The Order of British Columbia: 1991 Recipients

After attending university in the 1950s and 1960s, in England and in British Columbia, Dr. Vivien Basco began practicing radiation oncology in this province in 1966. From that time to the present, she has consistently shown leadership in her field of practice. Dr. Basco introduced lymphography into British Columbia and was the first to use radiotherapy techniques in the treatment of Hodgkin's Disease; she was instrumental in launching the first national clinical study of that disease.

She has saved countless lives and has been an inpiration to several generations of medical students. Dr. Basco has headed many specially focussed medical gorups such as the Lymphoma Tumor and Breast Tumor groups of the British Columbia Cancer Agency. Outside of her regular working duties and hours, Dr. Basco recognized the life-saving potential of screening for early signs of breast cancer and set her goal to make the technology available to all women in British Columbia.

She provided the leadership and impetus to bring together the diverse group of individuals - family physicians, patient advocates, radiologists, epidemiologists, oncologists, pathologists, administrators and government representatives - who would shape the screening mammography project.

Her persistence, diplomacy and persuasiveness have resulted in a unique, cost-effective screening mammography program, years ahead of others in North America.

Frank Beinder came to Canada as a youth but returned to England to serve in the British Army during the Second World War. He returned to Canada in 1947 and went to work on the public relations staff of Cominco in the Trail area until his retirement in 1975. He now lives in Richmond.

Mr. Beinder served as chairman of the Trail School Board and as president of the British Columbia School Trustees Association. In this latter capacity, he took a leading role in establishing the Educational Research Institution of B.C. and the Teacher Qualification Board, two bodies which continue to provide important services. In addition, he has served as chairman of the British Columbia Chamber of Commerce.

To people throughout British Columbia, Frank Beinder is known as Mr. College. He has been passionate in his conviction that learning should be available to people throughout the province and, over the span of 30 years, demonstrated an extraordinary commitment to that goal. He was intimately involved in the formation of Selkirk College and served on its board and as its chairman for many years. He helped to found the B.C. Association of Colleges and spent nine years as its executive director, two as its president.

During that time, the college system blossomed in British Columbia. Blessed with a magnificent speaking voice and a commanding platform presence, Frank Beinder has argued the case for education in general and community colleges in particular to every corner of the province and across Caqnada and the United States. Few have contributed as much to the community college system in British Columbia as Frank Beinder.

Jack Bell was born in 1913 in Montreal. He attended the University of British Columbia and received a degree in 1934. He served with the Royal Canadian Air Force during the Second World War and on his return to Canada, became involved in the peat moss industry.

He pioneered cranberry farming in the province; he was the first commercial grower, planting three acres in 1946. He founded Greenacres Golf Course in the Lower Mainland and has been or remains a director on the boards of the Vancouver General Hospital Foundation, the Richmond Foundation, Dr. Sun Yat Sen Society and the Jack Bell Foundation.

With the ample fruits of his life-long labour, Jack Bell set about to see that his resources benefitted those around him. The results are seen across the spectrum of British Columbia society: he has contributed most generously - to the Vancouver General Hospital research centre that bears his name, to gerontology at the hospital, to a longhouse for Native Indian students at UBC, and to UBC itself.

The list is much longer. His life has been characterized by his generosity and support of others. And he has made a difference in the course of many lives, whether it was a business associate or a student receiving an anonymous gift of desperately needed tuition money.

Mr. Bell has taken a very human and personal interest in the care of the elderly and the terminally ill, through the foundation that bears his name. This has involved many years of hard work, investing his own money to do research and talking to the medical profession. Jack Bell's kindness and compassion set him apart as a very rare and outstanding British Columbian.

Bern Brynelsen was born in 1911, the son of a Vancouver streetlamp trimmer. He originally had dreams of becoming a medical doctor, but eventually became a mining engineer because it paid the most in those days and you could get a job. He went to the placer fields of the Yukon in 1929 and his association with Noranda Mines began in 1948.

