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Mennonite Historical Society of Alberta

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Arthur Kroeger (1932-2008)

Arthur Kroeger

Arthur Kroeger died Friday 9 May.  He had been ill with cancer.  Until a short time ago, we were all hoping he would be able to regain enough strength to begin chemotherapy at the National Institutes of Health in the United States, where he had been accepted into a clinical trial.  However, his condition deteriorated rapidly over the past 10 days, and on Thursday we moved him to the palliative-care unit at the Centre Elisabeth-Bruyere in Ottawa. 

We were all at his bedside when he died: his partner, Huguette Labelle; his two daughters, Kate and myself; and his stepdaughter, Chantal Labelle. 

My father had expressed a wish in his will that a scholarship should be set up in his name at Carleton University.  In lieu of flowers, we are asking people if they would be willing to make a donation.  Cheques should be made payable to Carleton University, in envelopes marked for the attention of Denise Mayer, 510 Robertson Hall, 1125 Colonel By Drive, Ottawa, Ontario K15 5B6.  People can also give online at www.carleton.ca, under "Giving to Carleton", and earmark their donation for the scholarship fund. 

He will be much missed, by those who were lucky enough to know him, but also by the many Canadians who benefited from his life`s work and his sense of public service.
Hard Passage

Information provided by Alix Kroeger, daughter of Arthur Kroeger

Passing of Arthur Kroeger, MHSA member

In a recent minor upgrading of our homepage, we introduced the many kinds of faces that are found associated with the MHSA in seven photos above. The seven represented writers, genealogists, members with broad interests in Mennonite history, historians, volunteers, and administration.

It makes us sad to report that Arthur Kroeger, whose face represented writers above, has passed away. He was a remarkable man to us for his humble presentation of self and his dedication to capturing the Alberta Mennonite immigration story in Hard Passage. We knew he had other achievements as well.

Those achievements and the very many he leaves to mourn are found in academia (honourary PhDs from several universities, a Rhodes Scholarship, Chancellor at Carleton University) and in the civil service (diplomatic posts and the most senior of positions in several federal departments). The National Post referred to him as "probably the wisest of the old mandarins".

Of course, his family also mourns him and his contributions to them. His daughter, Alix, has provided us with a brief statement that we've permanently placed as a link from our Past Members page. We will leave Arthur's picture here during our period of mourning.

Links to more on Arthur Kroeger

An obituary for Arthur appeared in the Calgary Herald as follows:

Arthur Kroeger died of cancer with family at his side in Ottawa, Ontario, on May 9, 2008. Mr. Kroeger is survived by his spouse, Huguette Labelle; his daughters, Alix and Kate; his stepchildren Chantal Labelle (and partner Paul Chambers) and Pierre Labelle; his granddaughter, Catherine Labelle-Chambers; his brothers Nicholas, George and Peter; and his sister Anne (Dafoe). He is predeceased by his first wife, Gabrielle (Gay); and by his brother Henry and sister Helen.

Born September 7, 1932, on a farm in Naco, Alberta, Mr. Kroeger was the youngest of seven children. The family were Mennonites who emigrated from Russia in 1926 and settled in Alberta.

Mr. Kroeger graduated from the University of Alberta with an honours degree in English literature in 1955, and was then awarded a Rhodes Scholarship to study at Oxford, where he took a degree in politics, philosophy and economics. In 1958, he joined the Department of External Affairs as a foreign service officer, serving in Geneva, New Delhi and Washington. From 1975 to 1992, Mr. Kroeger served as a deputy minister in the federal government in six departments, including Indian and Northern Affairs; Transport; Energy, Mines and Resources; and Employment and Immigration. After leaving the government in 1992, he served as Chancellor of Carleton University from 1993 to 2002, where the Kroeger College of Public Affairs was named after him in 1999. He was also a visiting professor at the University of Toronto in 1993-1994 and a visiting fellow at Queen's University in 1993 to 2000. In 2000, he was elected an honorary fellow of Pembroke College, Oxford and received the University of Alberta's Distinguished Alumnus Award. He chaired the Public Policy Forum 1992 to 1994 and was chair of the Canadian Policy Research Network and the National Statistics Council at the time of his death.

In 1989, he received the Public Service Outstanding Achievement Award. He was made an Officer of the Order of Canada in 1989 and a Companion of the Order in 2000. He held honorary doctorates from the Universities of Western Ontario, Alberta, Calgary and Carleton.

He was the author of two books: Hard Passage, about his family's experience in emigrating from Russia to Canada; and a forthcoming memoir about the definitive reform of Western grain transportation, which will be published by the University of Alberta Press next year.

Last Updated 30 Jun 2008 

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