Donat PHARAND

PHARAND, Donat Born in Hanmer, Ontario in 1922, the youngest and last survivor of fourteen children of Alphonse Pharand and Georgiana Henri, Donat served in the Canadian Army, after which he earned an LL.M. from Dalhousie University and an LL.D. from the Université de Paris, and also the Diploma from The Hague Academy of International Law. In 1959 he joined the Law faculty at the University of Ottawa, where he enjoyed a distinguished twenty-nine-year teaching career in both the Common Law and Droit Civil sections, and earned an S.J.D. from the University of Michigan while on sabbatical. Recipient of an honorary doctorate from his alma mater, Dalhousie University, and an Officer of the Order of Canada, he was one of Canada's foremost experts on the law of the sea and the Arctic, and author of The Law of the Sea of the Arctic, The Northwest Passage: Arctic Straits, and Canada's Arctic Waters in International Law. He was also a key player in promoting the status of French in Ontario schools. Donat was an optimist as well as a pragmatist who valued integrity, hard work, and academic achievement. Gregarious by nature, he had a playfulness and a keen sense humour beloved by all. Despite his many accomplishments, he never forgot his humble origins and often referred to himself as un p'tit gars de la campagne, "a kid from the country." Donat passed away peacefully at home in Ottawa on April 18, 2018 at the age of 95 years and four months. He was predeceased by his first wife Aline (née Prévost) and second wife Yolaine (née Michaud). He is survived by his companion of twenty-five years, Sylvia Herrera, his three children (with Aline) Michel (Ginger Young), Bernard, and Gisèle (Tom Schneider); his grandchildren Logan, Rees, Peter, and Angéline; as well as many colleagues and friends. Special thanks are owed to the staff of both the New Edinburgh Square and The Edinburgh for their unfailing care and compassion. The family will receive condolences at the Racine, Robert & Gauthier funeral home, at 180 Montreal Rd., on Saturday April 28, 2018 from 11:00 a.m. A short Christian mass will be held at 12:00 p.m.