Christopher Dennis Flynn (according to Irish Civic Birth Registration, his name was Denis Christopher O'Flynn at birth) O.Ont, (December 17, 1923 – August 19, 2003) was

Chairman The chairperson, also chairman, chairwoman or chair, is the presiding officer of an organized group such as a board, committee, or deliberative assembly. The person holding the office, who is typically elected or appointed by members of the grou ...

Metropolitan Toronto The Municipality of Metropolitan Toronto was an upper-tier level of municipal government in Ontario, Canada, from 1953 to 1998. It was made up of the old city of Toronto and numerous townships, towns and villages that surrounded Toronto, whic ...

from 1984 to 1988. Flynn rarely used his first name and was commonly known as Dennis Flynn.

Background

Born in Rathcormac,

County Cork County Cork ( ga, Contae Chorcaí) is the largest and the southernmost county of Ireland, named after the city of Cork, the state's second-largest city. It is in the province of Munster and the Southern Region. Its largest market towns are ...

Ireland Ireland ( ; ga, Éire ; Ulster Scots dialect, Ulster-Scots: ) is an island in the Atlantic Ocean, North Atlantic Ocean, in Northwestern Europe, north-western Europe. It is separated from Great Britain to its east by the North Channel (Grea ...

to the O'Flynn family, the family immigrated to Canada while he was a child. He had two brothers Patrick and John, and two sisters, Eileen and Mary. Eventually the family dropped the ''O'' honorific and became known simply as ''Flynn''. Flynn's older brother Patrick Flynn was a

Member of Parliament A member of parliament (MP) is the representative in parliament of the people who live in their electoral district. In many countries with bicameral parliaments, this term refers only to members of the lower house since upper house members of ...

from 1974 to 1979. His sister Eileen married Eugene Natale and the two of them went into the clothing business. His sister Mary worked for the City of Toronto and is the widow of Ron Ross, a successful high school teacher. His brother John had a career in Leadership Development and married Joselyn Leise a school teacher. Dennis married Margaret (née Courtney) and they had seven children. He enlisted in the

Toronto Scottish Regiment The Toronto Scottish Regiment (Queen Elizabeth The Queen Mother's Own) is a Primary Reserve infantry regiment of the Canadian Army. It is part of 4th Canadian Division's 32 Canadian Brigade Group. Lineage File:Tor Scots Colour.jpg, The regiment ...

in 1938 and was in the

1st Canadian Parachute Battalion The 1st Canadian Parachute Battalion was an Airborne forces, airborne infantry battalion of the Canadian Army formed in July 1942 during the World War II, Second World War; it served in Western Front (World War II)#1944–45: The Second Front, Nort ...

World War II World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposin ...

. He saw action during the

D-Day The Normandy landings were the landing operations and associated airborne operations on Tuesday, 6 June 1944 of the Allied invasion of Normandy in Operation Overlord during World War II. Codenamed Operation Neptune and often referred to as D ...

landings and was wounded twice. He walked with a limp due to these injuries. He attended the

University of Toronto The University of Toronto (UToronto or U of T) is a public research university in Toronto, Ontario, Canada, located on the grounds that surround Queen's Park. It was founded by royal charter in 1827 as King's College, the first institution ...

in 1947. After graduating, he joined the City of Toronto's clerk's department and rose to the position of protocol officer (public relations director). In 2003, Flynn's son, Tim, ran unsuccessfully in Ward 25 (Don Valley West) for a seat on Toronto City Council.

Politics

He was unsuccessful in his first attempt to be elected

mayor In many countries, a mayor is the highest-ranking official in a municipal government such as that of a city or a town. Worldwide, there is a wide variance in local laws and customs regarding the powers and responsibilities of a mayor as well a ...

Etobicoke Etobicoke (, ) is an administrative district of, and one of six municipalities amalgamated into, the city of Toronto, Ontario, Canada. Comprising the city's west-end, Etobicoke was first settled by Europeans in the 1790s, and the municipalit ...

in 1969, but succeeded in 1972. However, following a complaint by former Etobicoke reeve Henry Oscar Waffle, he was disqualified by a county court judge after the fact for having been an employee of the City of Toronto on nomination and election day. Flynn, having resigned his Toronto position, won again in the mayoral by-election held March 12, 1973, defeating his only opponent by a 10:1 margin. Flynn was mayor of Etobicoke until 1984 when he succeeded Paul Godfrey as Metro Chairman. He held that position until 1988. In 1988,

Alan Tonks Alan Tonks (born April 2, 1943) is a former Canadian politician. He was the Liberal MP for the federal riding of York South—Weston in Toronto from 2000 to 2011, and was the final Metro Toronto Chairman before the amalgamation of Metro Toronto i ...

contested Flynn's position and defeated him in a vote held by Metro Council to become Metro Chairman. In the 1988 municipal election, he ran successfully for Metro Council in the ward of Kingsway-Humber ward. Flynn remained as Metro Councillor until 1997. He ran for a seat on the newly amalgamated

Toronto City Council Toronto City Council is the governing body of the municipal government of Toronto, Ontario. Meeting at Toronto City Hall, it comprises 25 city councillors and the mayor of Toronto. The current term began on November 15, 2022. Structure The cur ...

in 1997, but finished third behind

Gloria Lindsay Luby Gloria Lindsay Luby is a Canadian former politician. Luby was a Toronto city councillor and former Deputy Speaker of Toronto City Council in Toronto, Ontario, Canada for Ward 4 Etobicoke Centre. She represented one of the two Etobicoke Centre wa ...

and Mario Giansante.

Later life

In 2001, he was awarded the

Order of Ontario The Order of Ontario () is the most prestigious official honour in the Canadian province of Ontario. Instituted in 1986 by Lieutenant Governor Lincoln Alexander, on the advice of the Cabinet under Premier David Peterson, the civilian order is adm ...

for his distinguished record of public service. Flynn was the Honorary Lieutenant-Colonel of the

Toronto Scottish Regiment (Queen Elizabeth The Queen Mother's Own) The Toronto Scottish Regiment (Queen Elizabeth The Queen Mother's Own) is a Primary Reserve infantry regiment of the Canadian Army. It is part of 4th Canadian Division's 32 Canadian Brigade Group. Lineage File:Tor Scots Colour.jpg, The regimen ...

. In 2003, while visiting the regiment at

CFB Petawawa Garrison Petawawa is located in Petawawa, Ontario. It is operated as an army base by the Canadian Army. Garrison facts The Garrison is located in the Ottawa Valley in Renfrew County, northwest of Ottawa along the western bank of the Ottawa ...

Pembroke, Ontario Pembroke is a city in the Canadian province of Ontario at the confluence of the Muskrat River (Ontario), Muskrat River and the Ottawa River in the Ottawa Valley. Pembroke is the location of the administrative headquarters of Renfrew County, thoug ...

, he suffered a

heart attack A myocardial infarction (MI), commonly known as a heart attack, occurs when blood flow decreases or stops to the coronary artery of the heart, causing damage to the heart muscle. The most common symptom is chest pain or discomfort which may tr ...

and died. He was 79.

References

City of Toronto Archives

{{DEFAULTSORT:Flynn, Dennis 1923 births 2003 deaths Military personnel from County Cork Members of the Order of Ontario Politicians from County Cork Irish emigrants to Canada Canadian Army personnel of World War II University of Toronto alumni Chairmen of Metropolitan Toronto Mayors of Etobicoke Canadian Army soldiers 1st Canadian Parachute Battalion The Toronto Scottish Regiment (Queen Elizabeth The Queen Mother's Own)