Bern Brynelsen's contributions to the mining industry have had a major impact on British Columbia's economy. His legendary instinct for detecting profitable mines resulted in many major mining enterprises; one of them is one of Canada's most successful - Brenda Mines. His conviction in a property's viability was often put to the test: to help keep the Brenda project alive when the big mining companies weren't interested, he mortgaged his house.

Virtually everyone in the Vancouver mining community seems to have worked for Bern Brynelsen at one time and, remarkably, virtually all seem to cherish the memory. His perennial optimism and good humour have been an inspiration and encouragement to thousands. It persuaded Noranda to invest in the province's economy on a sustained basis and to get involved in the forest industry as well.

In 1980, Bern Brynelsen received the H.H. "Spud" Huestis Award for mining exploration and in 1990 he was awarded the Edgar A. Scholz Award for mine development. Now at 80, Bern Brynelsen is still active and involved in the development of British Columbia's resources.

In 1944, Edmund Desjardins was confined to a wheelchair as a result of a training accident at Sandhurst Military College in England. Since that time, he has dedicated his life to the development of rehabilitation services and the design of public facilities to make them accessible to all. His work has directly benefited many thousands of lives.

He was a founding director of the G.F. Strong Centre and in 1948, he became its first manager, a post he held until 1979. He guided its development into an outstanding rehabilitation institution.

As Chairman of the Architectural Committee for the Social Planning and Review Council of British Columbia, Mr. Desjardins prepared and presented a comprehensive set of design standards for persons with disabilities that was adopted by the City of Vancouver in its building by-law. His work was also important in the incorporation of design standards for accessibility into British Columbia provincial building codes.

Mr. Desjardins was appointed to the Order of Canada in 1975 and received an honorary Doctor of Laws degree from the University of British Columbia in 1981 for his distinguished service. While focussing limitless energy on physical rehabilitation and the removal of architectural barriers, Mr. Desjardins has, by his own personal example, inspired many to become productive contributors rather than dependents.

As one of this colleagues put it, "His aim is the rehabilitation of the spirit" - an ideal he now pursues as a member of the Premier's Advisory Council for Persons with Disabilities.

Jack Diamond has left an indelible mark on the history of British Columbia, as a businessman, sportsman, philanthropist and community-minded citizen. A Polish immigrant, he purchased the Pacific Meat Company in 1940 and built it into the largest packinghouse in B.C.

In 1954, the British Empire Games came to British Columbia. Empire Stadium had to be built for the track and field events but there was not enough money to finish the project. Jack Diamond assumed the role of organizer to raise the money privately to pay for the stadium's roof. He enlisted the help of many of his business and social friends, raised $360,000 and the project was completed.

Jack Diamond created a "Day at the Races", an imaginative program that annually introduces another season of throroughbred horse racing. It has raised more than $1 million for charity organizations.

In 1965, when the late Harry Howard was attempting to start a Variety Club chapter in B.C., Mr. Diamond invited the group to the Clubhouse at The Track. He sponsored the dinner meeting and became a chater member of Tent 47, one of the most productive Tents in Variety's world.

Jack Diamond's leadership has brought together sportsmen from across the province time and again to raise other much needed funding. He loved horse racing and has been largely responsible for the survival of thoroughbred racing in British Columbia.

He has served on Simon Fraser University's Board of Governors and as its second chancellor. Jack Diamond co-founded what later grew into the B.C. Heart Foundation.

Born in 1908, in Kingwood, Surrey, England, Pat Duke came to Canada as a young man out of a spirit of adventure and settled in Lumby in 1927 after a few months working in the ABC Mine in Pine Lake, Alberta. In Lumby, he was hired to load ties but he eventually found work at a local garage. During the Second World War, he served with the Royal Canadian engineers.

