woman president of the Canadian Council of Churches
• Vim Kochhar – former senator and co-founder of Rotary Cheshire Homes
• Linda Lundström – fashion designer
• Lloyd Perry – lawyer
• Natavarlal Shah – physician, co-founder of the Sikh Education Research Centre and co-founder of the Mount Carmel Home
• William Somerville – public servant and administrator

1996

• Avie Bennett – businessman and philanthropist
• Huguette Burroughs – journalist and public servant
• Herbert Carnegie – hockey player
• Jesse Davidson & John Davidson – co-founders of the charity Jesse's Journey
• Clifford R. Evans – labour leader
• Gregory Evans – judge
• Ellen Louks Fairclough – first female member of the Canadian federal Cabinet
• Amber Foulkes
• Charles Godfrey – physician, professor and former MPP
• Kamala-Jean Gopie – political activist
• Chris Hadfield – astronaut
• Tommy Hunter – country singer
• Arlette Lefebvre – child psychologist at the Hospital for Sick Children
• Jeffrey Wan-shu Lo
• Janet Lunn – children's writer
• Trisha Romance – artist
• Etienne Saint-Aubin – lawyer
• Ezra Schabas – musician, educator and author
• Al Waxman – actor
• William Wilkinson
• Doreen Wicks – humanitarian

1997

• John Brooks – founder of the John Brooks Community Foundation and Scholarship Fund
• François Chamberland
• Audrey Cole – activist for people with disabilities
• John Colicos – actor
• William Coyle – aerospace pioneer
• Leslie Dan – businessman
• Michael de Pencier – entrepreneur, environmental investor and publisher
• Jack Diamond – architect, founding director of the Master of Architecture program at the University of Toronto
• Charles Dubin – judge
• Ralph Ellis – filmmaker, documentarian and administrator
• Larry Grossman – politician
• Elizabeth Bradford Holbrook – portrait sculptor
• Abbyann Lynch – medical ethicist
• Ron Ianni – lawyer, teacher and President of the University of Windsor
• Roy Laine
• Moon Lum
• Kathleen Mann – teacher and choir director
• Judith Meeks
• Nancy Raeburn
• Jack Rabinovitch – philanthropist and founder of the Giller Prize
• Richard Rohmer – writer
• Bob Rumball – pastor and advocate for the deaf and those with special needs
• Nalini Stewart – administrator
• Paul Tsai

1998

• Marion Anderson – Aboriginal band councillor
• Bluma Appel – philanthropist, arts patron
• Jean Ashworth Bartle – Founder and director of the Toronto Children's Chorus
• Allan Leslie Beattie – lawyer, former chairman of the board for the Hospital for Sick Children
• Irene Broadfoot – community activist
• Norman Campbell – television director & producer, playwright
• Armando Felice DeLuca – community activist
• Claire O. Dimock – community activist
• Ydessa Hendeles – Founder, director and curator of the Ydessa Hendeles Art Foundation and Grand Founder of the Art Gallery of Ontario (AGO)
• Dr. Kenneth C. Hobbs – physician, international humanitarian
• Hal Jackman – business leader, philanthropist, 24th Lieutenant Governor of Ontario, Chair of the Ontario Arts Council and Chancellor of the University of Toronto
• Maureen Kempston Darkes – President and General Manager of General Motors Canada Ltd. and community activist
• Marvelle Koffler – Founder of the Marvelle Koffler Breast Centre at Mount Sinai Hospital and the Koffler Centre for the Arts
• Dr. Lap Cheung Lee – community activist
• Andrée Lortie – advocate for the Francophone community
• Knowlton Nash – journalist
• Alfred U. Oakie – pioneer in traffic safety
• Lloyd Seivright – activist
• Masami Tsuruoka – sports figure
• Thomas Leonard Wells – politician

1999

• William Blake – Community activist
• Doris Boissoneau – Ojibwe language activist
• Paul Michel Bosc – Wine-maker
• Mavis Elaine Burke – Educator, advocate for early childhood education and community activist
• Clarice Chalmers – Philanthropist
• Keshav Chandaria – philanthropist
• Susan Charness – disability-rights activist
• Sam John Ciccolini – entrepreneur and philanthropist
• Esther Farlinger – charity fundraiser
• Victor Feldbrill – violinist, orchestral conductor and champion of Canadian music
• Dr. James Ferguson – medical researcher
• Maxwell Goldhar – businessman, philanthropist
• Doris Lau – financial adviser, charity fundraiser, goodwill ambassador for Ontario and scholarship sponsor
• Eileen McGregor – community activist
• Winnie "Roach" Leuszler – first Canadian to swim the English Channel, sportswoman
• Alice King Sculthorpe – community activist
• Dr. Bette Stephenson – physician, founding member of the College of Family Physicians of Canada, former Ontario Progressive Conservative MPP and cabinet minister
• Hin Cheung Tam – community activist
• Gordie Tapp – entertainer
• Anthony Toldo – industrialist, philanthropist, bicyclist
• Lisette Véron-Rainu – children's activist
• Ken Watts – Founder of the Ontario Collegiate Drama Festival

