08/15/2026
A New Beginning: The Imperial Court of the Maple Leaf Empire
Greetings Your Most Imperial Majesties, Members of the International Court Council, Reigning Monarchs, Titleholders, and Friends of the Imperial Court System.
In the year that The Imperial Court of Toronto (TICOT) marks its 40th anniversary, it is our privilege to announce the founding of our newest Daughter Court: The Imperial Court of the Maple Leaf Empire, serving Ottawa and the Capital Region.
The idea is not a new one. Nearly twenty years ago, members of our College of Monarchs — among them Empress Candice and Empress Rose — first raised the possibility of a Court in the Capital Region and lent it their support. Attempts followed. None quite made it.
That changes now.
Our Board of Directors, our College of Monarchs Council, and members of our Court have worked closely with a Founding Committee based in the Ottawa region to build something that would last. That Committee has adopted its bylaws and secured not-for-profit status — the legal and financial foundation a Court needs to stand on its own in Ontario. It is a milestone two decades in the making.
At our Quarterly General Membership Meeting on August 10, 2026, the membership of The Imperial Court of Toronto voted to cede territory to the Maple Leaf Empire. With that vote, the last step was complete.
We will present our newest Daughter Court to the community at Coronation 40 this October — a fitting debut, in the same season we celebrate forty years of our own work.
We invite the International Court Council and the broader Imperial Court System to join us in welcoming this Chapter. The Maple Leaf Empire will serve a region of Ontario long underrepresented in our System, opening new ground for fundraising, advocacy, performance, and service.
Ottawa and the Capital Region are home to a remarkable community of performers, activists, organizers, and supporters — people ready to carry forward the vision our founder, José Sarria, Empress I, The Widow Norton, set down more than sixty years ago. The Founding Committee is community-driven and committed to an organization grounded in service, inclusion, and fellowship. Those are the values shared throughout TICOT’s Court family: The Waterfall Empire, The Royal Imperial Sovereign Court of London and Southwestern Ontario Inc., The Imperial Court of Buffalo, and The Imperial Sovereign Queen City Court of the Buckeye Empire.
Forty years ago, this Court was itself new, chartered by people who believed the work mattered here. We know what it means to be welcomed into this family, and we are proud to extend that welcome onward. After nearly two decades of vision, determination, and perseverance, we greet The Imperial Court of the Maple Leaf Empire as a Mother Court greets a Daughter: with pride, with confidence, and with the whole family behind her.
To learn more about the Maple Leaf Empire, to support its founding reign, or to join us at Coronation 40, please contact [email protected] or visit ticot.ca.
In service to Court, Crown and Community,
TICOT Executive Board, Reign 39
Morgan James, President
Shawn DiVirgilio, Vice President
Ron Gullis, Treasurer
Amanda Childs - Secretary/Membership Director
David Valois, Emperor 39
Rachelle Valois, Empress 39
