With great sadness the family of John Copland announces his passing at the age of 83 years. John was born in Toronto, Ontario, but within a few short years moved overseas to China with his missionary parents. The family would spend time in Toronto, Montreal and Sainte-Anne-des-Lacs, Quebec between and after missions to Szechuan province (Kiating and Chengdu) and Shanghai. John spent his teenage years in Montclair, New Jersey, and attended Cornell University in Ithaca New York, graduating in 1959. He followed this up with a degree in management and business administration in 1962 and a Masters of economics in 1970 from McGill University in Montreal Quebec.
In 1968 John began his decades-long career with the Canadian International Development Agency (CIDA). His first posting was to the Philippines in 1969, and he married his wife Elaine (nee Clark) of Montreal just prior to his departure. Upon their return they settled in Ottawa, making it home base between postings to Kenya and Zimbabwe, and many other travels which would come to span five continents. When in Canada, summers were spent at the cottage on Lac Marois in Sainte-Anne-des-Lacs, surrounded by members of the extended Copland family.
John is fondly remembered as an intellectual, an avid reader, a history buff, a lover of puzzles of all kinds, and an excellent teller of corny jokes. His CIDA colleagues remember him as an exceptional mentor. He inspired in his children a love of travel and wildlife, an appreciation of diversity, dedication to their work and the importance of a global perspective.
John is survived by his daughter Lindsay (David Stewart) and grandson Malcolm, and his son Blair (Connie Higgs). He is predeceased by his wife Elaine, his parents Bruce Copland and Margaret (Marnie) Copland (nee Lochead) of Montreal, and his sister Joan (Peggy) Smith of Aiken, South Carolina.
A Celebration of Life for both John and Elaine will be planned for a later date. The family requests those who wish to express sympathy at this time to consider making a donation to Oxfam, the Heart and Stroke Foundation, or the ALS Society of Canada. Messages of Condolence may be left at www.beechwoodottawa.ca
Digital Guestbook
Susan Joss
Denyse Morin and Jack Titsworth
Our sincere condolences to the family. We had the great pleasure to spend an afternoon with John and Elaine at their house in Ottawa a couple of years ago. We talked about our times together at CIDA and look at a picture book of the Copland family in Kenya. We will miss seeing both Elaine and John and talk about the good old times.
Heather Cameron
John helped recruit me to the Africa bureau at CIDA and was my boss for a year in Zimbabwe. I am grateful for the time he took to orient a young officer and for the chance to learn from him. My condolences to the family.
Paul Finnegan
My deepest sympathy on your loss. I first met John shortly after I joined CIDA in 1971. At a time when CIDA was full of amazing characters John stood out; he was calm, knowledgeable, willing to listen, chat and advise. He had time for anyone who arrived at his office door with a question or just to chat for a few moments. He was a great mentor and I am proud to have known him and learned from him.
Wendy Lawrence
I would like to send condolences to the family of John Copland, whom I knew through work at CIDA. I have good memories of John in meetings about country program approvals in the 1980s; and I also saw him in action while he was on posting in Harare where I was doing project-related visits. When I was returning from posting in Jakarta, John met with me and was responsible for my entering the Kenya Program. What I always noted was his dedication to ensuring that the people of developing country partners were foremost in our minds when we made decisions about the resources we were hoping to make available to assist their efforts. Although I have not seen John recently, I will retain these pleasant memories of him as a mentor and respected colleague.
So sorry to learn this news, it must have been a very sad Christmas for all of you. I remember taking that photo of John and your family at Aunt Nina's party in December 2012 at Mama Teresa's restaurant. I'm very glad that he attended that party. The only other time I remember meeting him was many years ago when I was a university student and I babysat Lindsay! He told me at that time that he was a fan of Gordon Lightfoot's music. My sincere condolences to all of you.