There is little in the village of Lumby that has not benefited from Pat Duke's involvement. Fire protection, sewage facilities, a community skating arena or village incorporation; if it was good for Lumby, Pat Duke was there for his community.

From 1951 to 1986, he was mayor for all but two years and one of the longest-serving mayors in British Columbia. He worked on countless boards and commissions, and served as president of the local chamber of commerce. He worked in many capacities for the Union of B.C. Municipalities and the Federation of Canadian Municipalities.

He has been a strong supporter of minor sports. Lumby residents named him their citizen of the year in 1982. His devotion and contributions to the area, most often with little or no reward, have earned him the local moniker of "Mr. Lumby." His contributions also extended beyond the town, to the North Okanagan Regional District and Hospital District and to the Okanagan Mainline Municipal Association. [N.R. (Pat) Duke passed away on August 9, 1991]

Richard Hunt was born in 1951 at Alert Bay, British Columbia, into a family of internationally respected artists, including his father Henry and his grandfather Mungo Martin. Richard Hunt began carving with his father at the age of 13.

In 1973, he began work at the British Columbia Provincial Museum in Victoria as an apprentice carver under his father. The following year he assumed the duties of chief carver in the Thunderbird Park carving program. He remained at the museum in that capacity for 12 years. In December 1986, Mr. Hunt resigned this position and began a new career as a freelance artist.

Richard Hunt has played a leading role in the renaissance of Northwest Indian art. It is a rebirth that has spread throughout North America and influenced indigenous art around the world. A master carver, experienced ritualist and dancer, Richard Hunt has created a diverse body of art that contributes much to the preservation and perpetuation of Kwa-gulth culture and traditions. His totems, prints, drums, masks and bowls are the pride of museums and private collections around the world. He has also communicated his art and culture, in talks to students, from preschool to university level, and museum visitors who watched over the years as he worked.

Outside Canada, Richard Hunt has been an effective ambassador for native people, for British Columbia and Canada. Richard Hunt's Indian name - 'Gwe-la-yo-gwe-la-gya-les' - means 'a man that travels around the world giving'. Through his art, Richard Hunt has indeed given much.

He is a man possessed of enormous reserves of energy and has dedicated his creative talents towards furthering the cultural ambitions of the Kwa-gulth people.

In the time since Asa Johal immigrated to Canada in 1924, he has become one of British Columbia's most prominent businessmen and outstanding citizens. At the age of 19, he started a successful trucking business. In 1962, he established his sawmilling operation at Mitchell Island and turned it into one of the province's most efficient and most advanced in technology. Now, his Terminal Sawmill Group of companies consists of two mills, two manufacturing plants, a logging camp and other small operations.

Mr. Johal's business skills have contributed to the economic well-being of British Columbia. But he has contributed to Canadian society in a multitude of other ways - as a member of the University of British Columbia Board of Governors and a director of the Children's Hospital.

Through either major contributions or quiet help, he has recognized many other worthy causes and organizations without concern for recognition. He has routinely matched public donations to fund-raising campaigns for the B.C. Children's Hospital, Canadian Cancer Society, Rotary Club-Polio Plus and OASIS, formerly known as the Orientation Adjustment Services for Immigrants Society.

Mr. Johal has contributed much to the Indo-Canadian community in British Columbia - as founding member, trustee and chairman of the India Cultural Centre of Canada and as president of the International Punjabi Society of B.C. He has actively encouraged his fellow Indo-Canadians to participate in mainstream society.

He was recently granted an honorary Doctor of Laws degree by the University of British Columbia for his support of ethnic studies. In 1988, he was honoured on Canada Day for his outstanding contribution to the Indo-Canadian community.

Born in New Mexico, Sherwin Kelly was a 1917 graduate of the University of Kansas. After obtaining a fellowship in geology and minerology at the Sorbonne in Paris. Sherwin Kelly taught at the University of Kansas and Toronto. During World War I, he served in what was to become the U.S. Air Force as one of its first flyers. He established himself as a consultant in electrical prospecting for metallic ore bodies in rock and as a result, every country in the Americas, except for Paraguay and Nicaragua, owe some portion of their mineral development to Sherwin Kelly.

