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Norman Gene Macdonald, standup comedian, actor, writer, producer (born 17 October 1963 in Quebec City, QC; died 14 September 2021). Norm Macdonald was known for his irreverent humor and low-key delivery, and particularly for his work on NBC’s Saturday Night Live (SNL).

Frederick Alan Edwin Reesor, teacher, organist, conductor, composer (born 14 June 1936 in Markham, ON; died 9 March 2022 In Charlottetown, PEI). B MUS (Toronto) 1957, M MUS (ESM, Rochester) 1965. Alan Reesor studied piano with Gertrude Jackson and organ with Wilfred Powell, John McIntosh, Norman Peterson, and H. William Hawke. Beginning his teaching career in Oshawa, Ontario, he spent 11 years building a successful high school orchestra and band program, while serving as organist and choirmaster at St George's Anglican Church.

Aziz Ahmad, novelist, short story writer, critic, translator, historian (born 11 November 1914 in Hyderabad Deccan [present-day India]; died 16 December 1978 in Toronto, ON).

Alanis Nadine Morissette, singer, songwriter, producer, actor, activist (born 1 June 1974 in Ottawa, ON). Alanis Morissette is one of Canada’s most recognized and internationally acclaimed singer-songwriters. She established herself as a Juno-winning teen pop star in Canada before adopting an edgy alternative rock sound. She exploded onto the world stage with her record-breaking international debut, Jagged Little Pill (1995). It sold more than 16 million copies in the United States and 33 million worldwide. It is the highest-selling debut album by a female artist in the US and the best-selling debut album ever worldwide. It is also the best-selling album of the 1990s and the first album by a Canadian artist to sell more than two million copies in Canada. Described by Rolling Stone magazine as the “undisputed queen of alt-rock angst,” Morissette has won 13 Juno Awards and seven Grammy Awards. She has sold 60 million albums worldwide, including Supposed Former Infatuation Junkie (1998), Under Rug Swept (2002) and Flavors of Entanglement (2008). Also an actor and activist, she is a member of the Canadian Music Industry Hall of Fame, the Canadian Music Hall of Fame and Canada’s Walk of Fame.

Loretta Todd, documentary filmmaker, installation artist, essayist (b at Edmonton circa 1963). A central figure in what might be considered the second wave of Indigenous directors, Todd brings insight, discipline, resistance to sentimentality and a sense of adventurousness to her non-fiction films.

Gerald Tailfeathers, artist (born at Stand Off, Alberta 13 or 14 Feb 1925; died at Blood IR, Alberta 3 Apr 1975). One of the first Indigenous Canadians to become a professional artist, he came to prominence in the 1950s.

Joe Talirunili, artist (b near Kuujjuaraapik [Great Whale R], Qué c 1899; d at Povungnituk, Qué 11 Sept 1976). 

John Tiktak, sculptor (b at Kareak, a small camp between Eskimo Point (now Arviat) and Whale Cove, NWT 1916; d at Rankin Inlet, NWT 9 June 1981). At first a hunter, he moved to Rankin Inlet in 1958 to work at the nickel mine.

Sarain Stump, Indigenous name Sock-a-jaw-wu, meaning "the one who pulls the boat," painter, poet (b at Fremont, Wyo 1945; d by drowning near Mexico City, Mexico 20 Dec 1974).

Gregory Scofield, poet, playwright, teacher, social worker (b at Maple Ridge, BC 20 July 1966). A Métis of Cree, Scottish, English, French, and Jewish descent, Gregory Scofield was raised by his mother, an aunt, and in several foster homes in northern Manitoba, northern Saskatchewan, and the Yukon.

Willie Seaweed, or Hiamas, a formal address meaning "right maker," or more commonly Kwaxitola, meaning "smoky-top," Northwest Coast artist, singer, dancer (b at Nugent Sound, BC c 1873; d at Blunden Harbour, BC 1967).

Tina Keeper, politician, actor, social activist (b at Norway House, Man 20 March 1962). Tina Keeper is an award-winning actor whose work on- and off- screen has raised public awareness of several issues facing contemporary Indigenous Canadians.

Helen Kalvak, graphic artist (b on Victoria I, NWT 1901; d at Holman [Ulukhaktok], NWT 7 May 1984).

John Kavik, sculptor and potter (b in Gjoa Haven, NWT 1897; d at Yellowknife, NWT March 1993 ).

George Arluk, artist (b in the Keewatin region, NWT 5 May 1949). An Inuit sculptor now living in Arviat, Nunavut, Arluk began to teach himself how to carve soapstone at age nine.

Boris Brott, conductor, violinist (born 14 March 1944 in Montreal, QC; died 5 April 2022 in Hamilton, ON).

Boris Brott, conductor, violinist (born 14 March 1944 in Montreal, QC; died 5 April 2022 in Hamilton, ON).

Raymond Moriyama, CC, O. Ont, architect, planner (born 11 October 1929 in Vancouver, BC). A Companion of the Order of Canada and winner of a Governor General’s Award in Visual and Media Arts, Raymond Moriyama is recognized for several landmark buildings both in Canada and abroad. He is renowned for his sensitivity in considering and addressing human scale, for his humanistic approach to design, and his ability to connect architecture with nature and landscape.

Elnora Ruth Collins (née Procter), CM, singer, actor (born 21 November 1919 in Edmonton, Alberta). Canada’s “first lady of jazz,” Eleanor Collins was the first Canadian woman and the first Black entertainer in Canada to have her own national television show, CBC TV’s The Eleanor Show (1955). Often compared to American singer Lena Horne, Collins performed on many television and radio variety shows, as well as in clubs. She is a member of the Order of Canada and the BC Entertainment Hall of Fame and the recipient of numerous lifetime achievement awards. Canada Post released a commemorative stamp in her honour in January 2022.

Catherine Lafortune, ballet dancer (born 17 February 1961 in Montreal, QC). At the age of seven, Catherine Lafortune enthusiastically responded to the call of dance and took courses in the Cecchetti method at the La Volière studio. Completing her examinations with distinction, she entered the dance academy of Les Grands Ballets Canadiens. Through the years of her apprenticeship (ages 15 to 17) she undertook intensive training at York University, where her talent was noticed by the teaching staff.