The president and owner of Killarney Mountain Lodge is one of the top donors listed on the crowdfunding website GiveSendGo in support of the ongoing trucker convoy protest in Ottawa.
Holden Rhodes is a prominent London, Ont., businessman and lawyer. He and his wife Carey donated $25,000 to the effort.
In his words, the money aims to "assist in the movement to restore the freedoms of our family, especially our children, and society at large.
"I specifically included my name and that of my wife because of the cancel culture calling for the shutdown of the GoFundMe campaign," said Holden in an email to CTV News on Feb. 11.
He added that "he is very proud of all the Canadians participating in this extremely peaceful movement to restore our freedoms that are enshrined in the Charter, which have been squashed by governments of all levels over the past two years."
"I also think the hypocrisy of (Ontario Premier) Doug Ford’s decision to obtain such a court order while at the same time indicating he is going to open up the province can’t be overstated."
Rhodes is said to be the largest donor in Ontario.
Some 36,000 Canadian donors -- about 39 per cent -- are listed in a partial leak apparently taken from U.S based platform GiveSendGo and posted online by a website devoted to disseminating leaked data.
Alexander Lambert, CEO and president of Group Health Centre in Sault Ste. Marie, was on that list because of a $50 donation made on Feb. 5.
"I made the donation because I, too, think it's time to end the vaccine mandates and return to personal choice, and the response to the convoy -- the thousands of people lining the highway -- absolutely inspired me," said Lambert.
"And yes, this was a personal donation -- I was tracked down via that hacked list from GiveSendGo."
Some people online are voicing their opinions against the donations, saying in part "I will take my patronage elsewhere" and "while not illegal, it’s a terrible look for someone in that capacity."
Lambert said personally he has received much more support than backlash.
"Including calls from residents throughout the morning expressing appreciation for what I think they saw as a reasonable articulation of their position regarding these mandates," he said.