Since Mr. Kelly moved to Merrit, at the tender age of 65, he has contributed more to his community and the province than most do in a lifetime. Even at age 95, he has continued to be sought after as a mining consultant. Over his long lifetime, Mr. Kelly has contributed heavily to the body of human knowledge. Satelite technology is only now catching up with his slide-rule, pointing to likely deposits he had staked years ago.

Mr. Kelly worked for the betterment of his community. What is now the major transportation corridor into B.C.'s interior, the Coquihalla Highway, was his vision back in the 1960s. He led annual caravans along the route to prove to successive highways ministers that it was needed and could be done. He force government to have a serious look. A long-time member of the Chamber of Commerce, he was honoured by the B.C. Chamber with its highest award - Honorary Life Member - for his commitment to B.C.'s economic health.

Sherwin Kelly was invested into the OBC in a ceremony held in the Council Chambers in Merrit on July 12.

Tong Louie, chairman and Chief Executive Officer of H.Y. Louis Co. Limited and London Drugs Limited, has always given freely of his time and money to help make his community of Vancouver a better place.

He is a trustee of St. Paul's Hospital, a member of its finance committee and Honorary Campaign Chairman of St. Paul's Hospital Foundation. He is a director of the Pacific Otolaryngology Foundation, the B.C. and Yukon Heart Foundation and a recipient of the Variety Club's "Golden Heart" Award for raising funds to aid the Children's Hospital.

He is a member of the Board of Governors of the University of British Columbia and the B.C. Business Council. UBC has awarded him an honorary Doctorate of Laws and Letters and in 1989, he was named to the Order of Canada. For his community leadership, the YMCA of Greater Vancouver named him 1988 Outstanding Community Volunteer Leader.

Irene MacDonald excelled as an athlete, coach and sports communicator. She was Canadian diving champion from 1951 to 1961. During that time, she won Canadian national honours 15 times, U.S. national titles six times, Mexican national titles twice, and medals in the Commonwealth Games in 1954 (bronze) and 1958 (silver), and in the Olympics in 1956 (bronze).

When she retired from active competition, she began coaching and created a legacy of friends, admirers, athletes, and international colleagues. She is a member of the B.C. Sports Hall of Fame, the Canadian Sports Hall of Fame, and the Canadian Olympic Hall of Fame.

Irene MacDonald distinguished herself for he skill, her knowledge and her vitality. She brought this province and this country great honour and inspired and trained many others to take their place on the world stage. She gave her best to young people and planted the seeds of greatness in many of them.

"I feel happy when I'm working with young children," she has said of her coaching career. For some 30 years, her athletes took medals at many international competitions. During those years, she was far more than simply a paid coach. Many times, at her own expense, she made it possible for divers to take part in competitions.

Her enthusiastic, insightful commentary informed CBC television audiences and raised the profile of diving. She retired earlier this year as technical director for diving in the province. She continues to volunteer her time and energy to diving.

Her dedication to sport and to young people has been unselfish and unwavering. Its legacy has been outstanding divers and outstanding citizens.

An exceptional leader in business and the community, Gordon MacFarlane guided the transformation of the province's major telecommunications utility into one of the most attractive places in Canada to work and invest, no small accomplishment in an extremely complex industry. In the process, B.C. Tel has become an acknowledged leader in telecommunications technology.

Its ground-breaking innovations, not only in telecommunications but employee relations, are a beacon for other British Columbia enterprises. As you might expect, Gordon MacFarlane's contributions extend well beyond the corporate: he is a member of the Premier's Economic Advisory Council, the Business Council on National Issues and the board of Simon Fraser University. He has been involved in fund-raising for the United Way, the Cancer Control Agency, the Canadian Council of Christians and Jews, Science World and the Vancouver Public Aquarium.

