By James Raiswell
And you thought the mail was slow.
In a ceremony at Rideau Hall on Jan. 28, Wayne Gretzky received his insignia of Officer of the Order of Canada — after a 14-year delay.
The title of Officer of the Order of Canada is the highest civilian honor for lifetime achievement. It was presented to Gretzky for his contribution to hockey and outstanding community service.
Gretzky was appointed to the Order June 25, 1984. But, because of his National Hockey League schedule, wasn’t able to pick the award up until just recently.
Government House holds three formal investiture ceremonies each year, all during the NHL’s regular season. For this reason, Gretzky was never able to make any firm scheduling commitments to receive the honor.
With the New York Rangers visiting the Ottawa Senators last week, the opportunity arose for Gretzky to pick up his badge.
Kate McGregor, a spokeswoman at Government House, says Gretzky was invited to receive the badge on several occasions, but his schedule never coincided with the ceremony.
“We had been looking for occasions to perform the ceremony since Mr. Gretzky was appointed in 1984,” says McGregor. “But, aside from one instance in 1993, we were never able to plan anything concrete.”
The ceremony in 1993 at which Gretzky was to receive the insignia was cancelled due to a death in the family of then-Governor General Ray Hnatyshyn.
Gretzky is not, however, the only person to receive this honor after a delay. The same scheduling problem arose when Roch Voisine was honored in 1995. Due to his touring schedule, Voisine was not able to come to Rideau Hall to receive the medal until July 1997.
Pam Millar, a spokeswoman at Government House, says delays such as these have happened a few times in the Order of Canada’s 30-year history.
At a press conference after the ceremony, Gretzky said he was honored to receive the Order of Canada.
“When you get an award for helping people, it makes you feel proud.”