Officer of the Order of Canada

• Awarded on: April 6, 2006
• Invested on: February 09, 2007

Greg Powell, an educator and physician, has improved emergency health services for critically ill or injured Canadians. His belief that seconds count in a medical emergency became the impetus for the 1985 launch of an air ambulance service, now known as the Alberta Shock Trauma Air Rescue Society (STARS). Since its inception, STARS, with its fleet of state-of-the-art aircraft, has become a vital link in the "chain of survival" and serves as a model for similar services around the world. A tireless fundraiser, he has recruited hundreds of volunteers and highly qualified medical and aviation crews who have flown more than 13,000 life-saving missions.