2000 VIMY AWARD RECIPIENT – THE HONOURABLE BARNETT DANSON

The Vimy Award is presented annually to a Canadian who has made a significant and outstanding contribution to the security of Canada and to the preservation of our democratic values.

The Vimy Award Jury has selected the Honourable Barnett J. Danson,PC, OC, LLD, OM (Fr), as this year’s recipient of the award. Barnett J. Danson was born and educated in Toronto. At the age of 18, when the Second World War broke out, he enlisted as a rifleman in the Queen’s Own Rifles of Canada. He was commissioned from the ranks and was later wounded in Normandy, losing his sight in one eye.

In 1968, Mr. Danson was elected to the House of Commons. In 1976, Mr. Danson was named Minister of National Defence, a position he held until leaving politics in 1979. After his return to private life, Mr. Danson served on numerous boards of directors. Mr. Danson was the executive producer of a six-part television series, No Price Too High, and a contributor to the book of the same name, which chronicles Canada’s role in World War II. Mr. Danson, until recently, was Chairman of the Advisory committee of the Canadian War Museum. He is Honorary Chairman of the Passing the Torch Campaign, a campaign to assist in the financing of the new Canadian War Museum.