Daniel Gerard Brown

BROWN, Daniel Gerard, P. Eng., age 87, Halifax, passed away peacefully surrounded by family at the Queen Elizabeth II Hospital, Halifax, on 11 September 2014 following a courageous fight against non-Hodgkin’s lymphoma. Daniel was born in New Victoria, Cape Breton, the son of Duncan Michael and Sarah Catherine (Collins) Brown.

He received his early education in New Victoria, a Diploma in Engineering from St. Francis Xavier University in 1947, and a Bachelor of Engineering (Electrical) in 1949 and Masters of Engineering in 1969 from Nova Scotia Technical College (now Dalhousie University).

His career with the electrical utility industry began in 1950 when he joined the former Nova Scotia Light and Power Company as a System Protection Engineer. He transferred to System Planning in 1957 and, in 1958, was one of 29 international engineers selected to take a nine month course on power system engineering developed by the General Electric Company and Union College in Schenectady, New York. He became Chief of Planning Engineering at Nova Scotia Light and Power in 1970. With the creation of the Nova Scotia Power Corporation in 1972, he was appointed Manager of the System Planning Division and was appointed Vice-President, Planning, in 1979.

He was also involved in regional utility activities including the Maritime Energy Corporation Study and the Coordinating Committee of Maritime Electric Utilities. He participated in two Canadian International Development Agency seminars in East Africa in 1982 (Blantire, Malawi) and 1984 (Nairobi, Kenya). He retired from the Power Corporation in March 1987 and worked for several years as a self-employed energy consultant. As a consultant, he worked with the Nova Scotia Power Corporation, the Regulatory Utilities Commission of Prince Edward Island, Atomic Energy of Canada Ltd., New Brunswick Power and Newfoundland and Labrador Hydro.

He was active in a number of professional, business and economics-related associations including the Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers (IEEE), the Canadian Electrical Association (CEA), the Association of Professional Engineers of Nova Scotia (APENS), the Engineering Institute of Canada (EIC), the Atlantic Coal Institute, the Halifax Board of Trade and the Atlantic Provinces Chamber of Commerce.

He is survived by his wife, Shirley Robertson; sisters Winnie MacIsaac and Hilda Cretin; brother William; daughters Rosemary (Stephen) Barbour and Valerie (James) Spurr; sons Duncan (Thelma), Michael (Marilyn Miller), Christopher and John (Gayle); six step-sons and one step-daughter; grandchildren Kate (Chad Babin), Eilidh (James Hunter), Alison (Kevin Reinhardt), Nick (Rosanna Nicol), Ryan and Colin; and ten step-grandchildren. He was predeceased by his first wife Rosemary (Martel) and sisters Martha and Margaret.

Visitation will be from 7:00 to 9:00 pm on Tuesday, 16 September, at J. A. Snow Funeral Home, 339 Lacewood Drive, Halifax. A Funeral Mass will be held at 10:00 am on Wednesday, 17 September, at St. John the Baptist Church, Purcell’s Cove Road, Halifax. Burial will follow at the Gate of Heaven Cemetery in Lower Sackville.

Family flowers only by request. Memorial donations may be made to Feed Nova Scotia, 213 Bedford Highway, Halifax, Nova Scotia, B3M 2J9.

The family wishes to thank Drs. George Lee, Scott Murray, Stephen Couban, Liam Mulroy and Andrea Kew and Paula Adams, RN for their compassionate care.

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