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Alumni Notes

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1974

Mary Kathleen McGurran, BCom’74, died on Oct. 26, 2023 in Calgary, one year after a cancer diagnosis. She was 71 years old.

Published in: Spring 2024
Alex Melvin, MBA, BSc’72, died Dec. 24 in his sleep, in Ajax, Ont. 
Published in: Winter 2016
Logan Naftel
Logan Naftel (MBA) reports it was an honour and privilege to be one of 12,000 Canadians to carry the Olympic Torch.
Published in: Spring 2010

Paul Owens, MBA’74, lives in Edmonton and tells us he has been appointed senior vice-president, pension and policy with Ellement Consulting. He recently retired from the Alberta government after nine years as deputy superintendent of pensions. Paul has been the chair of the Foundation of Administrative Justice for five years. In 2020, he was a keynote speaker at the Investment and Pensions Europe virtual conference and guest-lectured in the Master in Quantitative Investment Management class at the University of New Brunswick in 2021.

Published in: Spring 2022
Paul Owens

Paul Owens, MBA, (pictured with grey wolf Wiley) has been re-elected for his third one-year term as chair of the board of directors for the Edmonton-based Foundation of Administrative Justice. He has received the foundation's certificate in tribunal administrative justice in each of the foundation's three program streams. He has also received a corporate-values award from Alberta’s Ministry of Treasury Board and Finance for his contribution to improving the sustainability of Alberta's unionized construction-trades pension plans.

Published in: Winter 2020
Paul E. Owens (MBA) has been appointed Deputy Superintendent of Pensions in the Alberta Finance Department. This follows a 35-year career in labour relations, pensions and investment industries at DuPont Canada Inc., Bank of Nova Scotia, and the Colleges of Applied Arts and Technology (CAAT) Pension Plan, where he was the founding Plan Manager and CEO. He has also served as a board member of several pension and investment committees and has been a regular contributor to an investment newsletter. Email: powens2@cogeco.ca 1975 Peter
Published in: Summer 2012
Evelyn Main, Bob Patterson, Jim Dinning and Monika Patterson in Warsaw
Bob Patterson (BCom) writes that his life journey has taken some rather unexpected twists and turns since Kingston. “I now live and work in Poland, handling development projects in a lot of emerging market countries. Still figuring out what to become. How did I get there? Long story. On a good day, it feels like serendipity. On a bad day, I get lost in the wilderness. Poland is actually a very interesting place. Our welcome mat is out for visitors. Jim Dinning and his wife Evelyn Main managed to pop over on the way through the EU. Anyone else brave enough? Now, from so far away, my days at Queen’s seem like a dream from long, long ago. But they'll always be pleasant memories! As Bryan Adams would say, ‘Those were the best days of my life!’ Well, some of the best.
Published in: Spring 2009
Sheila Vowles Rambeau at home in southwestern France
Sheila (Vowles) Rambeau (BCom) and her husband, Patrick Hickinbottom, retired and moved from Vancouver to southwestern France in 2007 to supervise the construction of their new house in the historic village of Beaumont du Périgord. Having taken up residence in October, they now have a guest suite available as a “chambre d’hôte” (B&B).
Published in: Summer 2008
Wayne Smithies (BCom), President, Buffalo Hills Developments, is pleased to announce that his land development project known as ‘Buffalo Hills’ received land use designation from the Municipality of Rocky View in June. The project consists of 433 acres of land five minutes east of Calgary on the Trans Canada Highway.When completed, it will provide homes for more than 1,400 families, as well as 750,000 sq. ft. for commercial and institutional uses.
Published in: Summer 2009

Robert Taker, BCom’74, died Jan. 21 at age 71. Bob worked in the insurance industry from graduation until his retirement. He was an avid reader and enjoyed sharing his love of music and theatre with his wife of 29 years, Margaret-Anne. She survives him.

Published in: Spring 2022