Fredrik Stefan Eaton, (June 26, 1938 – February 20, 2021) was a Canadian businessman and philanthropist who was a member of the prominent

Eaton family The Eaton family is a Canadian family of Scottish-Irish Methodist origin. Established in Toronto, the family dynasty began in 1869 when Timothy Eaton (1834–1907) founded Eaton's, which became a national chain of department stores. At its heig ...

. He was the great-grandson of

Eaton's The T. Eaton Company Limited, later known as Eaton's, was a Canadian department store chain that was once the largest in the country. It was founded in 1869 in Toronto by Timothy Eaton, an immigrant from what is now Northern Ireland. Eaton's g ...

department store founder

Timothy Eaton Timothy Eaton (March 1834 – 31 January 1907) was a Northern Irish-Canadian businessman who founded the Eaton's department store, one of the most important retail businesses in Canada's history. Early life and family He was born in Ballymena, ...

Life and career

He was born in

Toronto Toronto ( , locally pronounced or ) is the List of the largest municipalities in Canada by population, most populous city in Canada. It is the capital city of the Provinces and territories of Canada, Canadian province of Ontario. With a p ...

John David Eaton John David Eaton (4 October 1909 – 4 August 1973) was a Canadian businessman and a member of the Eaton family (Toronto), Eaton family. From 1942–1969, he was president of Eaton's, the department store chain his grandfather, Timothy Eaton, foun ...

and his wife, Signy Hildur Stefansson, and he was raised in the Forest Hill area. His mother was of Icelandic descent. He had three brothers –

John Craig Eaton Sir John Craig Eaton (April 28, 1876 – March 30, 1922) was a Canadian businessman and a member of the prominent Eaton family. Life and career He was born in Toronto, Ontario, the youngest son of department store magnate Timothy Eaton and hi ...

, Thor Edgar Eaton and George Ross Eaton. In 1962, Eaton received a Bachelor of Arts degree from the

University of New Brunswick The University of New Brunswick (UNB) is a public university with two primary campuses in Fredericton and Saint John, New Brunswick. It is the oldest English language, English-language university in Canada, and among the oldest public universiti ...

and started working as a salesman at Eaton's in

British Columbia British Columbia is the westernmost Provinces and territories of Canada, province of Canada. Situated in the Pacific Northwest between the Pacific Ocean and the Rocky Mountains, the province has a diverse geography, with rugged landscapes that ...

. From 1977 to 1988, he was the chairman, president and CEO of Eaton's. Eaton served as Canadian High Commissioner to the United Kingdom from 1991 to 1994. In 1993, he was appointed Chancellor of the University of New Brunswick and served for two terms of five years. He married Catherine "Nicky" Martin and had two children –

Fredrik D'Arcy Eaton Fredrik or Frederik is a masculine Germanic given name derived from the German name '' Friedrich'' or Friederich, from the Old High German ''fridu'' meaning "peace" and ''rîhhi'' meaning "ruler" or "power". It is the common form of Frederick in No ...

, who lives in Toronto and is head of the ''Catherine and Fredrik Eaton Charitable Foundation'', and Flora Catherine Eaton Coakley, who lives in New York City. Eaton lived with his family in Toronto, and he also had a country estate in

Caledon, Ontario Caledon (; 2021 Canadian census, 2021 population 76,581) is a town (Ontario), town in the Regional Municipality of Peel in the Greater Toronto Area of Ontario, Canada. The name comes from a shortened form of Caledonia, the Roman name for what is ...

, a cottage on

Georgian Bay The Georgian Bay () is a large bay of Lake Huron, in the Laurentia bioregion. It is located entirely within the borders of Ontario, Canada. The main body of the bay lies east of the Bruce Peninsula and Manitoulin Island. To its northwest is t ...

, and a winter home in Florida. He was one of the most public members of the Eaton family, and he attended social events and endowed many institutions philanthropically.

Honours

In 1990, Eaton was made an Officer of the

Order of Canada The Order of Canada () is a Canadian state order, national order and the second-highest Award, honour for merit in the system of orders, decorations, and medals of Canada, after the Order of Merit. To coincide with the Canadian Centennial, ce ...

for having "contributed to many aspects of Canadian life. Through his leadership in a variety of organizations, in fields as diverse as those of business, education, nature, health care and the arts, he continued his family's tradition of exemplary service to the public." In 2001, he was awarded the

Order of Ontario The Order of Ontario is a civilian honour for merit in the Canadian province of Ontario. Instituted in 1986 by Lieutenant Governor of Ontario, Lieutenant Governor Lincoln Alexander, on the Advice (constitutional), advice of the Executive Council ...

for his "contributions in numerous areas including health care and the arts".Order of Ontario
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References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Eaton, Fredrik 1938 births 2021 deaths Fredrik Eaton University of New Brunswick alumni Chancellors by university and college in Canada Officers of the Order of Canada Members of the Order of Ontario High commissioners of Canada to the United Kingdom Businesspeople from Toronto Canadian people of Ulster-Scottish descent Canadian people of Icelandic descent