Beryl Ivey, an iconic philanthropist who for decades supported education, health care and the arts across Ontario and beyond, died on Christmas day at the age of 82.
Ms. Ivey suffered a heart attack Sunday and was hospitalized in Toronto.
She died there Christmas morning, three days shy of her 83rd birthday.
Ms. Ivey's son Richard said that his mother was in "vintage form" right up until her death.
As news of the death slowly spread, praise poured in for Ms. Ivey, who, along with her husband, donated an estimated $150-million to various causes through the Ivey Foundation.
"This city and province and country has lost a great Canadian," said Tony Dagnone, former chief executive of the London Health Sciences Centre.
At the University of Western Ontario, whose business school now bears the Ivey name, the effects of her generosity cannot be overstated, UWO president Paul Davenport said.
A private funeral will take place in London on Friday and a memorial will be held at a later date.
Born Beryl Nurse in 1924 in Chatham, Ontario, she was a celebrated track star when she arrived at UWO in 1943.
She married Dick Ivey, whom she met two months into her first year at UWO.
Dick's father, Richard G. Ivey, incorporated the Ivey Foundation in 1947.
Beryl, however, is credited with the businesslike approach to philanthropy the family adopted in the 1970s.
In June, she was named to the Order of Canada.
Her friend Bill Brady, who called Ms. Ivey "a remarkable force" - said she was "no pushover" when it came to cash.
"You had to make a strong case for financial support.
You had to prove it was worthwhile. I can't think of another philanthropic family who did the kind of research they did."
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