Paul Ross McClelland

Born in Montreal, Quebec, Ross was the eldest of the family; with two younger sisters: Kay and Joan.

Ross completed a Commerce degree at Queen's University where he enjoyed athletics and was an avid cross-country runner and a promising hockey player. He completed a degree in Social Work at Queen's, where he met Margaret Scarth. They were married in 1954, moving to Greater Vancouver a few years later.

Ross began his career with the Ontario Children's Aid Society, then in B.C. He accepted an Associate Professorship at the University of British Columbia in the School of Social Work where he taught for over 30 years. Ross was early adopter of modern audio-visual equipment, as well as computers. He quickly gained a reputation among faculty and students as the 'go to guy' for assistance and troubleshooting. Ross enjoyed working with the Masters students where his favourite memories were of supervising them in their field placements, retiring with the title of Professor Emeritus.

In retirement, Ross continued to enjoy running and was a regular participant in local fun runs for many years. He was a keen Whitecaps fan, holding seasons tickets from their inaugural NASL season and would enjoy joking about how the "village of Vancouver" won the cup! Ross enjoyed spending as much time with his family and grandchildren as possible, and was an enthusiastic attendee at horse shows, dance recitals, soccer and softball tournaments. He enjoyed travelling, had keen interest in politics, the latest technologies, and nice cars. Ross prided himself on always being open to new ideas, new music, new places, new events and remained ever hopeful that this was finally the year for either the Toronto Maple Leafs or Blue Jays.

Predeceased by his wife Margaret, Ross is survived by his son Hugh, and his daughter, Mary, their families as well as his sister Kay Farrand. Ross was blessed with three grandchildren, three great-children and one great-great grandchild.

A private family memorial service and scattering of ashes is planned for January 2025.

Memorial donations may be made to Knowledge Network to honour his long-standing support of public television.