Order of Canada

Membership in the Order of Canada is Canada's highest civilian honour, awarded to those who adhere to the Order's motto Desiderantes meliorem patriam, which means "they desire a better country." Created in 1967, the Order was established to recognize the lifetime contributions made by Canadians who made a major difference to Canada. The Order also recognizes efforts made by non-Canadians who have made the world better by their actions. Musicians, politicians, artists, television stars, benefactors, and many more have been accepted into the Order. The Queen of Canada, Queen Elizabeth II, is Sovereign of the Order and the serving Governor General of Canada is its Chancellor and Principal Companion. Since 1967, 5053 people have been appointed to the Order of Canada. {{ref|OoCTotal}}

Eligibility

All living Canadians are eligible for any of the three awards, except federal and provincial politicians and judges while they are holding office. Awards are announced twice annually, on New Year's Day (January 1) and Canada Day (July 1). Appointees who have died before their investiture are still considered part of the Order. Multiple people who have committed the same honourable act or deed are eligible for induction. For example, all three members of the Canadian band Rush (Geddy Lee, Alex Lifeson and Neil Peart) have all been appointed Officers of the Order. All three members of the popular children's group Sharon, Lois & Bram (Sharon Trostin Hampson, Lois Lilienstein & Bramwell Morrison) have also been made member of the order - although since Lilienstein is an American citizen she was made a honorary member.

Related Topics:
New Year's Day - January 1 - Canada Day - July 1 - Rush - Geddy Lee - Alex Lifeson - Neil Peart - Sharon, Lois & Bram - Sharon Trostin Hampson - Lois Lilienstein - Bramwell Morrison

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Citizens of other countries are eligible for honorary appointments at all three levels. No more than five honorary appointments may be made in any year.

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Induction ceremonies are generally conducted by the Governor General at Rideau Hall in Ottawa or, on rare occasions when she is in the country, by the Queen herself. The most common reason for the Order not being presented at Rideau Hall is the recipient's inability to come to Ottawa. Two such examples occurred in 1980 with activist athlete Terry Fox and in 2003 with singer-songwriter Gordon Lightfoot, who were both suffering serious medical problems that prohibited travelling. In 2002, shortly before a concert, Lightfoot suffered a serious abdominal haemorrhage that resulted in his being in a coma for a time and months in hospital recovering. On the news of his near-death condition, Lightfoot was promoted to the rank of Companion. Since his condition left him unable to travel, Adrienne Clarkson flew to Toronto and presented him with the insignia in a private ceremony performed in his hospital room. {{ref|CBCLightfoot}} {{ref|Lightfoot}}

Related Topics:
Rideau Hall - Ottawa - Terry Fox - Gordon Lightfoot - Abdominal - Haemorrhage - Coma - Adrienne Clarkson - Toronto

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Another example is Queen Elizabeth, the Queen Mother: in 2000, at the age of 100, she was invested as a Companion at Clarence House in London. Rather than place the insignia on the elderly woman, who was recovering from a hip replacement, which would have required the Queen to stand, Clarkson handed the very frail woman the medallion. She made a point of wearing it around her neck at a special lunch following the private ceremony.

Related Topics:
Queen Elizabeth, the Queen Mother - Clarence House

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Although inductions are usually performed by the Governor General, the task can be deligated to another individual, such as the Lt. Governor of a Canadian province. This was the case when Mervyn Wilkinson was inducted into the order by Iona Campagnolo the Lieutenant Governor of British Columbia in 2002. {{ref|Wilkinson}}

Related Topics:
Mervyn Wilkinson - Iona Campagnolo - Lieutenant Governor of British Columbia

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Although sitting federal and provincial politicians can not be appointed to the Order while in office, it is accepted that influential leaders such as former prime ministers will be appointed after they leave office. In fact, of all the prime ministers alive after the creation of the order (with the exception of recent and current prime ministers Kim Campbell, Jean Chrétien, and Paul Martin), the only prime minister who was not appointed to the Order was John Diefenbaker. After losing the office of the Prime Minister to Lester B. Pearson in 1963 Diefenbaker remained a sitting Member of Parliament and died while still in office in 1979, never becoming eligible. Some prominent politicians such as former NDP leader Ed Broadbent and former Prime Minister Joe Clark were appointed after exiting politics, only to later return to elective office.

Related Topics:
Kim Campbell - Jean Chrétien - Paul Martin - John Diefenbaker - Lester B. Pearson - 1963 - Member of Parliament - Ed Broadbent - Joe Clark

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Although sitting politicians cannot be appointment to the order while in office, individuals who hold a ceremonial political office (for example a Sergeant-at-arms) are considered public servants and therefore can be invested while serving in that office.

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A new member whose appointment was approved during their lifetime, but who passed away prior to the announcement of that appointment or their investiture, may be invested posthumously. The 2005 appointment of journalist Peter Jennings appointment was announced under these circumstances; his family will accept the award on his behalf.

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The oldest person to ever be invested into the Order was Dr. Cornelius Wiebe, who was 106 years old when he was invested in 1999. {{ref|Wiebe}}

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Removal

Members can be removed from the Order if the Advisory Council feels their actions have brought it into disrepute. As of 2005, only two people have their Order of Canada stripped from them: Alan Eagleson and David Ahenakew. Eagleson was removed from the order after being jailed for fraud in 1998 {{ref|Eagleson}}. Ahenakew began facing calls for his removal due to anti-Semitic comments he made in 2002. {{ref|Ahenakew}} After being convicted on charges of wilfully promoting hatred (which Ahenakew says he will appeal), the Governor General and the Advisory Council told the CBC that Ahenakew will be stripped of his honour and gave him the option to surrender his badge. On 11 July 2005, the Governor General signed an order, called a revocation ordinance, stripping Ahenakew of his membership in the Order of Canada. {{ref|Globeandmail}} {{ref|CBCAhenakew}} {{ref|OrderStripped}} In order for a person to be stripped of their honour, the Advisory Council must agree to the removal, the sending a letter to the person telling them of their decision. In this same letter, the Council also gives the person a time to respond to the decision. In the case of Ahenakew, a registered letter was sent to him asking for a response to their idea of taking his honour away. Ahenakew, who had until 9 July 2005 to respond, refused to do so. That led the Governor General to sign the above order on 11 July to take away his honour. Ahenakew is now required to surrender his medal and his civilian lapel pin. While there are no formal rules the Council has to retrieve the insignia, Ahenakew's lawyer Doug Christie said that "I think that once you are given a gift, and it is a gift, I don't think anyone can ask for it back," implying that Ahenakew has the right to keep his items. However, the author of the book , by Christopher McCreery, said that since the government owns

Related Topics:
2005 - Alan Eagleson - David Ahenakew - 1998 - Anti-Semitic - 2002 - CBC - 11 July - 9 July - Doug Christie - Christopher McCreery

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the medal and the scrolls, the Royal Canadian Mounted Police can be sent and get the items by force. McCreery stated that he does not think the RCMP would be used in Ahenakew's situation. {{ref|Globeandmail2}}

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