Queen’s alumnus Stephen J. R. Smith, Sc’72, LLD’17, one of the country’s leading financial services entrepreneurs and philanthropists, is among 30 appointees to the Order of Ontario, the province’s highest civilian honour.
Announced by Lt.-Gov. Edith Dumont on Feb. 17, the Order of Ontario recognizes those “whose distinguished service and extraordinary achievements have helped build a stronger Ontario and Canada.”
Jamaica Cass, PhD’14, a leader in Indigenous health and medical education, Major-General (Retd) Jean-Robert Bernier, DSc’15, who was previously Canada’s Surgeon General and NATO's chief medical adviser, J. David Wake, LLB’72, a former associate chief justice of the Ontario Court of Justice, and Richard Rooney, a longtime member of the Queen's community and a distinguished leader and philanthropist who has advanced health care, education, arts and community development, were also appointed.
“The 2025 Order of Ontario appointees represent the very best of our province,” said Dumont. “Through their exceptional dedication and achievements, they have made profound contributions that have touched lives across Ontario and beyond. May their remarkable examples continue to inspire us all to work together for the greater good.”
Smith received the news with gratitude, noting that Queen’s continues to play a role in his life and career.
“I am deeply honoured to receive the Order of Ontario,” he said. “My time at Queen’s University helped shape both my approach to business and my belief that leadership carries a responsibility to serve. I remain grateful for the education, mentorship, and values that continue to guide my philanthropic work.”
Smith was recognized as a pioneer in mortgage technology who expanded access to homeownership and built businesses, including Canada Guaranty and Fairstone Bank, that have employed thousands of Canadians.
He was also cited for his historic philanthropic contributions to Queen’s, “redefining business and engineering education.”
Smith’s gift of $100 million in 2023 was the largest gift made to an engineering faculty in Canada, one of the largest to any university in Canada and one of the largest ever to Queen's, positioning engineering graduates to have a lasting impact on Canada and the world.
It was Smith’s second transformational gift to Queen's. In 2015, he gave $50 million to Queen's to advance the leadership position of the university and its business school within Canada and internationally. Since then, Smith School of Business has continued to attract top faculty and student talent.
Cass is the first Indigenous woman in Canada to earn both a medical degree and a PhD. A proud member of the Mohawks of the Bay of Quinte, she is a primary care and obesity-medicine physician on-reserve at Tyendinaga Mohawk Territory. She also serves within the Queen’s Department of Family Medicine as the director of Indigenous health and the program director for the Indigenous health enhanced skills program.
She was recognized for driving “systemic change through governance, curriculum reform and national best-practice guidelines,” noting that “her leadership and mentorship advance Truth and Reconciliation, expand representation and transform health outcomes for Indigenous communities.”
Bernier was honoured for shaping global health security through a career leading military medicine and international governance, noting that as Canada’s Surgeon General and NATO's chief medical adviser, he “strengthened health system capability modernization and integration and oversaw life-saving initiatives in conflict zones and humanitarian crises.”
Wake, an associate chief justice of the Ontario Court of Justice from 1999-2005, was cited as a “catalyst for judicial reform and ethical governance” who “transformed transparency and accountability in Ontario and beyond.” His work unifying oversight offices and strengthening ethics standards when he was integrity commissioner created a “legacy of trust, collaboration, and systemic change.”
Rooney, co-founder of Burgundy Asset Management, was lauded for various initiatives, including Canada’s first theranostics program at The Princess Margaret, a “groundbreaking approach that integrates diagnostics and therapy to deliver highly personalized cancer treatment, alongside support for cultural institutions and academic diversity nationwide.”
The announcement will be followed by an investiture ceremony in Toronto later this year.
