Sonja Ingrid Bata (or Sonja Baťová; ; 8 November 1926 – 20 February 2018) was a Swiss Canadian businesswoman, philanthropist, collector and museum founder, who initially trained as an architect.

Biography

She left her architecture studies after her marriage to Thomas J. Bata of

Bata Shoes The Bata Corporation (known as Bata, and in the Czech Republic and Slovakia, known as Baťa, ) is a multinational footwear, apparel and fashion accessories manufacturer and retailer of Moravian (Czech) origin, headquartered in Lausanne, Switzer ...

and moved to

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 ...

in 1946, befriending those in the architecture community –

Raymond Moriyama Raymond Junichi Moriyama (October 11, 1929 – September 1, 2023) was a Canadian architect. The private practice in Toronto he co-founded with Ted Teshima, Moriyama & Teshima Architects, was renowned for designing many major buildings across ...

designed the Bata Shoe Museum, while John Cresswell Parkin designed the impressive

Don Mills Don Mills is a mixed-use neighbourhood in Toronto, Ontario, Canada. It was developed in the 1950s and 1960s to be a self-supporting "new town" and was at the time located outside Toronto proper in the suburb of North York. Consisting of residenti ...

headquarters of Bata Shoes and the family's country house in Batawa. Though she had earlier envisioned herself to become a great architect, she set her designs on improving the Bata Shoe company. Also in the 1940s, she began collecting shoes and studying their history. In 1979, she endowed the Bata Shoe Museum Foundation. The Bata Shoe Museum, established in 1995, is the world's largest shoe museum, and the core collection is attributed to Bata. She was the museum's chairperson. Bata was also the chair of the National Design Council (1970s). She helped establish the Toronto French School, served as director the

Art Gallery of Ontario The Art Gallery of Ontario (AGO; ) is an art museum in Toronto, Ontario, Canada. Located on Dundas Street, Dundas Street West in the Grange Park (neighbourhood), Grange Park neighbourhood of downtown Toronto, the museum complex takes up of phys ...

, sat on the boards of

Alcan Alcan was a Canadian mining company and aluminum manufacturer. It was founded in 1902 as the Northern Aluminum Company, renamed Aluminum Company of Canada in 1925, and Alcan Aluminum in 1966. It took the name Alcan Incorporated in 2001. During ...

and Canada Trustco (now

TD Canada Trust TD Canada Trust, commonly shortened in marketing to simply TD, is the Canadian commercial banking division of the multinational TD Bank Group. It is the list of banks and credit unions in Canada, second-largest commercial bank in Canada by assets ...

), affiliated with the

World Wildlife Fund The World Wide Fund for Nature (WWF) is a Swiss-based international non-governmental organization founded in 1961 that works in the field of wilderness preservation and the reduction of human impact on the environment. It was formerly named the ...

, and became an Honorary Captain in the RCN and sponsor of HMCS ''Ottawa''. She was appointed an

Officer of the Order of Canada The Order of Canada () is a Canadian national 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 centennial of Canadian Confederation, the ...

in 1983. She died at her home in Toronto on 20 February 2018, outliving her husband for nine years. She was buried alongside him at Mount Pleasant Cemetery.

Personal life

She had four children. Her father-in-law is

Tomáš Baťa Tomáš Baťa () (3 April 1876 – 12 July 1932) was a Czech entrepreneur and founder of the Bata shoe company. His career was cut short when he died in a plane accident due to bad weather. Baťa's half-brother Jan Antonín Baťa took over h ...

, the founder of Bata Shoes.

Awards

* Appointed 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 ...

(OC) in 1983. * She received the 125th Anniversary of the Confederation of Canada Medal in 1992. * She received the Canadian Version of the

Queen Elizabeth II Golden Jubilee Medal The Queen Elizabeth II Golden Jubilee Medal () or the Queen's Golden Jubilee Medal was a commemorative medal created in 2002 to mark the 50th anniversary of Queen Elizabeth II's accession in 1952. The Queen Elizabeth II Golden Jubilee Medal was ...

in 2002. * She received the Canadian Version of the

Queen Elizabeth II Diamond Jubilee Medal The Queen Elizabeth II Diamond Jubilee Medal () or The Queen's Diamond Jubilee Medal was a commemorative medal created in 2012 to mark the 60th anniversary of Queen Elizabeth II's accession in 1952. There are four versions of the medal: one iss ...

in 2012. * She received the Meritorious Service Medal (MSM) in the Military Division on 19 February 2007. * She received the

Canadian Forces' Decoration The Canadian Forces' Decoration (post-nominal letters "CD") is a Canadian award bestowed upon members of the Canadian Armed Forces who have completed twelve years of military service, with certain conditions. By convention, it is also given to t ...

(CD) with 1 Clasp for 24 years service as an

Honorary Captain Junior commissioned officer (JCO) is a group of military ranks which is higher than havildar (non-commissioned officer) and lower than lieutenant (commissioned officer). The term is only used by Nepal, Bangladesh, India, and Pakistan. Senior havil ...

with the

Royal Canadian Navy The Royal Canadian Navy (RCN; , ''MRC'') is the Navy, naval force of Canada. The navy is one of three environmental commands within the Canadian Armed Forces. As of February 2024, the RCN operates 12 s, 12 s, 4 s, 4 s, 8 s, and several auxiliary ...

1989-2013. *Companion of the

Canadian Business Hall of Fame The Canadian Business Hall of Fame celebrates the outstanding achievements of Canada's most distinguished business leaders, past and present. Over 170 Order of the Business Hall of Fame Companions serve as inspiring examples for all young Canadians ...

* Lifetime achievement award, Retail Council of Canada *1995,

Conference Board of Canada The Conference Board of Canada is an independent, non-profit applied-research organization based in Canada. It aims to help Canada's leaders make informed, evidence-based decisions using non-partisan and non-ideological analysis. The organiza ...

References

Bibliography

* * * * * {{DEFAULTSORT:Bata, Sonja I. 1926 births 2018 deaths Bata family Bata Corporation Swiss philanthropists Swiss women philanthropists Swiss women architects Canadian women architects Canadian women business executives Museum founders Businesspeople from Zurich Canadian women philanthropists Canadian people of Swiss descent 20th-century Canadian philanthropists Women founders 20th-century Canadian women philanthropists Burials at Mount Pleasant Cemetery, Toronto