Gov. Gen. Mary Simon honours former judge, sex worker champion with Order of Canada

OTTAWA —

A former Supreme Court justice, a medical pioneer, two broadcasters and a champion for sex workers were among those invested into the Order of Canada during a ceremony at Rideau Hall on Thursday.

Gov. Gen. Mary Simon said it was a privilege to honour these individuals as their names join a long list of distinguished Canadians who have helped the country “move together toward reconciliation, truth and inclusion.”

“You push boundaries and inspire us to reach higher, and through acts of generosity that support people in need, you remind us of the power of compassion,” Simon said during her speech at Thursday’s investiture ceremony.

Former Supreme Court justice Rosalie Silberman Abella, who retired from the top court in 2021, was invested as a companion of the Order of Canada for her work on constitutional law, and for shaping equality and human rights around the world.

Speaking to The Canadian Press following the ceremony, Abella said being named to the Order of Canada is “a pinnacle” of her career. Her late husband Irving Abella was named a member of the Order of Canada in 1994.

“It’s from my country. It means the world to me,” Abella said. “To have the chance to see that everything that I did, my family did, my husband, was something that was thought of as productive and constructive and hopeful. I’m very honoured.”

Appointments to the Order of Canada are made at three levels. The companion level recognizes outstanding achievement at the highest degree, especially in service to Canada. The officer level recognizes achievement of a high degree. The member level recognizes distinguished service to a particular community, group or activity.

Mellissa Fung, a veteran broadcast journalist and author who was kidnapped in Afghanistan and held captive for four weeks in 2008, was invested as an officer.

“What was most overwhelming for me was to be in this room full of amazing Canadians who have made so many important contributions to our country,” Fung told The Canadian Press.

“I feel very humbled to be among all these amazing Canadians.”

Among the 25 invested as members of the Order of Canada were: Lee Edward Errett, a global leader in cardiac care who worked with St. Michael’s Hospital; Frances Marjorie Shaver, a champion for sex workers who worked as a professor at Concordia University; and George Stroumboulopoulos, famous for his work with Much Music and CBC as an entertainment broadcaster.

Stroumboulopoulos was one of only two guests at Rideau Hall on Thursday to get a chuckle out of Simon, the other being Chippewas of the Thames First Nation Chief Joe Miskokomon.

“She had asked me if I remembered the last time we were in a room together,” Stroumboulopoulos told The Canadian Press. He said it was in 2012, when he interviewed Simon for his CBC television talk show.

“I reminded her that she greeted me with a nose kiss, and then she started laughing,” he said. “It’s funny because we’re both informal people, probably. It was just nice to see her here. This is nice.”

Stroumboulopoulos’s introduction also deviated from the very formal nature of the ceremony. While the Governor General’s secretary, Ken MacKillop, introduced each new inductee using their honorific, Stroumboulopoulos was introduced by his nickname, “Strombo.”

“Honestly, it’s kind of funny. I’m always very, very present. So this kind of thing is an out-of-body experience. So it was kind of funny when he said that,” Stroumboulopoulos said.

“I just kind of looked back and went, ‘All right, my man.’ Because I think it’s on brand. It’s who I am as a human.”

Other inductees included editorial cartoonist Michael de Adder, auto market expert Flavio Volpe and Métis artist Christi Belcourt — who was invested as a member of the Order of Canada for her artworks inspired by Métis beadwork. One of her canvases hangs in Rideau Hall’s ballroom.

While receiving her medal, Belcourt, Simon and her husband Whit Fraser took a moment to look up at her artwork and appreciate the moment.

“This is reconciliation,” MacKillop said.

This report by The Canadian Press was first published March 19, 2026.

Nick Murray and Alessia Passafiume, The Canadian Press