War II, then operated a dry cleaning business for 19 years in Rivers, Manitoba. He was extensively involved in community service groups, was a town councilor from 1957 to 1965, and represented the Hamiota electoral district as a Manitoba Liberal Party member from 1966 to 1969. Dawson wanted to use the 1967 Pan American Games and the Canadian Centennial events to boost recreation in Manitoba and improve local infrastructure. He sought to increase subsidies for rural students, to employ students locally and stop human capital flight. He argued that medicare laws in Manitoba discriminated against rural citizens, and wanted to reduce medical costs and increase their services. He also supported the development of local resources to relieve rural industries and businesses from tax burden. Dawson served as a director for Sport Canada and the secretary of the Canada Games council from 1970 to 1987. He oversaw the Canada Fitness Award Program and supported the Junior Olympics program. He served as chairman of the 1975 World Junior Ice Hockey Championships hosted in Winnipeg which coincided with the Manitoba Centennial celebrations. He aimed to increase the level of competition in women's sport across the country, and implemented testing for doping in sport in the Canada Games in 1984. Dawson summarized his career by stating, "I just seem to be the kind of person who gets involved in controversy, be it in hockey or politics", and the Winnipeg Free Press concurred that he "had controversy as his constant companion". He was named Western Manitoba Sportsman of the Year by the Brandon Sun in 1964, and was posthumously inducted into the Manitoba Hockey Hall of Fame in 1995. Early life and community involvement Earl Phillip Dawson was born on December 17, 1925, in Saint Boniface, Winnipeg. He was the son of Thomas and Irene Dawson, and was educated at . He contracted polio at age 12 which prevented him from playing ice hockey. Dawson became a reserve officer in the Royal Canadian Air Force (RCAF), and served with both the RCAF and the Canadian Army during World War II. He married Madeline O'Callaghan on June 29, 1949, with whom he had four sons and one daughter. Dawson moved to Rivers, Manitoba in 1951, where he operated a dry cleaning business for 19 years. He was a town councilor for Rivers from 1957 to 1965, and was president of the local chamber of commerce. He