2000

• Danielle Allen and Normand Pellerin – educators
• Maggie Atkinson – Lawyer and AIDS activist
• Marilyn Brooks – Fashion designer and philanthropist
• Nickie Cassidy – activist on behalf of sufferers of multiple sclerosis
• Ernie Checkeris – Educator and activist, Chancellor of Thorneloe University, Sudbury
• George A. Cohon – Chicago-born lawyer; founder/senior chairman of McDonald's Restaurants of Canada; philanthropist
• Lloyd Dennis – educator
• William Andrew Dimma – businessman and educator
• Kildare Dobbs – writer, journalist
• Joyce Fee – educator and community activist
• Dr. Robert Freedom – physician, professor and author
• Donald H. Harron – journalist, author and actor
• Jane Jacobs – U.S.-born naturalized Canadian author; Toronto-based urban philosopher
• Stephan Lewar – venture capitalist, financier and philanthropist
• Janet MacInnis – fundraiser and volunteer
• Frank Miller – politician (former Premier of Ontario)
• Betty Oliphant – founder of the National Ballet School of Canada
• J. Robert S. Prichard – educator, author and former President of the University of Toronto
• Joseph Radmore – athlete, member of the Canadian Paralympic Team
• Margaret M. Risk – nurse
• Haroon Siddiqui – journalist, columnist
• Dr. Calvin Stiller – physician
• Donald A. Stuart – gold and silversmith
• Dr. Lap-Chee Tsui – molecular geneticist; Vice-Chancellor of the University of Hong Kong
• Irving Ungerman – entrepreneur, boxer and activist

2001

• Richard M. Alway – President/Vice-Chancellor of St. Michael's College, promoter of Catholic-Anglican dialogue in Canada
• Gwen M. Boniface – first female Ontario Provincial Police Commissioner
• Rita Burak – public servant
• Danielle Campo – athlete, member of the Canadian Paralympic Team
• Michael "Pinball" Clemons – President and former player of the Toronto Argonauts
• Ken Danby – artist
• Terry Daynard – researcher, teacher
• Terrence J. Donnelly – fundraiser for cardiac research and development
• Gail J. Donner – Dean of the Faculty of Nursing at the University of Toronto; Executive Director of the Registered Nurses Association of Ontario
• Fredrik Stefan Eaton – businessman, community volunteer
• C. Dennis Flynn – elected official, fundraiser, community volunteer and war veteran
• Prof. Dr. Nicolas D. Georganas – pioneer in multimedia medical communications and telelearning
• Helen Haddow – community activist
• Paul Kells – workplace safety advocate
• Jake Lamoureux – Volunteer with young people
• Alexina Louie – composer of classical music
• Lewis W. MacKenzie, Major General (Retired) – Ontario Director of ICROSS Canada, the International Community for the Relief of Starvation and Suffering
• Signe and Robert McMichael – builders and donors of the McMichael Canadian Art Collection of Group of Seven paintings in Kleinburg
• Dusty Miller – patron of the arts, artistic director of the Cambrian Players
• David Mirvish – leader in the development and promotion of the visual arts in Ontario
• Peter Nesbitt Oliver – historian
• James S. Redpath – Chancellor of Nipissing University
• Dr. Donald T. Stuss – clinical psychologist, neuropsychologist and behavioural neuroscientist
• Bhausaheb Ubale – human rights activist
• Dr. Carin Wittnich – University of Toronto professor and researcher
• Madeline Ziniak – Vice-president and executive producer of CFMT television, promoter of multiculturalism

2002

• Peggy Baker – dancer, choreographer and teacher; founder of the Toronto-based Dancemakers
• James Bartleman – Lieutenant Governor of Ontario
• Marilyn Bell DiLascio – first person to swim Lake Ontario (1954)
• David Blackwood – artist
• Frederick M. Catzman – lawyer
• Austin Clarke – author, teacher, mentor, writer-in-residence at the University of Toronto; recipient of the 2002 Giller Prize
• Barbara Chilcott – actress
• Mario Cortellucci – fundraiser
• Patricia Freeman Marshall – community activist
• Irving R. Gerstein – businessman, philanthropist
• Joan Goldfarb – teacher of adults with disabilities
• Walter Gretzky – Ambassador for the Canadian National Institute for the Blind and the Heart and Stroke Foundation of Canada and father of Wayne Gretzky
• Phyllis M. Grosskurth – Professor emerita and Fellow, Massey College, University of Toronto; 1965 winner of the Governor General's Award for non-fiction
• Dr. Raymond O. Heimbecker – cardiovascular surgeon
• Patrick John Keenan – volunteer
• Tom Kneebone – actor, playwright
• Burton Kramer – graphic designer
• Dr. Benson Lau – physician and teacher
• J. Douglas Lawson – Vice-Chairman of the Ontario Arts Council
• Rhéal Leroux – Volunteer, former president of the Festival Franco-Ontarien
• Dr. William K. Lindsay – surgeon and professor
• Joan Murray – art historian, former director of the Robert McLaughlin Gallery in Oshawa
• Dr. Mark J. Poznansky – President and Scientific Director of the Robarts Research Institute
• Dr. Joanna Santa Barbara – physician, national president of the Physicians for Global Survival
• Thomas H. B. Symons – founder of Trent University and its president and vice-chancellor (from 1961–72)
• Lela Wilson – artists' rights activist

