Scott Griffin, (born 1938) is 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 and philanthropist best known for founding the

Griffin Poetry Prize The Griffin Poetry Prize is Canada's most generous poetry award. It was founded in 2000 by businessman and philanthropist Scott Griffin. Before 2022, the awards went to one Canadian and one international poet who writes in the English language. ...

in 2000, one of the world's most generous

poetry awards Poetry (derived from the Greek '' poiesis'', "making"), also called verse, is a form of literature that uses aesthetic and often rhythmic qualities of language − such as phonaesthetics, sound symbolism, and metre − to evoke meanings in ...

, and Poetry In Voice, a bilingual recitation competition for Canadian high schools. Celebrating its 20th year in 2020, the Griffin Poetry Prize has become known as the most adventurous and generous international literary award. Griffin has been interviewed on CBC Radio, discussing the genesis of his love for poetry, reading from his favourite works and paying tribute to poet

Seamus Heaney Seamus Justin Heaney (; 13 April 1939 – 30 August 2013) was an Irish poet, playwright and translator. He received the 1995 Nobel Prize in Literature.

, who received the Griffin Lifetime Recognition Award in 2012. Griffin is chairman, director and majority shareholder since 2002 of publisher House of Anansi Press/Groundwood Books. He is also chairman and director of

Steam Whistle Brewing Steam Whistle Brewing is an independent brewery in Toronto, Ontario, Canada. It was founded in 2000 by three former employees of Upper Canada Brewing Company after that company was bought out. The company celebrates Beer in Canada and produces onl ...

, and a director of ''

Literary Review of Canada The ''Literary Review of Canada'' is a Canadian magazine that publishes ten times a year in print and online. The magazine features essays and reviews of books on political, cultural, social, and literary topics, as well as original Canadian poet ...

''. He was formerly chairman of the Governors of Sedbergh School in Canada, a director of DGC Entertainment Ventures Corp and Chancellor of

Bishop's University Bishop's University (french: Université Bishop's) is a small English-language liberal arts university in Lennoxville, a borough of Sherbrooke, Quebec, Canada. The founder of the institution was the Anglican Bishop of Quebec, George Mountain, w ...

. Griffin was previously chairman, director and majority shareholder of two

manufacturing companies. General Kinetics Engineering Corporation (

Brampton Brampton ( or ) is a city in the Canadian province of Ontario. Brampton is a city in the Greater Toronto Area (GTA) and is a lower-tier municipality within Peel Region. The city has a population of 656,480 as of the 2021 Census, making it ...

, Ontario, Canada) designs and manufactures components for military and other tracked vehicles and high-speed rail. Advance Precision Ltd. ( Mississauga, Ontario, Canada) designed and manufactured parts for the automotive industry, and was acquired by a US manufacturing firm. Griffin was on several

NGO A non-governmental organization (NGO) or non-governmental organisation (see spelling differences) is an organization that generally is formed independent from government. They are typically nonprofit entities, and many of them are active in h ...

boards, as a director of Canadian Executive Services Overseas (CESO), a volunteer advisor to CESO and a director of African Medical and Research Foundation ( AMREF) Canada and AMREF International. In 2006, Griffin published a memoir entitled ''My Heart Is Africa'' that recounted his two-year aviation adventure starting in 1996, working for the Flying Doctors Service in Africa. All royalties from the sale of the book are donated to the AMREF Flying Doctors Service. The book was named to ''

The Globe and Mail ''The Globe and Mail'' is a Canadian newspaper printed in five cities in western and central Canada. With a weekly readership of approximately 2 million in 2015, it is Canada's most widely read newspaper on weekdays and Saturdays, although it ...

'' top 100 for 2006. Griffin is married to noted jewellery designer Krystyne Griffin and has four children and eight grandchildren. He was appointed an officer 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 cen ...

on December 30, 2012.

Notes

External links

Griffin Poetry Prize Web sitePoetry In Voice / Les voix de la poésie Web sitePublishers page on ''My Heart is Africa'''The big guys keep being surprised by us' (article about House of Anansi Press in The Globe and Mail, October, 2007)Al Purdy - A Permanent Tribute - Statue of Canada’s Favourite Poet Unveiled in Queen’s Park
Businesspeople from Ontario Canadian university and college chancellors Canadian philanthropists 1938 births Living people Place of birth missing (living people) University of Puget Sound alumni Canadian chairpersons of corporations Canadian corporate directors Officers of the Order of Canada {{Canada-business-bio-stub, Griffin, Scott