Joseph John Barnicke, (April 6, 1923 – May 19, 2015) was a Canadian entrepreneur. He is best known for establishing J.J. Barnicke Limited, a real estate firm, in 1959.

Career

Born in Cudworth,

Saskatchewan Saskatchewan ( ; ) is a Provinces and territories of Canada, province in Western Canada, western Canada, bordered on the west by Alberta, on the north by the Northwest Territories, on the east by Manitoba, to the northeast by Nunavut, and on t ...

, he attended public and high school in

Oakville, Ontario Oakville is a town in Regional Municipality of Halton, Halton Region, Ontario, Canada. It is located on Lake Ontario between Toronto and Hamilton, Ontario, Hamilton. At its Canada 2021 Census, 2021 census population of 213,759, it is List of tow ...

. He was a Flying Officer with the

Royal Canadian Air Force The Royal Canadian Air Force (RCAF; french: Aviation royale canadienne, ARC) is the air and space force of Canada. Its role is to "provide the Canadian Forces with relevant, responsive and effective airpower". The RCAF is one of three environm ...

during

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 ...

. From 1947 to 1957, he was a sales manager with O'Keefe Brewing Company. From 1957 to 1959, he was Vice President of Gibson Brothers. In 1959, he founded J.J. Barnicke Limited, growing it in time to become the largest independent real estate company in Canada. At the age of 84, in 2007 he sold the company to DTZ Holdings for nearly $27 million. He stayed on as chairman at DTZ Barnicke Ltd. and only stopped working in his final year.

Philanthropic activities

Barnicke is known for both his business and

philanthropic Philanthropy is a form of altruism that consists of "private initiatives, for the public good, focusing on quality of life". Philanthropy contrasts with business initiatives, which are private initiatives for private good, focusing on material ...

activities, having served as an Ontario campaign chair and a national campaign chair for the

Canadian Cancer Society The Canadian Cancer Society (french: Société canadienne du cancer) is Canada's largest national cancer charity and the largest national charitable funder of cancer research in Canada. History The idea to form the Canadian Cancer Society origin ...

and donated a wing to St. Joseph's Health Centre 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 ...

in his wife's name, Justina M. Barnicke. He also was the prime donor of the Justina M. Barnicke Gallery in Hart House at the University of Toronto. He was a Director of the Canadian Council of Christians and Jews and Chairman of St. Joseph's Health Centre Foundation. He was also one of the organizers of

Pope John Paul II Pope John Paul II ( la, Ioannes Paulus II; it, Giovanni Paolo II; pl, Jan Paweł II; born Karol Józef Wojtyła ; 18 May 19202 April 2005) was the head of the Catholic Church and sovereign of the Vatican City State from 1978 until his ...

's 1984 visit to Toronto. In 1955 when the first Grey Cup was held in Vancouver, the Junior Board of Trade of Toronto convinced the two Canadian Railways to pool a 13-car goodwill train, which stopped at every city that had a team in Canadian football. Both Barnicke and the late Fred Gardiner, the Chair of Metro Toronto, were the two co-goodwill ambassadors during the trip.

Honours

Barnicke has received various honours. In 1989, he was invested as 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 2003, he received 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 ...

; Knight Grand Cross with Star of the

Order of St. Gregory the Great The Pontifical Equestrian Order of St. Gregory the Great ( la, Ordo Sancti Gregorii Magni; it, Ordine di San Gregorio Magno) was established on 1 September 1831, by Pope Gregory XVI, seven months after his election as Pope. The order is one of ...

; Honorary Degree of Doctor of Laws from 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 ...

; Honorary Degree of Doctor of Sacred Letters from the University of St. Michael's College; Honorary Degree of Doctor of Laws from Assumption University; an Award of Merit from the City of Toronto in 1985; and the Human Relations Award from the Canadian Council of Christians and Jews in 1986.

References

External links

J.J. Barnicke Limited
{{DEFAULTSORT:Barnicke, Joseph 1923 births 2015 deaths Businesspeople from Ontario 21st-century Canadian philanthropists Canadian Roman Catholics Members of the Order of Canada Members of the Order of Ontario 20th-century Canadian philanthropists Royal Canadian Air Force officers Royal Canadian Air Force personnel of World War II