Earl Herbert Orser, (July 5, 1928 – December 26, 2004) was a

Canadian Canadians (french: Canadiens) are people identified with the country of Canada. This connection may be residential, legal, historical or cultural. For most Canadians, many (or all) of these connections exist and are collectively the source of ...

businessman. Born in

Toronto Toronto ( ; or ) is the capital city of the Canadian province of Ontario. With a recorded population of 2,794,356 in 2021, it is the most populous city in Canada and the fourth most populous city in North America. The city is the ancho ...

Ontario Ontario ( ; ) is one of the thirteen provinces and territories of Canada.Ontario is located in the geographic eastern half of Canada, but it has historically and politically been considered to be part of Central Canada. Located in Central Ca ...

, the son of Frank Herbert Orser and Ethel Majorie Cox, Orser attended Danforth Technical School. Support from the Leonard Foundation, a financial assistance program for students enrolled in an undergraduate degree program in a Canadian university, allowed him to attend 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 1946. Following graduation, he earned his C.A. In 1973, he joined the T. Eaton Company Limited and became President and CEO from 1975 to 1977. While at Eaton's, Orser gained a reputation, perhaps unfairly, as the man who ended the iconic Eaton's mail order catalogue in 1976. The decision to end the catalogue was made by the members of the Eaton family who controlled the company, but Orser deftly handled the operational, labour, political and public relations difficulties that arose from the closing of such a long-standing institution. After his stint with Eaton's, Orser moved to

London London is the capital and largest city of England and the United Kingdom, with a population of just under 9 million. It stands on the River Thames in south-east England at the head of a estuary down to the North Sea, and has been a majo ...

and joined the London Life Insurance Company, becoming President and CEO in 1980, Chairman in 1989 and Honorary Chairman in 1994. He was a director of SPAR Aerospace Ltd. commencing in 1978 and was Chairman for five years. Orser was also a former chair of the Board of Governors at The

University of Western Ontario The University of Western Ontario (UWO), also known as Western University or Western, is a Public university, public research university in London, Ontario, London, Ontario, Canada. The main campus is located on of land, surrounded by resident ...

. He was named a Member of the

Order of Canada The Order of Canada (french: Ordre du Canada; abbreviated as OC) is a Canadian state order and the second-highest honour for merit in the system of orders, decorations, and medals of Canada, after the Order of Merit. To coincide with the ...

in 1997. In 1991, he received an honorary Doctorate of Laws from the University of Western Ontario. He is a Fellow of the Ontario Institute of Chartered Accountants (FCA). In 1997, he was inducted into the London Business Hall of Fame. He married Marion and had four daughters: Darlene Funnell, Barbara Orser, Beverley Orser and Nancy Hart. Orser died of

cancer Cancer is a group of diseases involving abnormal cell growth with the potential to invade or spread to other parts of the body. These contrast with benign tumors, which do not spread. Possible signs and symptoms include a lump, abnormal b ...

References

* * {{DEFAULTSORT:Orser, Earl 1928 births 2004 deaths Canadian accountants Businesspeople from London, Ontario Businesspeople from Toronto Eaton's Members of the Order of Canada University of Toronto alumni Deaths from cancer in Ontario