Chretien receives Order of Merit from the Queen at Buckingham Palace

Former prime minister Jean Chretien has been awarded the Order of Merit by the Queen in a ceremony at Buckingham Palace.

Seventy-five-year-old Chretien is only the fourth Canadian to be presented with the order. The others were neurosurgeon Wilder Penfield and former prime ministers William Lyon Mackenzie King and Lester B. Pearson.

The award, called a "gift from the sovereign," is given to those who show "exceptional distinction" in the arts, learning, sciences and public service.

Source: 680 News

Chrétien receives rare honour from Queen

Queen Elizabeth has appointed Jean Chrétien to the exclusive Order of Merit.

The honour is restricted to 24 living members and few foreigners. It puts Chrétien's name alongside such esteemed figures as Albert Schweitzer, Mother Teresa and Nelson Mandela.

Chrétien said he was surprised, honoured and grateful.

"What can I say?" he told The Canadian Press today. "I take it as a great compliment and I accept it with some humility.

"I did my job as best I could and Her Majesty was gracious enough to recognize that."

Chrétien, 75, is just the third Canadian named to the order, after former prime ministers MacKenzie King, at 21 years the longest-serving prime minister in the Commonwealth, and Lester Pearson, a Nobel laureate who brought universal health care, the flag and a federal pension plan to Canada.  Full Story from Thestar.com