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Aaron Roland Mosher, trade unionist (b in Halifax County, NS 10 May 1881; d at Ottawa 26 Sept 1959). In 1907 Mosher led Halifax freight-shed employees on strike.

With the current almost religious belief in privatization and the recent debate about selling off Ontario Hydro, it is timely to look back at a time when there was a very different view of what constituted the public good.

Alain Simard, OC, COQ impresario, talent manager, producer, businessman (born 19 January 1950 in Montreal, QC). Alain Simard has been a leading figure in Quebec’s entertainment sector since the early 1970s. He is responsible for the conception and founding of some of Canada’s biggest annual festivals, including the Festival International de Jazz de Montréal (FIJM) and the FrancoFolies de Montréal, one of the largest French-language music festivals in the world. Simard is also chairman of the board of Équipe Spectra, which manages and operates festivals and performance venues, mounts stage productions, runs a record label and manages artists. In 2003, Simard was named the most influential person in the cultural world by the Montreal newspaper La Presse. He is a Chevalier of France’s Arts et des Lettres, of the Ordre de la Pléiade, and of the Ordre national du Québec; as well as an Officer of the Order of Canada.

Alain Stanké (Born Kaunas, Lithuania 1934). Alain Stanké, whose real name was Aloyzas-Vytas Stakevicius, was deported to a German concentration camp at the age of ten, and then emigrated to Paris complete his studies.

Albert Bowman Rogers, railway surveyor, engineer (b at Orleans, Mass 28 May 1829; d at Waterville, Mass 4 May 1889). Discoverer and explorer of Kicking Horse Pass and discoverer of Rogers Pass through the Rocky and Selkirk mountain ranges in BC.

Albert Jean De Grandpré, lawyer, business executive (b at Montréal 14 Sept 1921). Educated at Collège Jean-de-Brébeuf (BA 1940) and McGill University (BLC 1943), he practised insurance law in Québec during 1943-66 before joining Bell Canada as general counsel.

Alexander Melville Bell, educator, founder of the Canadian telephone industry (b at Edinburgh, Scot 1 Mar 1819; d at Washington, DC 7 Aug 1905). He was the father of Alexander Graham Bell.

Alexander Pantages, né Pericles, entrepreneur, vaudeville and motion picture theatre owner and manager (b at Andros, Greece 17 Feb 1867; d at Los Angeles 17 Feb 1936). Pericles Pantages was reputed to have changed his name to Alexander after hearing the story of Alexander the Great.

Alfred Ernest Ames, investment dealer (b at Lambeth, CW 3 Sept 1866; d at Toronto 20 Sept 1934). He worked as a bank clerk, then moved to Toronto and established A.E. Ames Co, investment dealers, 1889, the same year he married Mary Cox, daughter of financier and senator George Cox.

Alfred Ernest Cross, rancher, brewer (b at Montréal 26 June 1861; d there 10 Mar 1932). A graduate of Ontario Agricultural College and Montreal Veterinary College, Cross came to Calgary in 1884 as veterinarian and assistant manager of the British-American Horse Ranch Co.

Alfred Rouleau, insurance agent, administrator and president of Mouvement Desjardins (born 19 August 1915 in Sherbrooke, Qué; died 19 October 1985 in Montréal).

John Allan Slaight, CM, media mogul, philanthropist, reporter, broadcaster, magician (born 19 July 1931 in Galt, ON; died 19 September 2021 in Toronto, ON). After briefly working as a magician, Allan Slaight started his career as a radio reporter. He quickly rose through the ranks and bought his first radio station before his 40th birthday. By the time he sold his holdings to Astral Media for $1.08 billion in 2007, the media magnate had amassed more than 50 radio stations and a pair of TV stations. He also owned the Toronto Raptors and was a notable philanthropist, with numerous awards now named in his honour. Slaight was made a Member of the Order of Canada and has a star on Canada’s Walk of Fame.

Alphonse Desjardins, journalist, parliamentary reporter, founder of the Desjardins Group (born 5 November 1854 in Lévis, Québec; died 31 October 1920 in Lévis, Québec).

André Bureau, communications administrator (b at Trois-Rivières, Qué 10 Oct 1935). Bureau was trained in law at Université Laval and at Paris's Université de Droit Comparé.

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​Andrew Sarlos, OC, financier, Bay Street power broker (born 24 November 1931 in Budapest, Hungary; died 28 April 1997 in Toronto, ON).

Angus Bernard MacDonald, educator, co-operative leader (b at Glassburn, NS 21 Nov 1893; d at Ottawa 13 Sept 1952).

Annette Verschuren, OC, business executive, entrepreneur (born 24 June 1956 in North Sydney, NS). Verschuren studied business at St. Francis Xavier University and also holds a number of honorary doctorates. Best known for her 15 years as the president of The Home Depot Canada, Verschuren co-founded Toronto energy-storage start-up NRStor in 2012 and serves as its chair and CEO. She has served on several government-appointed bodies and the boards of Canadian businesses and non-profits.

Augustin Cuvillier, soldier, banker, politician (b at Québec C 21 Aug 1779; d at Montréal 11 July 1849). He attended the Collège de Montréal and became a Montréal merchant and auctioneer, served in the militia during and after the War of 1812, and was promoted to major.

Avie Bennett, businessman, publisher, philanthropist (born 2 Jan 1928 in Toronto, ON; died 2 June 2017 in Toronto, ON). Renowned for his interest in social and cultural issues, Avie Bennett began his business career in shopping centre development, a business that his family had pioneered.