BROCKVILLE, Ontario In a special, private ceremony last Thursday evening in the Senate Chamber on Parliament Hill in Ottawa, Terence O’Reilly, president and CEO of Pricedex Software Inc., and member of the Executive Board of the Automotive Aftermarket Foundation, was awarded Canada’s Queen Elizabeth II Diamond Jubilee Medal by command of the Queen, through his Excellency, the Right Honourable David Johnston, Governor General of Canada. O’Reilly was honored in recognition of his contributions to Canada in Immigration Policy and Settlement, and Community Economic Development.
Over the past quarter-century, O’Reilly, 67, has contributed significantly to ensuring strength and sustainability in community and regional economic development, and has been a leader and contributor to policy setting to attract and assist new immigrants to Canada, from his positions in both the public and the private sector.
O’Reilly, a 1992 recipient of the Canada 125 Medal for his extensive contributions to Canada in youth sport and community development, commenced his public service in the 1980s, when he was called to Parliament Hill to become special adviser to the (then) Minister of Regional Economic Expansion, and later, Minister of External Relations. In his five years in Ottawa, he was instrumental in a number of major regional development initiatives across Canada, and especially in Eastern Ontario. He continued his public service as director of economic development for the United Counties of Stormont, Dundas and Glengarry in southeastern Ontario, where he was charged with establishing the first rural economic development and retention strategy for that region. There, he forged alliances with neighboring Eastern Ontario municipalities, and helped strengthen the voice for Eastern Ontario in both provincial and federal levels. He also served as the first-ever Canadian
director on the board of New York State’s ‘Seaway Trail’ organization, forging new alliances and creating new international opportunities for regional tourism amongst municipalities bordering both shores of the St. Lawrence River.
In 1994, he returned to the private sector, but remained active on a number of boards and think-tanks, including the Chairman of the Mayor’s Task Force Vision 2020 (Brockville), the Board of Governors (St. Lawrence College), and has been a special speaker and contributor to the Internationally Educated Professionals (IEP) Conference and the Conference Board of Canada, on matters relating to immigration, immigrant settlement and regional economic development in rural Canada. O’Reilly also serves on the board of the Aftermarket Foundation, a philanthropic organization focused at providing financial and other assistance to those within the automotive aftermarket who have fallen on hard times.
O’Reilly’s company, Pricedex Software Inc., was awarded the 2010 Southeastern Ontario Diversity Employers’ Award for its progressive work in hiring and assisting the relocation and settlement of new Canadians at its corporate headquarters in Brockville, Ontario.
Terry said he was delighted and proud of the medal award. “I have always had a strong patriotic bond with my country and I have always been proud, in my travels around the globe, to identify myself as a Canadian. Although there are always exceptions, we are a very civilized and respected society and most Canadians are wonderful people of whom I am also very proud. So with that as the backdrop, I can’t imagine what could be more rewarding and fulfilling than to be recognized by your country. So I am grateful, proud and honored to be recognized in this way,” he said.