Lieutenant Governor’s statement on the passing of the Honourable Hilary Weston

Toronto, August 3, 2025. The Honourable Edith Dumont, Lieutenant Governor of Ontario, has released the following statement on the death of the Honourable Hilary M. Weston, 26th Lieutenant Governor of Ontario:

I am deeply saddened to learn of the passing of the Hon. Hilary M. Weston. On behalf of the people of Ontario, I send my condolences to her children Alannah and Galen, and to her extended family and loved ones.

Hilary Weston was a Lieutenant Governor who sought to highlight the exceptional compassion of Ontarians from all walks of life. One of her most notable legacy achievements was the creation of the Lieutenant Governor’s Community Volunteer Awards, which honour the otherwise unsung heroes dedicated to serving their communities.

The first Lieutenant Governor of the new millennium, Mrs. Weston continually dedicated herself to finding new ways of making the role more contemporary, more accessible, and more relevant to citizens of Ontario. This included marking major holidays and celebrations in communities across the province.

A long-time patron of the arts and culture, she initiated a series of exhibitions of contemporary Ontario art in the Lieutenant Governor’s Suite. In the years following the end of her tenure as Lieutenant Governor, Mrs. Weston spearheaded the most successful fundraising campaign in Canadian cultural history, which raised more than $250 million for the Royal Ontario Museum.

Mrs. Weston made a commitment to focus on celebrating volunteers, youth, and women. From 1997 to 2002, she visited many of the women’s shelters in the province, and many hospices for people in palliative care across Ontario. Her dedication to social issues continued well beyond her term in office; Mrs. Weston maintained a relationship with organizations she had visited as Lieutenant Governor, such as Abbeyfield House Society, the Hospice Association of Ontario and the Yonge Street Mission.

Throughout her journey, Mrs. Weston was regularly inspired by the generosity of spirit of everyday Ontarians and sought to foster that shared sense of humanity far and wide, in every one of her engagements, as the Crown’s representative in Ontario. Her legacy will remain alive in our collective memory, imbued with deep appreciation and gratitude.