2003

• Joseph J. Barnicke – businessman and philanthropist
• John Kim Bell – musician, promoter of Aboriginal culture
• Col. Archibald J. D. Brown – businessman, community activist
• Dorothy Ellen Duncan – Executive Director of The Ontario Historical Society, teacher, curator
• Julian Fantino – police officer, former Chief of Police for London, York Region and Toronto; Ontario's Commissioner of Emergency Management; now Commissioner of the Ontario Provincial Police
• Mary Germain – community activist
• Dr. Avis E. Glaze – teacher, administrator, writer and international educator
• Dr. Benjamin Goldberg – psychiatrist
• Doris Grinspun – Executive Director of the Registered Nurses' Association of Ontario (RNAO)
• George Gross – Corporate Sports Editor of Sun Media Corporation
• Macklin Hancock – pioneer in urban planning, urban design and landscape architecture
• Ryan Hreljac – elementary school student, committed to raising funds for clean water and sanitation projects around the world since the age of six
• Dr. Frederic Jackman – psychologist
• Laura Louise Legge – lawyer, community activist
• Helen Lu – volunteer, organizer and fundraiser for charitable organizations in Toronto
• Dr. Donald Mackay – Professor of Environmental and Resource Studies at Trent University, and director of the Canadian Environmental Modelling Centre
• Hon. Jack Marshall – Second World War veteran, Member of Parliament, Senator, and activist
• Anna Porter – writer, book publisher
• Hon. Robert Keith Rae – Member of Parliament, former Premier of Ontario, lawyer
• Eric Wilfrid Robinson – promoter of adult education
• Diane Simard Broadfoot – community activist
• Joan Thompson – volunteer
• Rita Tsang – businesswoman
• Hon. Mabel Van Camp – judge; first woman on the Supreme Court of Ontario
• Mike Weir – golfer; first Canadian to win the Masters Golf Tournament
• Kirk Albert Walter Wipper – environmentalist, heritage conservationist and fitness advocate (died 2011)
• William John Withrow – former director of the Art Gallery of Ontario (AGO)

2004

• Dr. Tyseer Aboulnasr – engineer
• Jeff Adams – Paralympian and world champion in wheelchair sports
• Mohammad Azhar Ali Khan – journalist, multiculturalism expert
• Diana Alli – outreach worker
• Patricia Ann Arato – aphasia care volunteer
• Dr. Robin F. Badgley – sociologist, founder of Department of Behavioural Science at the University of Toronto
• Iain Baxter& – conceptual artist
• Louise Binder – speaker on HIV/AIDS issues
• Richard Bradshaw – director of the Canadian Opera Company
• Leonard A. Braithwaite – lawyer and former MPP
• Dr. Inez Elliston – educator, community volunteer
• Adele Fifield – director of "The War Amps"
• Joan Francolini – community volunteer
• Sheldon Galbraith – figure skating coach
• Dr. Allan Gross – Professor of Surgery, Faculty of Medicine, University of Toronto
• Andrea Hansen – violinist
• Joyce Ann Lange – advocate for the hearing impaired
• Delores Lawrence – leading female entrepreneur and philanthropist
• René J. Marin – respected Francophone jurist
• David McGirr – community volunteer in Northern Ontario
• Anthony Pawson – scientist known for research of signal transduction in cells
• Kim Phuc Phan Thi – Vietnamese napalm victim
• John Rochon – marksman
• Chandrakant Shah – public health educator
• Gordon Surgeoner – entomologist specializing in insect transmitted diseases
• Galen Weston – businessman in food services sector
• Reverend Monsignor Lawrence Anthony Wnuk – outreach worker to the Polish community
• James Young – former Chief Coroner
• Margaret Zeidler – architect

2005

• Naomi Alboim – public servant
• Ron Barbaro – community service
• Harold Brathwaite – educator
• Boris Brott – conductor (Hamilton Philharmonic Orchestra)
• Donald Carr – lawyer
• Brian Desbiens – educator
• Thomas Dignan – Aboriginal healthcare advocate
• Deborah Ellis – children's author, human rights advocate
• Hughes Eng – community service
• Brenda L. Gallie – Expert in the treatment of retinoblastoma
• Dorothy Griffiths – researcher, educator
• William A. Harshaw – fundraiser for Parkinson's disease
• John Honderich – former editor and publisher, Toronto Star
• Leon Katz – engineer, medical inventor
• Gisèle Lalonde – educator
• Mike Lazaridis – founder, Research in Motion; inventor, BlackBerry
• Beatrice Levis – advocate for social justice
• Nancy Lockhart – Chair, Ontario Science Centre
• Ernest McCulloch – pioneer in stem cell biology
• Lillian McGregor – teacher of aboriginal languages
• Sher Ali Mirza – engineer
• Ratna Omidvar – former president, Ontario Council of Agencies Serving Immigrants
• Sandra Rotman – philanthropist
• Mark Starowicz – broadcaster, journalist
• Marlene Streit – professional golfer
• Ronald W. Taylor – physician in sports medicine; team physician to the Toronto Blue Jays
• James Till – pioneer in stem cell biology
• John Walker Whiteside – assistant crown attorney
• Moses Znaimer – broadcaster

