Appointments to Order of St. John

Summary#

On May 13, 2023, the Governor General, Mary May Simon, announced appointments to the Most Venerable Order of the Hospital of St. John of Jerusalem. The notice names Canadians given honours at several ranks in the Order after being recommended by the Grand Prior.

What it does#

• Appoints the following people to the rank of Knights of the Order:
  • Marc Joseph Luc Boucher, Adam James Dickinson Carter, John Buckingham Newman, Joseph Bruce Varner
• Appoints Anita Neville as a Dame of the Order.
• Appoints the following people as Commanders of the Order:
  • Beverly Eileen Lafortune, John Michael Prno, Raymond David Valentine, Andrew Preston Wilder
• Appoints the following people as Officers of the Order:
  • Dominic Benoît, William Thomas Cahill, Hélène Caron, Darlene Chalmers, Raymond M. Chow, Stanley Anthony Fidele Grabstas, Joanne Claire Green, Glenda Mary Janes, Mary Georgette Loblaw, Shawn Ian McLaren, Jeff Kwong Yuen Mok, Marc-Antoine Pigeon, Richard Stewart, Peter Alan Thompson
• Appoints the following people as Members of the Order (selected examples from the longer list):
  • Dillon Lee Wade Abbott, Farhang Ahadzadeh, Donald Scott Brown, Paul James Bury, Donald James Denne, Yvon Leger, Eric Filion, Sebastien Gendron, Stéphane Girard, Kenneth Brian Hansen, Benjamin R. Holden, Edna Ruth Knight, Gabriella Tracey Kwan, Dany Labonté, Guy Langlois, Seth William Ambeau Laroche, Stephen Andrew Latham, Daniel J. Levinter, Richard Nien-Chu Liu, Philippe Florent Maurice Lurol, Aaron Rey Yu Ma, Albert Suo Yu Ma, Lori McGeary, Gary Scott McPherson, Grace Anne Mehlenbacher, Philippe Charles Morin, Trong Danh Nguyen, Stephanie Elizabeth Pilkey, Maria Johanna Potter, Shane Ryan Potter, Hector Leandro Silva Mateus, Mark Alan Saxston, Anna Smith, Gwendolyn Patricia Stoeber, Kenneth John Swain, Edward Tain, Glyn Trafford, Ryan Vickery, James Leon Vigna, Brenda Marie Waldie, Matthew Luton Walter, Ann Marie Watson, Marc Thériault
• The appointments were made on behalf of the King, based on recommendations from the Order’s Grand Prior.

Who's affected#

• The people named in the announcement and their families.
• The Most Venerable Order of the Hospital of St. John of Jerusalem and its membership roster.
• It is not clear from the notice whether any particular organizations or employers are directly affected.

Why it matters#

• These are honorary appointments recognizing service or contribution tied to the Order.
• For the named individuals, the announcement is a public record of national recognition.
• For the general public, this is a routine Government House announcement of honours with no new policy or legal effects.