Reuben Conrad Baetz (May 9, 1923 – October 28, 1996) 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 ...

politician. He served in the Legislative Assembly of Ontario from 1977 to 1987, and was a cabinet minister in the governments of

Bill Davis William Grenville Davis, (July 30, 1929 – August 8, 2021) was a Canadian politician who served as the 18th premier of Ontario from 1971 to 1985. Davis was first elected as the member of provincial Parliament for Peel in the 1959 provincial ...

and

Frank Miller Frank Miller (born January 27, 1957) is an American comic book writer, penciller and inker, novelist, screenwriter, film director, and producer known for his comic book stories and graphic novels such as his run on ''Daredevil'' and subsequen ...

. Baetz was a member of the Progressive Conservative Party.

Background

Baetz was born in

Chesley, Ontario Chesley (originally Sconeville) is a community in Bruce County, Ontario, Canada, located within the municipality of Arran–Elderslie. The name Sconeville was replaced in 1868 to mark the career of Solomon Yeomans Chesley, Solomon Chesley, an of ...

. His father was a

Lutheran Lutheranism is one of the largest branches of Protestantism, identifying primarily with the theology of Martin Luther, the 16th-century German monk and Protestant Reformers, reformer whose efforts to reform the theology and practice of the Cathol ...

minister, and Baetz remained a Lutheran throughout his life. He was educated at

Wilfrid Laurier University Wilfrid Laurier University (commonly referred to as WLU or simply Laurier) is a public university in Ontario, Canada, with campuses in Waterloo, Brantford and Milton. The newer Brantford and Milton campuses are not considered satellite campus ...

(then Waterloo Lutheran Seminary, affiliated with the

University of Western Ontario The University of Western Ontario (UWO), also known as Western University or Western, is a public research university in London, Ontario, Canada. The main campus is located on of land, surrounded by residential neighbourhoods and the Thames Ri ...

Columbia University Columbia University (also known as Columbia, and officially as Columbia University in the City of New York) is a private research university in New York City. Established in 1754 as King's College on the grounds of Trinity Church in Manha ...

New York New York most commonly refers to: * New York City, the most populous city in the United States, located in the state of New York * New York (state), a state in the northeastern United States New York may also refer to: Film and television * '' ...

, and 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 institu ...

. He became a social worker and assisted in the reconstruction of

Germany Germany, officially the Federal Republic of Germany (FRG),, is a country in Central Europe. It is the most populous member state of the European Union. Germany lies between the Baltic and North Sea to the north and the Alps to the sou ...

and

Hungary Hungary ( hu, Magyarország ) is a landlocked country in Central Europe. Spanning of the Carpathian Basin, it is bordered by Slovakia to the north, Ukraine to the northeast, Romania to the east and southeast, Serbia to the south, Croa ...

after

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 World War II by country, vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great power ...

. Before entering provincial politics, he was a member of the Ontario Economic Council, the Canada Manpower and Immigration Council and the Canadian Association of Social Workers. He led the Canadian Council of Social Development from 1963 to 1977.

Politics

He was elected to the Ontario legislature in the 1977 provincial election, defeating Liberal Bill Roberts by 5,373 votes in

Ottawa West Ottawa West was a federal and provincial electoral district in Ontario, Canada, that was represented in the House of Commons of Canada from 1935 to 1997 and in the Legislative Assembly of Ontario from 1908 to 1926 and from 1955 to 1999. It cover ...

. He entered Bill Davis's cabinet on January 21, 1978 as

Minister of Energy An energy minister is a position in many governments responsible for energy production and regulation, developing governmental energy policy, scientific research, and natural resources conservation. In some countries, environmental responsibilitie ...

, and was named Minister of Culture and Recreation on August 18, 1978. Baetz was easily re-elected in the 1981 election, and was named as Minister of Tourism and Recreation on February 13, 1982. He supported

Roy McMurtry Roy is a masculine given name and a family surname with varied origin. In Anglo-Norman England, the name derived from the Norman ''roy'', meaning "king", while its Old French cognate, ''rey'' or ''roy'' (modern ''roi''), likewise gave rise t ...

to succeed Davis as party leader in January 1985. When Frank Miller replaced Davis a

premier of Ontario The premier of Ontario (french: premier ministre de l'Ontario) is the head of government of Ontario. Under the Westminster system, the premier governs with the confidence of a majority the elected Legislative Assembly; as such, the premier typ ...

on February 8, 1985, he named Baetz as Provincial Secretary for Justice. He was again re-elected in the 1985 election, defeating Liberal candidate

Alex Cullen Alexander Shaun Cullen is a politician in Ontario, Canada. He is a former Member of Provincial Parliament (MPP) in the Legislative Assembly of Ontario and a former member of Ottawa City Council, representing the Bay Ward in Ottawa's west end. ...

by 2,948 votes. At the provincial level, Miller's Conservatives were reduced to a fragile minority government in the 1985 election. Baetz was appointed as

Minister of Intergovernmental Affairs The minister of Intergovernmental Affairs, Infrastructure and Communities (french: Ministre des Affaires intergouvernementales) is the Minister of the Crown in the Canadian Cabinet who is responsible for the federal government's relations wit ...

on May 17, 1985, but accomplished little in this portfolio before the Conservatives were defeated in the house in June 1985. In opposition, he served as his party's critic for Intergovernmental Affairs, Child Care and Social Policy. He did not seek re-election in 1987.

Cabinet positions

Later life

Baetz died on October 28, 1996. The Ontario legislative paid tribute to Baetz on November 4, 1996. The members who spoke remembered him as having a dignified, gentlemanly presence in the assembly.

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Baetz, Reuben 1923 births 1996 deaths Canadian Lutherans Columbia University alumni People from Bruce County Politicians from Ottawa Progressive Conservative Party of Ontario MPPs University of Toronto alumni University of Western Ontario alumni Wilfrid Laurier University alumni 20th-century Lutherans