2007

• Thomas J. Bitove – businessman, community activist
• John Richard Bond – University of Toronto astrophysicist and cosmologist
• Bernice and Rolland Desnoyers – foster parents for children and youth since 1960
• Peter J. George – economist, author, President and Vice Chancellor of McMaster University in Hamilton and Chair of the Council of Ontario Universities
• Christopher A. Harris – cofounder of the Ottawa-Carleton Immigrant Services Organization, the National Capital Alliance on Race Relations and the Jamaican Ottawa Community Association
• Peter Herrndorf – Broadcasting executive
• Rebecca F. Jamieson – First Nations activist
• Max Keeping – Ottawa media personality
• M. David Lepofsky – disability activist
• Dr. Tak W. Mak – biomedical scientist
• J. William McConkey – University of Windsor professor
• Dr. Roderick R. McInnes – University of Toronto professor and senior scientist with the Hospital for Sick Children
• R. Roy McMurtry – former Chief Justice of Ontario and Attorney General of Ontario
• Lorraine Monk – author, photographer, and artist
• Albert Kai-Wing Ng – graphic designer and creator of graphic design accreditation
• Adeena Niazi – helping newcomers settle in Canada
• Gordon M. Nixon – President/CEO of the Royal Bank of Canada
• Margaret Helen Ogilvie – Chancellor's Professor of Law at Carleton University
• Eva Olsson – Holocaust survivor
• Marlene Ann Pierre – Aboriginal activist
• Dr. Frances A. Shepherd – University of Toronto professor
• Janice Gross Stein – scholar, academic
• Paul-François Sylvestre – novelist, researcher and mentor
• William Thorsell – Director/CEO of the Royal Ontario Museum
• Dr. David Walde – Director of the Oncology Program
• Dr. Paul Walfish – University of Toronto professor and senior consultant

2008

Reference:

• Dr. Michael Baker – physician, cancer researcher
• Dr. Sheela Basrur – Former Chief Medical Officer of Ontario
• George Brady – human rights advocate, public speaker and Auschwitz survivor
• Jack Chiang – journalist, community service
• Tony Dean – Secretary of the Cabinet, credited with improving the Ontario Public Service
• Mary Dickson – lawyer, educator and advocate for people with disabilities
• Noel Edison – Artistic Director of the Elora Festival and the conductor of the Toronto Mendelssohn Choir
• Frank Fernandes – Toronto businessman and volunteer
• Jean-Robert Gauthier – for his work in advancing French-language education
• Sam George – Native Canadians' rights activist
• Heather Gibson – educator specializing in American Sign Language (ASL)
• Robert A. Gordon – served as president of Humber College
• Gordon Gray – philanthropist
• Susan Hoeg – community service on behalf of the Georgina Island Chippewas
• Claude Lamoureux – served as president and CEO of the Ontario Teachers' Pension Plan
• Patrick Le Sage – served as Chief Justice for the Ontario Superior Court of Justice
• Dr. Joe MacInnis – physician, scientist and undersea explorer
• Dr. David MacLennan – biomedical scientist, expert in biochemistry, genetics and physiology of muscle function
• Lorna Marsden – served as President of York University and of Wilfrid Laurier University, and a former senator.
• David Peterson – former Premier of Ontario
• Ed Ratushny – expert on the Canadian judiciary
• Rosemary Sadlier – author and president of the Ontario Black History Society
• Dr. Fuad Sahin – for his contributions to community service; founder of the International Development and Relief Foundation.
• Barbara Ann Scott-King – Olympic champion figure skater in 1948
• Ellen Seligman – for contributions to publishing and support of Canadian authors
• Peter Silverman – broadcaster and consumer advocate
• David Smith – philanthropist
• Ted Szilva – originator and developer of the Big Nickel Project
• Mary Welsh – for 35 years of community and civic contributions

2009

Reference:

• Constance Backhouse – legal scholar and historian
• Dr. Philip Berger – physician and leader in the fields of urban medicine, addiction, homelessness and HIV/AIDS care
• Lawrence Bloomberg – businessman and philanthropist
• Lesley Jane Boake – educator and founder of Canine Opportunity, People Empowerment
• Dr. Helen Chan – clinical oncologist
• Peter Crossgrove – businessman and charity fundraiser
• Mike DeGagné – community leader and advocate for Aboriginal peoples
• Levente Diosady – a leader in the field of food process engineering
• Fraser Dougall – media owner and philanthropist
• Jacques Flamand – writer and promoter of Franco-Ontarian literature
• Jean Gagnon – an advocate for the health and safety of workers
• Paul Godfrey – Chair of Metro Toronto (1973–1984), businessman
• Peter Godsoe – businessman
• Ovid Jackson – provincial politician
• Dr. Kellie Leitch – orthopaedic pediatric surgeon; Assoc. Professor of Medicine, University of Toronto
• Gerry Lougheed, Jr. – funeral director and volunteer
• Diana Mady Kelly – theatre director and teacher of dramatic arts
• Naseem Mahdi – spiritual leader
• Dr. Samantha Nutt – Executive Director, War Child Canada
• Dr. James Orbinski – physician; Associate Professor of Medicine, University of Toronto; President of Médecins Sans Frontières (1998–2001)
• Bonnie Patterson – former president of Ryerson University
• Shirley Peruniak – park naturalist and conservationist
• Alice Porter – nurse and missionary
• Ken Shaw – news anchor (CTV) and philanthropist
• Janet Stewart – lawyer and philanthropist
• Shirley Thomson – civil servant
• George Turnbull – expert in financial services and philanthropist
• Dr. Mladen Vranic – physician and researcher
• Dr. Anne-Marie Zajdlik – physician and female AIDS activist

2010

Reference:

• Suhayya Abu-Hakima – technology entrepreneur and volunteer
• Russell Bannock – fighter pilot and Second World War commander
• Gail Beck – child and adolescent psychiatrist and champion of the HPV public immunization program
• Joseph Chin – medical pioneer and a leader in the prevention and treatment of prostate cancer
• Lynn Factor – social worker
• Gerald Fagan – choral conductor, teacher and mentor
• Nigel Fisher – former president of UNICEF Canada
• Jacques Flamand
• Lillie Johnson – Ontario's first black director of public health
• Ignat Kaneff – developer and philanthropist
• Mobeenuddin Hassan Khaja – founder of the Association of Progressive Muslims of Ontario and Canada
• Elizabeth Ann Kinsella – founder of the Youville Centre
• Huguette Labelle – civil servant and the first woman to lead the Red Cross in Canada
• Elizabeth Le Geyt – writer and birdwatcher
• Clare Lewis – former Crown attorney and judge
• Louise Logue – expert advisor in the field of crime prevention
• Gordon McBean – scientist and environmentalist
• Wilma Morrison – educator, historian and founder of the Niagara Black History Association
• James Orbinski
• Coulter Osborne – lawyer and former associate chief of justice
• Chris Paliare – civil litigator
• Gilles Patry – consultant, researcher, and a university administrator
• Dave Shannon – lawyer
• Molly Shoichet – researcher
• Howard Sokolowski – leader in the home building industry and philanthropist
• Edward Sonshine – entrepreneur and philanthropist
• Reginald Stackhouse – author, retired politician and co-founder of Centennial College
• David Staines – scholar, professor, literary critic and writer
• Martin Teplitsky – mediator-arbitrator, Lawyer and founder of the Lawyers Feed the Hungry program
• Dave Toycen – president and CEO of World Vision Canada
• John Ronald Wakegijig – launched a mental health program for First Nations youth and established Rainbow Lodge
• Elizabeth Hillman Waterston – researcher and writer

2011

Reference:

• Peter Adams – politician, professor and volunteer
• Dr. Anna Banerji – helped create the Immigrant Health and Infectious Disease Clinic and the Canadian Refugee Health Conference
• Dr. Sandra E. Black – cognitive neurologists specializing in stroke and dementia
• Paul Cavalluzzo – Lawyer, Senior Partner, Cavalluzzo Shilton McIntyre Cornish LLP, Barristers and Solicitors
• Catherine Colquhoun – volunteer
• David Crombie – three-term mayor of Toronto
• Nathalie Des Rosiers – legal expert
• Marcel Desautels – philanthropist
• Sara Diamond – artist and president of OCAD University
• Charles Garrad – archaeologist, historian, and scholar
• Peter Gilgan – developer and philanthropist
• Frank Hayden – created Special Olympics International
• Donald Jackson – world gold medalist in male figure skating
• Zeib Jeeva – founding member of the Nelson Mandela Children's Fund
• Howard McCurdy – scientist, civil rights activist and MPP
• Arthur McDonald – physicist
• Noella Milne – lawyer and volunteer
• Suzanne Pinel – French-language educator and television personality
• Ucal Powell – head of Ontario's Carpenter's Union
• Barbara Reid – children's author and illustrator
• Alison Rose – documentary filmmaker and reporter
• Linda Schuyler – co-creator and executive producer of the Degrassi television franchise
• Dr. Louis Siminovitch – geneticist
• Rahul Singh – founder of GlobalMedic
• Connie Smith – journalist, television host and teacher
• The Honourable Ray Stortini – retired Superior Court Judge
• John Tory – lawyer, business leader, community activist, broadcaster and former MPP

2012

Reference:

• Dr. Izzeldin Abuelaish – physician, human rights and peace activist
• Michael Burgess – actor and singer
• Mark Cohon – commissioner of the Canadian Football League
• Glen Cook – businessman and restored and preserved the historic Puce River Black Community Cemetery
• Stephen Cook – computer scientist
• Phyllis Creighton – chair of the Ontario Mental Health Foundation and the Addiction Research Foundation's clinical institute
• Michael Davies – businessman and philanthropist
• Ronald Deibert – director of the Citizen Lab at the University of Toronto's Munk School of Global Affairs
• Dr. Rory Fisher – headed the Department of Extended Care at Sunnybrook Hospital in Toronto for almost 20 years
• Anne Golden – administrator
• Joan Green – Toronto Board of Education's first female CEO
• Dr. Vladimir Hachinski – neurologist and teacher
• John D. Honsberger – lawyer
• Dr. Shafique Keshavjee – thoracic surgeon and world leader in lung transplantation
• Fr. Joseph MacDonald – founder of Poverello Charities Ontario
• Don MacKinnon – advocate of Ontario's energy industry
• Deepa Mehta – filmmaker and women's rights activist
• Vincent Pawis – Native Inmate Liaison Officer
• Sr. Helen Petrimoulx – advocate for refugees
• The Honourable Sydney Robins – Supreme Court of Ontario judge
• Dr. Gail Robinson – psychiatrist, professor and advocate, she co-founded Canada's first rape crisis centre
• Mamdouh Shoukri – president and vice-chancellor of York University
• Barry Smit – professor and climate change researcher
• Brian Stewart – reporter and foreign correspondent
• Frank Tierney – teacher and founder of the Borealis Press and Tecumseh Press

2013

Reference:

• Irving Abella – scholar and historian
• Dr. Mohit Bhandari – orthopaedic surgeon and researcher
• Paul Burston – public servant
• George E. Carter – lawyer and the first Canadian-born Black judge
• Ellen Campbell – founder and CEO of the Canadian Centre for Abuse Awareness
• Penny Collenette – leader and innovator
• Ronald Common – President of Sault College
• Paul Corkum – physicist and the father of attosecond science
• David Cronenberg – filmmaker
• Alvin Curling – first Black Speaker of the Ontario Legislature
• Allison Fisher – Executive Director of Wabano Centre for Aboriginal Health
• Claude Gingras – former chair of the Fondation Franco-Ontarienne
• Avvy Yao Yao Go – lawyer
• Piers Handling – Director and CEO of the Toronto International Film Festival
• Paul Henderson – hockey player and mentor
• Justin Hines – singer, songwriter and founder of Justin Hines Foundation
• Ronald Jamieson – former Senior Vice President of Aboriginal Banking at BMO Financial Group
• Jeanne Lamon – Music Director of Toronto's Tafelmusik Baroque Orchestra
• Frances Noronha – civil servant
• Lyn McLeod – former leader of the Ontario Liberal Party
• Diane Morrison – former Executive Director of the Mission, an Ottawa homeless shelter
• Steve Paikin – journalist and television host
• Dr. James Rutka – pediatric neurosurgeon and researcher
• Adel Sedra – engineering scholar, professor and administrator
• Toby Tanenbaum – philanthropist and volunteer

2014

Reference:

• Mary Anne Chambers – Cabinet Minister and MPP
• Ming-Tat Cheung – cardiologist and medical researcher
• Michael Dan – neurosurgeon and philanthropists
• Don Drummond – economist
• Rick Green – performer, writer and advocate for people with ADD
• Patrick Gullane – head and neck surgeon
• Joseph Halstead – civil servant and administrator
• Alis Kennedy – Métis leader
• Sylvie Lamoureux – teacher, scholar, and academic
• Gilles LeVasseur – lawyer, economist and professor
• Gary Levy – founding Director of the Multi-Organ Transplant Program at Toronto General Hospital
• Sidney B. Linden – former Chief Justice of the Ontario Court of Justice
• Barbara MacQuarrie – advocate for women's rights
• Eva Marszewski – founder and Executive Director of Peacebuilders International
• Marilyn McHarg – Co-founder and former Executive Director of the Canadian branch of Doctors Without Borders/Médécins Sans Frontières
• Hans Messner – scientist and physician
• James Murray – philanthropist
• Robert Nixon – former Minister of Finance and leader of the Ontario Liberal Party
• Dhun Noria – surgical pathologist
• Maryka Omatsu – retired Ontario Court Justice and Canada's first Asian-Canadian female judge
• Charles Pachter – artist
• John Ralston Saul – writer and lecturer
• Najmul Siddiqui – entrepreneur, community leader and philanthropist
• Jeffrey Turnbull – physician, humanitarian and Medical Director of Ottawa Inner City Health
• Dolores Wawia – pioneer in native education
• David Williams – Canadian astronaut, physician and scientist
• Warren Winkler – former labour lawyer, mediator and Chief Justice of Ontario

2015

Reference:

• Hugh Allen – Surgeon and Specialist in Obstetrics and Gynecology
• Susan Bailey – Nurse, Teacher and Pioneer in Palliative care
• Isabel Bassett – Former Ontario Cabinet Minister and MPP
• Monica Elaine Campbell – Pioneer in the Development of Palliative Care Services for the Deaf in Ontario
• Dennis Chippa – Community Leader and Humanitarian
• Wendy Craig – Professor of Psychology at Queen's University and Expert on the Prevention of Bullying
• Gordon Cressy – Former Politician, Public Servant, Humanitarian, Mentor and Youth Advocate
• Madeline Edwards – Community Advocate and Founding Member of the Congress of Black Women of Mississauga and Area Chapter
• Hoda ElMaraghy – Professor and Director of the Intelligent Manufacturing Systems Center at the University of Windsor
• Robert Fowler – Critical Care Physician at Sunnybrook Health Sciences Centre and Associate Professor of Medicine and Critical Care Medicine at the University of Toronto
• Herbert Gaisano – Professor and Researcher at the University of Toronto's Faculty of Medicine and Gastroenterologists
• John Gignac – Veteran Fire Captain
• June Girvan – Founder of the J'Nikira Dinqinesh Education Centre in Ottawa
• Beverley Gordon – Founding CEO of The Safehaven Project for Community Living
• Richard Gosling – community leader and youth advocate
• Stephen Goudge – Former Judge in the Court of Appeal for Ontario
• Anton Kuerti – Concert Pianist and Composer
• Rita Letendre – Painter, Muralist and Printmaker
• Jackie Maxwell – Artistic Director of the Shaw Festival
• Errol Mendes – Professor of Law at the University of Ottawa, Author and Advocate for the Universal Application of Human Rights
• Julian Nedzelski – Ear, Nose and Throat Specialist and Head and Neck Surgeon at the Sunnybrook Health Sciences Centre and a Pioneer of Cochlear Implants in Ontario
• Mike Parkhill – Founder of SayITFirst
• René Pitre – Business Leader and Advocate of French Language Culture, Community and Education in Ontario
• Donna Trella – Founder of Reach for the Rainbow
• Stanley Zlotkin – A Nutrition Specialist and Researcher at The Hospital for Sick Children

2016

Reference:

• Peter A. Adamson – Surgical Specialist in Otolaryngology
• Mehran Anvari – Surgical Robotics Pioneer
• Donovan Bailey – Track and Field Icon
• Jennifer Bond – Professor of Law and Human Rights Advocate
• Angèle Brunelle – Advocate for Northwest Ontario's Francophone Community
• Ronald F. Caza – Lawyer and Defender of Francophone Linguistic Rights
• Anthony Kam Chuen Chan – Pediatric Hematologist and Scientist
• Ethel Côté – Entrepreneur, Volunteer and Community leader
• Jim Estill – Entrepreneur and Philanthropist
• Carol Finlay – Anglican Priest and Education Advocate
• Cheryl Forchuk – Scholar in the Fields of Homelessness, Poverty and Mental Health
• Dorothée Gizenga – International Development Expert and Human Rights Advocate
• Shirley Greenberg – Lawyer and Women's Rights Advocate
• Robert Pio Hajjar – Motivational Speaker
• Greta Hodgkinson – Prima Ballerina
• Dorothy Anna Jarvis – Pediatrician
• Lisa LaFlamme – Broadcast Journalist
• M.G. Venkatesh Mannar – Expert in Food Science Technologies and Nutrition
• Ernest Matton (Little Brown Bear) – Community Capacity Builder and Spiritual Ambassador
• Dennis O'Connor – former Associate Chief Justice of Ontario
• David Pearson – Professor and Promoter of Science Communication
• Fran Rider – Women's Hockey Advocate
• Beverley Salmon – Anti-Racism and Community Activist
• Hugh Segal – Public Servant
• Helga Stephenson – Arts Administrator and Human Rights Activist
• Margo Timmins – Vocalist

2017

Reference:

• Dr. Upton Allen – pediatric infectious disease specialist
• Daniel Aykroyd – actor and entrepreneur
• Dr. Alan Bernstein – cancer researcher and research leader
• Dr. David Cechetto – neuroscientist and director of international medical development projects
• Dr. Peter Chang – lawyer and psychiatrist
• The Honourable Sandra Chapnik – lawyer and judge
• Dr. Tom Chau – biomedical engineer
• Dr. Dorothy Cotton – psychologist and mental health advocate
• Peter Dinsdale – Anishinaabe community leader
• Leslie Fagan – singer and promoter of Canadian music
• Michael Geist – scholar and public intellectual
• Shashi Kant – professor of forest resource economics
• Myrtha Lapierre – retired nursing professor
• Floyd Laughren – former MPP and Finance Minister
• Michael Lee-Chin – entrepreneur and philanthropist
• Gail Nyberg – former Daily Bread Food Bank executive director and former school trustee
• Dr. Dilkhush Panjwani – psychiatrist
• Elder Geraldine Robertson – educator and advocate for residential school survivors
• Allan Rock – former politician and UN Ambassador
• Robert J. Sawyer – celebrated science-fiction author
• Sandra Shamas – writer, performer and comedian
• Elizabeth Sheehy – criminal law, scholar
• Ilse Treurnicht – CEO and advocate for women and innovation

2018

Reference:

