The Flame of Hope is an eternal flame that was lit before a crowd of 4,000 spectators by Her Majesty Queen Mother Elizabeth on July 7, 1989 as a tribute to Dr. Frederick Grant Banting and all the people who lost their lives to diabetes. It serves as a reminder that insulin manages diabetes but does not cure it, and ultimately signifies hope that a cure will soon be found. The flame will continue to burn until a cure for diabetes is developed. Once a cure is found, the flame will be extinguished by the researchers who discover it.
The Flame of Hope is burning in Sir Frederick Banting Square in London Ontario, Canada next to the Banting House National Historic Site.
Banting House is known as the Birthplace of Insulin. It is located at 442 Adelaide Street North in London, Ontario, Canada. It is the house where Sir Frederick Banting woke up at 2 a.m. on October 31, 1920 with the idea that led to the discovery of insulin.
Since 1984, the house has housed a museum dedicated to Banting’s discovery and life, as well as the district branch of the Canadian Diabetes Association ( since 2017, Canadian Diabetes). For many people affected by diabetes, the house is an emotional reminder of Banting’s scientific contributions that saved their lives or the lives of their loved ones.
The Flame Monument was designed by Robert Geard. It is a 15-ton, tapering monument made of granite onyx with a height of 2.1 meters. The monument is resistant to acid and rain.
In 1989, the Flame of Hope was vandalized by a twenty-six-year-old man who admitted to smothering the flame with his jacket, eventually shattering the ignition switches and burner, causing $1,760 in damage. The Queen Mother sent a letter expressing regret and encouraging the rekindling of the Flame. The man responsible was sentenced to perform community service, as well as pay the cost of repairing the monument. In October 1996, Judge JM Seneshen rededicated the Flame of Hope. The Queen Mother sent personal greetings expressing her hope that a cure for diabetes would be quickly invented.
