St. Francis Xavier University will once again host its National Dinner in Toronto. This pre-eminent event, now in its third year, takes place Thursday, May 20th, 2010 in downtown Toronto at the historic Carlu. It is a not-to-be missed national Canadian event that the National Post has hailed as “one of the major business fêtes of the year.”

This year’s event again promises to be a memorable evening.

The Honourable Frank McKenna, recently named Toronto’s most influential person by Toronto Life magazine, will host the 2010 National Dinner, while Sergio Marchionne, the new CEO of Chrysler, and the leader who turned Fiat into profitability, will deliver the keynote address.

At the last National Dinner (see more on the event below), a sold-out crowd of 600 guests, including a veritable who’s who of Canadian business, government and industry leaders, joined with StFX in Toronto to celebrate Canadian leadership and the university.

The Hon. Frank McKenna O.C.

In every facet of his career, in public life, Canadian diplomacy, and in business, the Hon. Frank McKenna ranks among Canada’s leaders. Mr. McKenna, a StFX graduate, is Deputy Chair of TD Bank Financial Group, and has served as Premier of New Brunswick and Canadian Ambassador to the United States. In November 2009, he was awarded the rank of Officer in the Order of Canada, the country’s highest honour for lifetime achievement.

Sergio Marchionne

Leader is a word that often comes up in describing Sergio Marchionne, the Chief Executive Officer of both Chrysler Group LLC and Fiat S.p.A. In 2009 he was named Industry Leader of the Year and Europe CEO All-Star by Automotive News. “Over the past year, Marchionne has been the most vocal, visible and successful agent of change inside the automotive industry…His audacity and pedal-to-the-metal approach to reshaping the industry has made him Automotive News' Industry Leader of the Year for 2009,” the publication said. Mr. Marchionne, who was raised in Canada and completed his undergraduate and law degrees here, is a recipient of several honorary degrees and holds the honour of Cavaliere del Lavoro.

Seamus O'Regan

Seamus O'Regan, co-host of CTV's CANADA AM and host of ARTS & MINDS and THE O'REGAN FILES on Bravo will be the Master of Ceremonies for this year's StFX National Dinner. Seamus has degrees from StFX and a Masters from Cambridge, and did graduate work at University College, Dublin, and INSEAD near Paris. Seamus has received numerous honours including Maclean's magazine's 100 "Young Canadians to Watch" and Canada’s Top 40 Under 40 list. O'Regan was an integral part of Olympic Morning's broadcast team for the 2010 Vancouver Winter Olympic Games. Seamus serves on the boards of the World Wildlife Fund-Canada, as a Honourary Advisor to Shallaway - Newfoundland and Labrador Youth in Chorus - and the Coady International Institute of St. Francis Xavier University.