Ron Southern
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Ronald D. Southern, CC, CBE, LL.D (born c. 1930) is a Canadian businessman. He is chairman of Calgary-based ATCO Ltd. and is also the founder of the Spruce Meadows equestrian center.
In 1947, Southern and his father each invested $2,000 in the original Alberta Trailer Hire Co., which later became ATCO. Southern received a bachelor of science degree from the University of Alberta in 1953 and began to work full time for the company. As of 2007, he remains Chairman and majority shareholder of ATCO. He passed the title of Chief Executive Officer to his daughter, Nancy Southern, in January 2000.
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[edit] Spruce Meadows
Southern and his wife Margaret Southern are the founders co-chairs of Spruce Meadows. Opened in 1976, it was built for their daughters who had long been involved with competitiive equestrian riding. The current President and Chief Executive Officer of Spruce Meadows is Linda Southern-Heathcott.
[edit] Other affiliations
Southern has served as a director of several corporations including Lafarge, Southam Inc., Chrysler Corporation of Canada, Imasco, Canadian Airlines, Fletcher Challenge, Royal & SunAlliance and Canadian Pacific. He is a director of Akita Drilling Ltd. and Chairman of Sentgraf Enterprises Ltd. Southern is also a member of the Trilateral Commission. In September 2006, Ron Southern was appointed Officer of Orange Nassau by Her Majesty Queen Beatrix of The Netherlands.
[edit] Honours and awards
Southern received Canada's highest civilian honor when he was inducted as a Member of the Order of Canada in 1986. He was inducted as a Member of the Order of the British Empire in 1990, in recognition for his promotion of Anglo-Canadian relations in the fields of commerce, culture and sport. In June 1995, he was promoted to the level of Commander of the Order of the British Empire (CBE). In August 2003, Southern was made an Officer of the Order of Canada and was promoted to Companion in 2006[1].
He has received honorary doctoral degrees from the University of Calgary (1976)and the University of Alberta (1991). In 1990, Southern received the International Distinguished Entrepreneur Award, presented by the University of Manitoba through the Faculty of Management and in 1995 Southern was inducted into the Canadian Business Hall of Fame. In 1996, Southern was named Financial Post CEO of the Year. He and his wife were inducted into Canada's Sports Hall of Fame in 2006.
