News

Keyston, John

John passed away on December 1, 2020.
It is with great sadness that the family of Dr. John Robert Geoffrey Keyston announces his passing on December 1, 2020 in Halifax. He is survived by his children, Rebecca (Christopher Overing) and Melanie (Filippo Runcini); grandchildren, Mila and Juno Runcini. He was predeceased by his wife, Jacqueline (2018); sister, Judith (2017). John was born in Hayes, Middlesex, England, in 1938, the second of two children of Dr. John Edgar Keyston and Phyllis Irene Keyston (Catlow). He had a rich childhood, moving with his family from England to Southern Rhodesia (now Zimbabwe), and fi nally Nova Scotia in 1950, which set in motion his future academic achievements. He enrolled at Dalhousie University at the young age of 14, graduated with a M.Sc in 1958 and was awarded with First Class Honours, the Governor-General's Gold Medal and a Rhodes Scholarship to continue his doctorate in Experimental Physics at Magdalen College, Oxford University. Not only did he excel in his studies, he was also very involved in campus life. Eager for new challenges and armed with his PhD, John spent five years as a researcher and lecturer at the Université de Grenoble (France), where he developed a love for the French Alps and met his future wife, Jacqueline. A compelling offer with the National Research Council brought him back to Canada (Ottawa), and later he joined the Association of the Atlantic Universities (Halifax). He retired as Director of Research and Academic Planning for the Mar itime Provinces Higher Education Commission (Fredericton) to pursue his many other interests and moved back to Halifax in 1997. John was a keen skier, windsurfer, sailor, kayaker, gardener, and a music, photography and technology enthusiast. In Halifax he was an active member of the franco phone choir, Les Voix d'Acadie, and Club Ski 30/50 and marvelled at the busy harbour-front and the nat ural beauty of Nova Scotia. He will be remembered fondly by friends and family as the voice of logic and reason and for his intellectual capacity, his handi-work, his dry wit, his genuine empathy and his willingness to lend a helping hand at the drop of hat.
Back
King’s-Edgehill School is located in Mi'kma'ki, the unceded ancestral territory of the Mi’kmaq People.