I grew up on a mixed farm (dairy herd, strawberries, blueberries, and woodlot) in Antigonish County and still consider myself more of a farmer than anything else. After a BSc at StFX, I went west and received a PhD in Mathematics from the University of Alberta. A postdoctoral fellowship at the University of Colorado was great preparation for the research side of my life. From 1977 to 2003, I was on faculty at the University of Saskatchewan in Saskatoon, which was a wonderful city for my wife, Julia, and I to raise our two sons.
We spent the 1983-84 academic year at Dalhousie for my first sabbatical leave and our impressions of both the university and the city were positive; so, when a head-hunting firm invited me to apply for the position of Dean of Science at Dal, we were receptive to the idea of moving east. When I announced that I had been appointed as Dean of Science at Dalhousie, a leading scientist in Saskatoon reported that I had landed the best job for a scientist in Canada and it is still my view that he was right.
From 2003 to 2020, I was a Full Professor in the Department of Mathematics & Statistics. I also served as Dean of Science (2003-2008) and Associate Vice-President (AVP) Academic (2008-2013), but I taught at least one course every semester but one. Altogether, I had 44.5 years as an academic (if you count my post-doc). Since retirement, I maintain a modest research program, but this is tailing off – my last PhD student finished in late 2025.
As a pure mathematician, I was not tied to a laboratory bench. My collaborators are scattered around the world and this means lots of travel. Moreover, one of my files in the AVP position was international relationships and, at that time, we were developing joint programs with various other universities. I once tallied the visa stamps in three consecutive passports and found that I had been to China 36 separate times. It is hard for me to articulate the dramatic evolution of life there between my first visit in 1998 and my last in 2013. I also had long-term collaborations with groups in Germany and Japan. (Aside: Kyoto is my favorite city in the world, even above Halifax.)
The research and related world travel was a lot of fun, but my most gratifying experiences usually were related to teaching and outreach. I worked with the Saskatoon Tribal Council to deliver enrichment programs to children on 10 First Nations reserves around Saskatoon and ran a summer camp called MathReadiness aimed at mature students to refresh their math skills. Of course, mentoring honours and graduate students is very satisfying and even teaching jumbo sized calculus classes has its rewards – but I do not miss marking assignments and test papers.
In retirement, Julia and I play a lot of golf together when the courses are open and play a lot of duplicate bridge in the cold months. I also make things out of wood.