Mr. MacFarlane's community-minded dedication is also relected in B.C. Tel's many community activities, from its founding donation to Science World British Columbia and its close working relationship with the Ministry of Education to the company's sponsorship of the 1994 Commonwealth Games.

Gordon MacFarlane's accomplishments have been recognized, in 1982 by the Canadian engineering profession with the McNaughton Gold Medal Award, in 1988 by the federal Department of Communications with its life achievement award for his dedication to developing information and communication technology, and in 1989 by the Association of Professional Engineers of British Columbia with the R.A. McLachlan Award and by the University of British Columbia with its Engineering Alumni Award of Distinction.

Dr. Ian McTaggart-Cowan joined the faculty of the University of British Columbia in 1940. He had an impressive academic background that included a Ph.D. from the University of California, Doctor of Science degrees from the universities of British Columbia and Victoria, Doctor of Laws degrees from the University of Alberta and Simon Fraser University and a Doctor of Environmental Studies from Waterloo.

During his 35 years at UBC, he established an enviable reputation, travelling widely in his studies and publishing an impressive body of work. He was also involved in the production of 110 television documentaries and 12 teaching films.

Dr. McTaggart-Cowan has devoted a lifetime to studying, teaching and conserving the natural resources of British Columbia. His involvement extended far beyond the UBC campus, right around the world. Naturalist ground around British Columbia frequently called upon his knowledge and enthusiasm to inspire members; many of those who listened would pursue careers in biology and involve themselves in environmental conservation.

Dr. McTaggart-Cowan was himself heavily involved, as chairman or member of many of the lead organizations concerned with the environment, such as the National Research Council's Advisory Committee on Wildlife Reasearch and the Environmental Council of Canada, to name only two in a long list. He has been a world-wide environmental emissary for British Columbia and Canada.

Although now retired, he continues to serve on many committees, boards and organizations dedicated to ensuring the environmental integrity of British Columbia's natural resources. An internationally recognized conservationist, Dr. McTaggart-Cowan has given distinguished service to the people of British Columbia and their natural resources.

Nathan Nemetz has served British Columbia with dedication and distinction as a mediator, arbitrator and judicial administrator. His steadfast performance, his strong intellect and social sensitivity have improved the effectiveness of the judicial system and raised the profile of the courts as a central institution of our democratic society.

Mr. Nemetz was born in Winnipeg in 1913. He received a degree from the University of British Columbia. He was made a Justice of the Supreme Court of B.C. in 1963 and a Justice of the Court of Appeal in 1968.

In 1973, he became Chief Justice of the Supreme Court of British Columbia and was also elected an executive member of the Canadian Judicial Council in that year. From 1985 to 1988, he served as vice-chairman of the Council. In 1979, he was appointed Chief Justice of British Columbia, a position he held until 1988.

Mr. Nemetz wrote several books dealing with alternative dispute resolution, appellate advocacy, the independence of the judiciary, the position of the media in the legal system, and labour law.

Mr. Nemetz actively supported his alma mater, the University of British Columbia, serving as a member of its Senate and Board of Governors, as board chairman, Chancellor and then Chancellor Emeritus. His stature and contribution have been recognized by many: Nelson's Notre Dame University, the University of British Columbia, Simon Fraser University and the University of Victoria have all bestowed honorary degrees on him.

In 1967, he received the Canada Medal and in 1988, he was made a Freeman of the City of Vancouver. He is a Companion of the Order of Canada. Nathan Nemetz has placed an indelible stamp on the judicial system of British Columbia through his distinguished service.

Barbara Rae has combined success as a business person with a keen sense of commitment to British Columbia and its people. She received a Masters of Business from Simon Fraser University.

