Toronto Mayor John Tory won’t speak at Hazel McCallion’s funeral as Mississauga says final goodbye
Published February 13, 2023 at 4:56 pm
Toronto Mayor John Tory will be among many dignitaries attending the state funeral tomorrow morning (Feb. 14) of former Mississauga mayor and Canadian political powerhouse Hazel McCallion, but he won’t be speaking to the gathering as initially planned.
In a startling development late this past Friday evening, Tory told a hastily gathered press conference that he planned to resign his post after it was revealed he had an affair with a Toronto City Hall staffer for a period of time during the COVID-19 pandemic.
The Toronto mayor has yet to officially resign, and will lead City of Toronto budget discussions as planned on Wednesday.
Tory was initially to be one of a number of speakers at McCallion’s state funeral, which takes place Tuesday morning at the Paramount Fine Foods Centre in Mississauga starting at 11 a.m.
However, word from the Toronto mayor’s office is that while Tory will attend McCallion’s funeral, he will not speak to those in attendance.
Tory did, however, visit Mississauga City Hall today (Feb. 13), where Mississauga’s longtime mayor and political icon was lying in state, to pay his respects.
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Dignitaries from across Ontario and beyond, family, friends and scores of Mississauga residents will gather on Tuesday at the Paramount Fine Foods Centre to say their final goodbye to Mississauga’s matriarch.
McCallion, who presided over the city she loved for 36 years, died on Jan. 29 after a month-long battle with pancreatic cancer.
Her funeral falls on the day she would have turned 102.
City of Mississauga officials say a limited number of tickets to McCallion’s funeral are still available to the public free of charge.
Tickets are available online. Those who attend are asked to arrive at the venue one hour ahead of time, at 10 a.m.
Ontario Lieutenant Governor Elizabeth Dowdeswell, Ontario Premier Doug Ford, Ontario Secretary of the Cabinet Michelle DiEmanuele and Mississauga Mayor Bonnie Crombie are among dignitaries who’ll attend McCallion’s funeral.
The woman affectionately known for decades as “Hurricane Hazel” remained active on various boards of directors, including that of the Greater Toronto Airports Authority, right up until she fell ill in December.
In lieu of flowers, the McCallion family has asked that donations be made to Trillium Health Partners Foundation or the Hazel McCallion Charitable Foundation for Arts, Culture and Heritage.
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