Arbour, Fox among 4 honoured for making a difference

Four more living Canadians have been honoured on stamps, this time honouring “difference-makers,” to be issued May 22. The stamps depict Rick Hansen, Michael J. Fox, Sheila Watt-Cloutier, and Louise Arbour. The close-up portraits shown on the stamps were created by Paprika Design using small dots. Hansen, who became famous for his Man in Motion World Tour, later established the Rick Hansen Foundation. Fox has committed his life to campaigning for increased research into Parkinson’s disease. Watts-Cloutier is a champion of aboriginal and human rights. Arbour was an International Criminal Tribunals prosecutor for war crimes that took place in Rwanda and the former Yugoslavia, and a former justice of the Supreme Court of Canada.

As with other living Canadians honoured on stamps, all four are members of the Order of Canada. Each of the stamps will be sold in booklets of 10, and there will be a souvenir sheet with all four stamps. Lowe-Martin printed the stamps on Tullis Russell paper with four-side tagging. The booklets are self-adhesive with simulated perforations, while the souvenir sheets are water activated with 13-plus perforations. There will be four million Hansen stamps, three million Fox stamps, and two million each of the Watt-Cloutier and Arbour stamps. A total of 225,000 souvenir sheets will be produced. The official first-day cover (OFDC) has an Ottawa cancel.

War of 1812 joint issue with Guernsey
Two Canadian heroes of the War of 1812 will be commemorated on a joint issue due for a June 15 release. A permanent-rate Canadian stamp depicts Maj.-Gen. Isaac Brock, a native of the Channel Island of Guernsey and military commander and administrator of Upper Canada. He joined the British army at the age of 15. With the help of Chief Tecumseh, who is shown on the other permanent-rate stamp, he captured Detroit in the early days of the war. Brock died shortly after at the Battle of Queenston Heights. Tecumseh, a member of the Shawnee tribe, was a visionary who dreamed for a confederacy of first nations that would oppose United States expansion. In 1813 he was killed at the Battle of the Thames.

The Canadian stamps, designed by Susan Scott, will be issued in panes of 16, and a se-tenant pair of the two stamps will appear on the OFDC. Lowe-Martin will print 1.5 million stamps using seven-colour lithography and Tullis Russell paper with three-side tagging and 13-plus perforations. The OFDC has a Tecumseh, Ont., cancel. Identical designs will appear on a pair of stamps issued by Guernsey Post. There will also be a joint OFDC with all four stamps. The joint OFDC is cancelled in Tecumseh and Guernsey.

Red River settlement marked
The Red River Settlement of Thomas Douglas, fifth Earl of Selkirk, is the subject of a permanent-rate stamp released on May 3. Selkirk, originally not expected to inherit the family title and fortune, trained as a lawyer. At that time he was touched by the sight of dispossessed Scots and determined to settle them in Canada. When he became Lord Selkirk, he had the wealth to achieve his aims and originally bought land for settlers in Prince Edward Island and Glengarry, Ont. He later decided to acquire land in Western Canada then known as Rupert’s Land, which at the time was property of the Hudson’s Bay Company.

Unable to purchase land from the company, he and a friend simply purchased enough shares to take control of the firm, and then arranged for a tract of land in the Red River region of what was then called Assiniboia, the site of present-day Winnipeg. As an added bonus, the new settlement would disrupt trade by HBC competitor North West Company. In 1811, the first settlers arrived and built Fort Douglas. All of this was done without any regard to an existing colony of Métis, who traded with the competing firm and supplied it with pemmican. Meanwhile, Selkirk’s colony got off to a poor start and things got worse, eventually culminating in the Battle of Seven Oaks. Selkirk’s intervention resulted in years of legal action, almost bankrupting him.

Problems were not totally resolved until the 1821 merger of the rival firms. The story’s legacy lives on in Winnipeg through Selkirk Avenue and Point Douglas, the site where Fort Douglas stood. The stamp, designed by Susan Mavor of Metaform, shows Selkirk in the foreground with abstract representations of settlers, Métis, trappers and natives, the various players in the drama. Canadian Bank Note printed 1.2 million stamps on Tullis Russell paper in panes of 16. The water-activated stamps have four-side tagging and were printed in five-colour lithography with 13-plus perforations. The official first-day cover has a Winnipeg cancel in the form of a Red River boat.

Stamps marks Stampede centenary
The 100th anniversary of the Calgary Stampede is the subject of two stamps to be issued May 17: a permanent-rate domestic stamp and a $1.05 United States rate. The domestic stamp features a horse and saddle, with the stampede logo on the saddle blanket. The United States stamp features the event’s limited-edition silver and gold belt-buckle. Both stamps will be issued in booklets of 10. Canada Post will also issue a souvenir sheet with both stamps, a gutter product with four U.S.-rate and six domestic-rate stamps and two prepaid postcards.

The stamps were designed by Xerxes Irani. Lowe-Martin will print the stamps on Tullis Russell Paper with four-side tagging. There will be four million domestic and 2.25 million United State stamps printed in booklet format, with simulated perforations and pressure-sensitive adhesive. The domestic stamps will be printed in four-colour lithography, while the U.S. stamp has five-colour lithography and spot varnish. The stamps will have augmented reality, based on Canada Post’s Stamp Alive! app. Lowe-Martin will produce 325,000 souvenir sheets and 3,500 gutter products. The souvenir sheets have PVA adhesive and 13-plus perforations. The OFDC has a souvenir sheet and a Calgary cancel.

Hey, it’s Franklin!
The first four permanent-rate stamps in a new series to commemorate Canadian children’s literature will feature Franklin the Turtle. The series was born in 1986. It is written by Paulette Bourgeois and illustrated by Brenda Clark. Since the first book was published, more than 65 million books have been sold in 30 languages. Bourgeois said she was delighted by the stamp issue, partly because her father was a stamp collector. The four stamps, to be issued May 11, all show scenes from Franklin books, and will be issued in booklets of four. Lowe-Martin will print 7.2 million self-adhesive stamps in booklet form. A further 300,000 stamps will be printed in souvenir sheets with water-activated adhesive.

Both versions will be printed on Tullis Russell paper and have four-side tagging. The sheets will have 13-plus perforations, while the booklets will have simulated perforations. The souvenir sheet will have an augmented reality maze game on the back, connected to Canada Post’s app. The stamps were created by q30 design inc., in collaboration with Clark. The official first-day cover will have a souvenir sheet and a Toronto cancel. Canada Post is also issuing a set for prepaid postcards using the images for the stamps, and a package of children’s party invitations. Anick Losier of Canada Post confirmed that the new series does not have a regular schedule, but will be issued occasionally.

Stamp to mark London Games
Finally, a permanent-rate stamp will be issued June 27 for the 2012 Summer Olympic Games, being held in London, England. Designed by Mike Savage and Kosta Tsetsekas, of Signals Design, the stamp shows a double-scull boat. Metallic ink is used to enhance the ripples in the water. Lowe-Martin will print four million stamps in booklets of 10 on Tullis Russell paper with four-side tagging. The self-adhesive stamps will have simulated perforations and are printed using seven colours and spot varnish. The OFDC will have a Victoria, B.C., cancel.

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