DR DAVID BERCUSON – 2004 VIMY AWARD WINNER
30 August 2004. Ottawa.
The Conference of Defence Associations Institute (CDAI) is pleased to announce that Dr. David J. Bercuson, OC, PhD, LLD, FRSC, has been selected as the recipient of the Vimy Award for 2004.
Dr. Bercuson is a distinguished Canadian who has exhibited the highest standards of leadership throughout his career of service to Canada. The award will be presented on Friday, 19 November, at a mixed gala dinner in the Grand Hall of the Canadian Museum of Civilization, Gatineau.
Dr. Bercuson attended Sir George Williams University, graduating in June in 1966 with Honours in History, and winning the Lieutenant-Governor’s Silver Medal for the highest standing in history. After graduation he pursued graduate studies at the University of Toronto, earning an MA in history in 1967 and a PhD in 1971.
In 1988, Dr. Bercuson was elected to the Royal Society of Canada and, in 1989, he was appointed Dean of the Faculty of Graduate Studies at the University of Calgary. In 1997, he was appointed Special Advisor to the Minister of National Defence. He was a member of the Minister of National Defence’s Monitoring Committee from 1997 to 2003. Since 1997 he has been the Director of the Centre for Military and Strategic Studies at the University of Calgary. Currently he is the Vice President of the Canadian Defence & Foreign Affairs Institute, Calgary. Dr Bercuson is Honourary Lieutenant Colonel of 33 Field Engineer Squadron, Calgary.
The CDAI is dedicated to increasing public awareness of Canada’s security situation and the vital role that is played by the Canadian Armed Forces in our society. The Institute is the sponsor of the Vimy Award. Since 1991, the Award recognizes one Canadian who has made a
significant and outstanding contribution to the defence and security of our nation and the preservation of our democratic values.
Previous recipients of the Award include the Right Honourable Joe Clark, General John deChastelain, Major-Generals Lewis MacKenzie, and Roméo Dallaire, Dr. Jack Granatstein, the Right Honourable Brian Dickson, Lieutenant-General (Retd) Charles H. Belzile, the Honourable
Barnett Danson, Colonel the Honourable John Fraser, and General Paul Manson.
The Vimy Award jury was composed of The Right Honourable Beverley McLachlin, Chief Justice of Canada; General Raymond Henault, Chief of the Defence Staff for the Canadian Forces; Mr. John Watts, President General Dynamics Canada; Lieutenant-General (Ret’d) Al DeQuetteville, Vice-President – Canada of the Boeing Company; Lieutenant-General (Ret’d) Richard J. Evraire, Chairman of the Conference of Defence Associations; and Brigadier-General (Ret’d) W. Don Macnamara, President of the Conference of Defence Associations Institute.
Remarks – Bill Graham, Minister of National Defence