Light, Walter Frederick

[photo of Walter Light]

Walter Frederick Light was an Ontario native and a graduate of Queen's who obtained his BSc in 1949.

Dr. Light was married to another Queen's graduate, Margaret Light.

Light was a prominent businessman who worked for Bell Canada for 25 before becoming the President of Northern Telecom in 1974. He served as CEO and Chair of Nortel for several years, where he helped to give the company a more globally-oriented mission and become a technology leader.

He received an honorary LLD from Queen's in 1981.

He served as the Chairman of the Board of Trustees from 1985-1990, and his contributions to Queen's were recognized by the naming of the technology centre, Walter Light Hall, in his honour in 1989.