Ron Schlegel

Ron Schlegel is a highly accomplished entrepreneur, academic and philanthropist who has been an innovator in many ventures.

Schlegel’s business interests include agriculture, land development, seniors’ health care, and most recently, mental health and addictions through the acquisition of Homewood Health Centre. He also owns Homewood Human Solutions, with headquarters in Vancouver, providing employee assistance programs to major corporations across the country. He has developed Williamsburg Town Centre in southwest Kitchener using neo-traditional planning design principles.

For many years Schlegel served in an academic role as a professor in the Faculty of Applied Health Sciences at the University of Waterloo. He played a leadership role in developing the Department of Health Sciences and Gerontology and was a co-founder of the Centre for Applied Health Research. He has developed numerous retirement and nursing homes providing a continuum-of-care for thousands of seniors across Ontario.

In cooperation with the University of Waterloo and Conestoga College, Schlegel provided funding and leadership for the development of the innovative Schlegel – UW Research Institute for Aging. Schlegel has supported numerous other charitable causes both locally and internationally.

Schlegel has received many awards and honorary degrees in recognition of his wide ranging accomplishments and generosity in many fields. In 2010 he was inducted into the Waterloo Region Entrepreneurs Hall of Fame. In 2012 he was awarded The Record’s Barnraiser Award in recognition of his outstanding achievements and service to our community. For his commitment to helping others and building a stronger Canada, in 2012 Schlegel was a Recipient of the Queen Elizabeth II Diamond Jubilee Medal and was named an Officer of the Order of Canada.