Obituary of Dr. David Struan Robertson

<p><strong> DAVID STRUAN ROBERTSON</strong></p> <p><strong> </strong></p> <p>On Thursday, October 27, 2016, at Sunnybrook Health Sciences Centre, Dr. David Struan Robertson peacefully passed and joined his lifelong love, the late Wanda Lee Spears.  His daughters Jennifer, Joanna (Tony) and Julia (James) are immensely proud of their father who strove for integrity, excellence and generosity, in both his professional and personal life.  His grandchildren Colin, Alexandra, Gemma, Lachlan, AJ and Graeme will miss their Grandad’s unconditional support and belief in them.  David also leaves his younger brother George, nieces Susan (Frank) and Pam (Bruce), and grandniece and grandnephew, Lauren and Thomas, each of whom he was very fond and proud.</p> <p> </p> <p>David was born in Winnipeg, Manitoba, on March 3, 1924.  He graduated from the University of Manitoba in 1946 and went on to achieve his Ph.D. in Geology, from Columbia University, in 1949. While pursuing his degrees, David also played soccer, hockey, and curling, participated in the Glee Club, various theatrical productions and was President of the Student Union and various governing councils.  A strong believer in the importance of exercise, David continued to curl, with the Granite Club Men’s League, well into his 80’s.</p> <p> </p> <p>In 1949, David became an assistant professor at the University of Virginia and there he met and married Lee, who was teaching law at Washington and Lee University.  In 1951, they moved to Sudbury where David ran the geological research laboratory of Inco.  Beginning their fulfillment of a lifelong desire to see the world together, they moved to Angola and the Democratic Republic of the Congo in 1953 where David was in charge of a Marshall Plan Program mapping initiative.  After experiencing amazing adventures, they returned to Canada in 1955.  While at GMX/Stanrock, David led an exploration program that discovered uranium deposits in the Elliot Lake area.  In 1965, he founded David Robertson & Associates, a mining consulting practice based in Toronto, with offices around the world.  The firm was highly regarded for its technical competence and integrity and carried out numerous consulting assignments for companies, government and law firms.  The firm became a recognized authority in the fields of uranium and potash.  David retired in 1987, five years after the merger of his practice in Canada, with Currie Coopers & Lybrand.</p> <p> </p> <p>Over the next 20 years, David continued to practice as an independent consultant, being called on as a leading expert witness and serving on the boards of both junior and senior mining companies.  He was the founding Chairman of both Ashton Mining of Canada and Meridian Gold Corp.  Throughout his career, David was actively involved with the Canadian Institute of Mining, Metallurgy and Petroleum and served as its President from 1993-1994.  He was inducted into the Canadian Mining Hall of Fame in 2014.</p> <p> </p> <p>David was an eternal optimist and took pride in the fact that, as a result of his mentorship, geologists and engineers from his practice went on to form their own geological and mining consulting firms and to hold senior positions with mining companies, both in Canada and internationally.</p> <p> </p> <p>A private family service will be held at the HUMPHREY FUNERAL HOME A.W. MILES – NEWBIGGING CHAPEL.  If desired, in lieu of flowers, the family asks that donations, in David’s memory, be made to the Canadian Institute of Mining, Metallurgy and Petroleum’s CIM Foundation for the David S. Robertson Scholarship Fund using one of the following methods: cheques should be made payable to the CIM Foundation, identifying the David S. Robertson Scholarship Fund and should be mailed to the attention of Deborah Sauve at the CIM National Office, Suite 1250, 3500 de Maisonneuve Blvd. W., Westmount, QC, H3Z 3C1 or by calling Deborah directly at 1-514-939-2710, ext. 1334 or by contacting her through e-mail (dsauve@cim.org).</p>