Stuart Smith died June 10, 2000, in Grand Prairie, Alta.
He was born in 1921 in Kamloops, BC, second son of Maurice and Laura Smith (deceased), pioneers of Chinook Cove, B.C. and Kamloops.
Stuart received his schooling in Kamloops, then in 1941 joined the RCAF flying training, becoming an instructor and later a bomber pilot in 1944. He then transferred to the RAF, where he carried out operations from Ceylon to Sumatra to Malaysia to Hong Kong. At war's end, he enrolled in zoology at UBC and completed his MSC in 1953.
He worked as a biologist for the B.C. government for 17 years, becoming chief of fish management in 1963. He was one of the first conservationists to demand an environmental study before a corporation (B.C. Power) could develop a site, after completing his Ph.D. (Zoology) at the University of Alberta.
In 1966, Stuart moved there as the director of Fish and Wildlife. In 1973, he was appointed Chairman of the Research Secretariat, Alberta Department of Environment, and developed a plan for the Oil Sands Project.
Stuart was the first president of the Alberta Society of Professional Biologists. In 1979, he retired from government service and set up his own company, S.B. Smith Environmental Consultants Ltd., working for various companies and Indian and Northern Affairs, where he enjoyed working with the Native People.
In October 1999, he attended a reunion of his squadron in Toronto. He then sold his cabin near Cold Lake, AB and hoped to finally retire at his new home in Sayward, Vancouver Island, B.C. Although he was passionate about biology, his greatest love was for his family: his wife Margaret, his children, Christine (Gary), Andrew (Janet), Catherine, Pamela (Gregory), six grandchildren and one great-grandchild. He was predeceased by his daughter, Susan (Walter), his parents, sister Gertrude, brother Alan (Anne), nephew Donald and several brothers-in-law. He is survived by his sisters, Laura at Victoria, BC, Muriel of Toronto, ON, and Adela of Peterborough, ON.
