Businessman and philanthropist John Buhler dies

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This article was published 22/12/2024 (271 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

The Buhler name is attached to hospital centres, post-secondary spaces and a mammoth agricultural equipment manufacturer. Now, Manitobans are reflecting on the man behind the empire.

John Buhler has died, Winnipeg Mayor Scott Gillingham shared in a statement Sunday.

“I am deeply saddened to hear about the passing of John Buhler, a man whose remarkable contributions and enduring legacy have left a lasting mark on our community,” Gillingham’s statement said.

Buhler first purchased Morden’s Standard Gas Engine Works, which he renamed Farm King Limited, 55 years ago.

He built up the farm equipment business and consolidated it as Buhler Industries in 1994. The company later added tractor manufacturer Versatile to its portfolio.

In 2007, Buhler sold 80 per cent of his business to Russian corporation Combine Factory Rostselmash Ltd. after receiving a $150 million takeover bid. At the time, Buhler Industries counted 10 manufacturing and eight distribution centres across Canada and the United States. It employed more than 800 people.

Three years ago, Buhler sold the rest of his holding company’s shares to Rostselmash for $12.2 million. (Buhler Industries has since been acquired by a Turkish agricultural equipment company.)

“He had made some money in the tractor business, and he shared it,” said Lloyd Axworthy.

The former University of Winnipeg president and federal cabinet minister became friends with Buhler and his wife Bonnie, who were major donors to the post-secondary school.

The Buhlers have been “incredibly broad and open benefactor(s) for all kinds of institutions,” Axworthy noted.

There’s the Buhler Gallery at St. Boniface Hospital, the Buhler Cancer Centre at the Victoria Hospital and the Buhler Reflective Gardens in St. Amant.

The family contributed to the Manitoba Children’s Museum’s welcome centre, a library at Red River College Polytechnic and a 54,000-sq.-ft. expansion of Siloam Mission.

Buhler’s name graces the campus building erected for University of Winnipeg business students. The couple’s donations have also supported inner city pupils, Axworthy said.

“They were very interested in working to help provide that upward support and mobility,” he added.

Axworthy described Buhler as open, hospitable and directly involved in community. He said both John and Bonnie Buhler held a commitment to social good.

“I think (John Buhler’s) passing will be recognized and honoured by a lot of people in the province,” Axworthy said.

He shared condolences for Bonnie Buhler — she and John were a “very close couple.”

Mayor Gillingham considers the Buhlers among Winnipeg’s most generous philanthropists.

“Their contributions have profoundly shaped our city,” he wrote in a statement. “Their kindness and dedication to building a better Winnipeg inspired countless others to give back and make a difference.”

Gillingham noted John Buhler called himself a dreamer in 2011. That year, Buhler received an honorary doctorate from the University of Manitoba; he called himself a dreamer, sharing that he’d dreamed of building tractors.

Buhler also said he wasn’t a scholar. Yet by 2014, he had honorary doctorates from both the University of Manitoba and the University of Winnipeg.

In 2012, he received the Order of Canada. He was inducted into the Manitoba Business Hall of Fame in 2014.

Buhler also held the nickname “capitalist cowboy,” likely received after an early 2000s labour dispute. At the time, the Manitoba Labour Board ruled Buhler Industries acted in bad faith while negotiating a new contract. The company had to pay back wages during a months-long strike.

There was no information available about the cause of death.

Buhler was in his 90s.

The University of Winnipeg’s campus flags will be lowered in Buhler’s honour, spokesman Caleb Zimmerman wrote in a statement.

“He has made a lasting impact on the lives of our students and countless others throughout our community,” Zimmerman wrote, noting the Buhlers have provided “much-needed” scholarships and bursaries.

gabrielle.piche@winnipegfreepress.com