As president and chief executive officer of Office Associates Ltd., she has been a role model, not simply of success but also of personal warmth, generosity and character. And she has created countless employment opportunities, especially for women who need to blend family responsibilities with work outside the home.

Barbara Rae has served on the boards of B.C. Tel, Microtel Ltd., MPR Teltech Ltd., Seaboard Life Insurance Company, Grosvenor International Holdings Limited and the Royal Trust Western Advisory Board.

She is also deeply involved in British Columbia's social and educational institutions - a chancellor of Simon Fraser University and as a member of the provincial Judicial Appointments Committee and the Premier's Economic Advisory Council.

Barbara Rae co-chairs the B.C. Council of Christians and Jews and is on the Pacific Region board of directors of the Salvation Army. Over the years, she has chaired major fund-raising campaigns such as the Lower Mainland United Way and the Salvation Army's Red Shield. She has been president of Junior Achievement, vice-chair of the B.C. Institute of Technology's Board of Governors and a director of the Vancouver Board of Trade. In 1989, her work was recognized with a Canadian Volunteer Award.

Among her other recognitions are Entrepreneur of the Year (1987), West Vancouver Achievers Award (1987), Vancouver YWCA's Business Woman of the Year (1986), and Simon Fraser University's Outstanding Alumnae Award (1985).

Lawrie Wallace's early career was in teaching. Eventually he was persuaded to join the provincial government's service, where he truly distinguished himself.

He dedicated his life to public service. As deputy provincial secretary and deputy minister to two premiers, Mr. Wallace organized seemingly flawless Royal visits to British Columbia and worked tirelessly over two decades to enhance British Columbia's communities.

The success of major Centennial celebrations in British Columbia between 1958 and 1971, events which made major contributions to communities throughout this province, was due, for the most part, to the unflagging efforts of their chairman, Lawrie Wallace.In the late 1970s, as B.C.'s Agent General in the United Kingdom and Europe, Lawrie Wallace became known as "Mr. B.C.": they made him a Freeman of London. Even in his retirement, Lawrie Wallace has been assisting many charitable and cultural organizations. For example, in 1987, he headed the fund-raising campaign that enabled renovations to Victoria's Theatre.

The list of Mr. Wallace's honours is long; among them is the Order of Canada, an honorary degree from UBC, a Queen's Jubilee Medal and the Canadian Centennial Medal. But the list of his involvements and accomplishments is much longer and stands as a testament to his great contribution to the life of this province.

Dr. Harry Warren might well be described as a 20th Century "renaissance man" - athlete, Rhodes scholar, sportsman, scientist, researcher and teacher. He is renowned in all of them.

In 1928, while a Rhodes scholar at Oxford, he went to Amsterdam to become a member of the Canadian Olympic team as a sprinter. He has held high office in rugby, cricket and field hockey organizations, both men's and women's. He was the founding president of the Canadian Field Hockey Association and did much to promote the sport in British Columbia. He has received numerous awards for his support of sports organizations and was named to the B.C. Sports Hall of Fame.

Dr. Warren has been associated with the B.C. and Yukon Chamber of Mines since 1932 when he first taught at the Chamber's annual prospectors training classes. He was vice-president of the Chamber from 1939 to 1951 and president from 1952 to 1954. The Chamber gave him it's "Spud Huestis" award in 1986 to recognize his contributions in bringing together the academic and industrial worlds.

From his position at the University of B.C.'s department of geology, he has pioneered the field of applied geochemistry in mining exploration and continues to be a leader with innovative work. At 87, he is now a retired Professor Emeritus at UBC. He was recently recognized with an "Award of Distinction" by the Prospector and Developers Association of Canada for his contributions to exploration.

Dr. Warren is also a member of the Order of Canada. Dr. Warren's public service activities have benefitted a diverse array of organizations, from the Vancouver Board of Trade to the United Nations Association of Canada. He has made many outstanding contributions. British Columbians are fortunate that he chose this province in which to make them.