Helen Vari is an eminent Canadian philanthropist and the President of the George and Helen Vari Foundation. Throughout her life, she has supported student scholarships, academic research and the preservation of cultural heritage. Mrs. Vari was educated in both Austria and Hungary. She came to Canada, where she married her late husband The Honourable George W. Vari. Mr. Vari established the engineering and construction company SEFRI Construction International. She has been a lifelong supporter of education, committed to ensuring students of all abilities and backgrounds have opportunities to study. The George and Helen Vari Foundation was created in 1984 to promote education in Canada and cultural and educational exchange, and it has provided philanthropic gifts to a number of institutions. Mrs. Vari is also a primary financial contributor through the Vimy Foundation to the construction of the new Visitor Education Centre at the Canadian National Vimy Memorial in France. She has been a member of many organizations, including the Vimy Foundation; The Canada Council for the Arts, Alliance Francaise de Toronto, Maison des étudiants Canadiens at the University of Paris, the Ontario Heritage Foundation, and the Leukemia Research Foundation of Canada, among many others. She is the Founding President of the World Monuments Fund in France, a Foundation dedicated to the preservation of cultural heritage worldwide. Mrs. Vari’s contributions have been widely recognized. She is a member of the Order of Canada. She has received prestigious honours, including: Commander, Ordre National de la Légion d’Honneur (France), Dame Commander of Merit of the Order of Saint-John of Jerusalem, Knights of Malta; Queen Elizabeth II 50th Anniversary Golden Jubilee and 60th Anniversary Diamond Jubilee Medals; Officier du Mérite National (France); and honorary doctorates from York University, Ryerson University, Victoria University, University of Toronto, and the University of Ontario Institute and Technology.