• Jean Augustine – politician and social justice advocate
• Salah Bachir – businessman and philanthropist
• Dr. Sue Carstairs – veterinarian and conservationist
• Ralph Chiodo – entrepreneur and philanthropist
• Dr. Zane Cohen – colorectal surgeon
• Dwayne De Rosario – soccer player
• Michele DiEmanuele – CEO and public servant
• Philip Epstein – lawyer, scholar in family law
• Dr. Aaron Fenster – biomedical physicist
• Mark Freiman – lawyer, public servant and former Deputy Attorney General of Ontario
• Emmanuelle Gattuso – philanthropist
• Mary Gordon – social entrepreneur, educator and child advocate
• Edward Greenspon – journalist
• Spider Jones – sports journalist, author and member of the Canadian Boxing Hall of Fame
• Neal Jotham – animal welfare advocate
• Dalton McGuinty – provincial politician and former Premier of Ontario 2003-2013
• Peter Menkes – businessman
• Janice O'Born – entrepreneur and philanthropist
• Cheryl Perea – child advocate
• Dr. Lyne Pitre – physician and educator
• Col. A. Britton (Brit) Smith – philanthropist

2019

Reference:

• Melanie Adrian – law professor at Carleton University
• Roland Armitage – former Ontario politician and Member of the Canadian Horse Racing Hall of Fame
• Dr. Allan Carswell – physicist
• Helen Ching-Kircher – businesswoman and philanthropist
• John Colangeli – CEO of Lutherwood and Lutherwood Child and Family Foundation
• Nancy Coldham – businesswoman and philanthropist
• Sean Conway – former Ontario Cabinet Minister under David Peterson
• Clare Copeland – former Chair of Toronto Hydro
• Barbara Croall – composer and musician
• Lisa Farano – charity executive
• Geoffrey Fernie – biomedical engineer
• Dr. Allan Fox – neuroscientist
• John Freund – author and peace activist
• Susan Hay – journalist
• Dr. John Jennings – historian
• Dr. Marlys Koschinsky – Biochemistry Professor
• James W. Leech – former head of the Ontario Teachers' Pension Plan
• Audrey Loeb – law professor
• Dani Reiss – President and CEO of Canada Goose Incorporated
• Janis Rotman – philanthropist
• Linda Silver Dranoff – lawyer
• Joan Sutton Straus – journalist

2020

Reference:

• Daniel Allen – public servant
• Dr. Joseph Raymond Buncic – physician at The Hospital for Sick Children
• Michael DeGasperis – property developer and philanthropist
• Dr. Raymond Desjardins – atmospheric scientist
• Ernest Eves – former Premier of Ontario 2002-2003
• Hershell Ezrin – public servant
• Carlo Fidani – businessman and philanthropist
• Karen Goldenberg – occupational therapist
• Michael Deane Harris – former Premier of Ontario 1995-2002
• Ellis Jacob – President and CEO of Cineplex Entertainment
• Dr. Jing Jiang – engineering professor at the University of Western Ontario
• Dr. Shana O. Kelley – professor at the University of Toronto
• Dr. André Lapierre – linguistics professor at the University of Ottawa
• Dale Lastman – lawyer
• André M. Levesque – soldier
• Dr. Peter Liu – cardiologist
• Hazel McCallion – former Mayor of Mississauga 1978-2014
• Arden McGregor – humanitarian
• Janet McKelvy – philanthropist
• George McLean – artist
• Hon. Rosemary Moodie – Senator
• Hon. Robert W. Runciman – former Senator 2010-2017
• Dr. Marilyn Sonley – pediatric oncologist
• Ahmad Reza Tabrizi – philanthropist
• Hon. Karen M. Weiler – former judge

2021

Reference:

• Payam Akhavan
• Walter Arbib
• Teresa Cascioli
• George Chuvalo
• Angela Cooper Brathwaite
• Aimée Craft
• Stephen Diamond
• Nishan Duraiappah
• Mitch Frazer
• Leo Goldhar
• Steve (Suresh) Gupta
• Elise Harding-Davis
• Armand P. La Barge
• Sandra Laronde
• Dave Levac
• David McKay
• Barbara Morrongiello
• Lori Nikkel
• Rose M. Patten
• Christina Petrowska Quilico
• Robert Poirier
• Kevin Smith
• Joan VanDuzer
• Sara Waxman

2022

Reference:

• Dyane Adam
• Cindy Adams
• Jordan Bitove
• Vanessa Burkoski
• Dr. Michael Cheng
• Dianne Cunningham
• Andre De Grasse
• Rhoda Howard-Hassmann
• Dr. David J. Jenkins
• Christina Jennings
• Dr. Mohamed Lachemi
• Eric Lindros
• Arthur Lockhart
• Lorin MacDonald
• Christine Nesbitt
• Dr. Beverley A. Orser
• Pauline Shirt
• Dr. Frank Silver
• Dr. John P. Smol
• Dr. David Tannenbaum
• Biagio Vinci
• Dr. Ajay Virmani
• Dr. Padraig Warde
• Dr. MaryLynn West-Moynes
• Marva Wisdom
• Elizabeth Witmer

External links

• Order of Ontario