Ralph Spence

David Ralph Spence is a Canadian retired Anglican bishop.

Life and vocation Spence was born on 10 March 1942 in Hamilton, Ontario. He received a B.A. degree from McMaster University, Hamilton in 1964 and a L.Th. from Wycliffe College, Toronto in 1968. He was ordained a deacon on 5 May 1968 and then a priest on 1 December 1968 by Bishop Walter Bagnall. Spence was an assistant curate at St. George’s Guelph (1968-1970) and then the rector of St. Bartholomew's Hamilton (1970 -1974). After further incumbencies at St. John's Thorold (1975-1982) and St. Luke’s Burlington (1982-1997) he became the Archdeacon of Trafalgar in 1992 until his consecration to the episcopate as Bishop of Niagara on 21 September 1997 at Christ's Church Cathedral. He was installed at that same cathedral as the tenth Bishop of Niagara on 11 January 1998 and he retired on 29 February 2008.

In 2008, Spence became the Chancellor of Renison University College, Waterloo, serving until 2016.

Heraldry and vexillology

Since his youth, Spence has had a passion for flags (or vexillology) and heraldry. He has designed numerous personal coats of arms (including his own ), coats of arms for churches in the Diocese of Niagara as well as for communities and organizations in Ontario. In 1981, he became a Fellow of the Royal Heraldry Society of Canada. For his contributions to Canadian heraldry, in 2006 he was appointed Herald Extraordinary with the Canadian Heraldic Authority and in 2007 he was given the title "Albion Herald Extraordinary" by the Governor General of Canada.

An avid collector of flags, Spence's collection once sat at approximately 3000 items, including a variety of historical Canadian flags as well as flags gifted to him by Queen Elizabeth II. The City of St. Catharines, Ontario Redeemer University College The Royal Canadian Military Institute The Town of Niagara-on-the-Lake Bishop Michael Bird Renison University College