Dr. Peter ALLEN

ALLEN, Dr. Peter
Dr. Peter Allen passed away peacefully on November 17, 2014, at the age of 92, after a brief illness. Peter was the adored husband of Dr. Dolly Bhola and beloved father to her son Abhay. Along with his predeceased wife Mary Allen, he was the parent of Elizabeth, Peter (Joan) and Graham (Sandra). He was the proud grandfather of Alex, Emily, and Stephanie Rankin, Michael and Brian Allen and Christopher Allen. He was predeceased by his brother, Keith, of Seattle, WA. His maternal grandfather Sir George Bury and his mother Doris Allen were the most influential role models in his early life.
Following school in Vancouver, Peter graduated from the University of Toronto Medical School in 1946, completed a fellowship in General Surgery in 1953 also at the U of T and a fellowship in Thoracic Surgery in 1964 at the Brompton Hospital, London, England. He also completed a year of study in Internal Medicine in Amsterdam, the Netherlands.
He was a professor at the UBC Faculty of Medicine and practiced at the Vancouver General Hospital as a cardiac surgeon for 36 years. He performed the first open heart surgical procedure in British Columbia on October 29, 1957. In 1993, Peter retired from surgical practice as an Emeritus Professor of Clinical Surgery at the UBC Faculty of Medicine.
His international contributions included performing the first coronary bypass surgery in Cardiff, Wales and establishing the first cardiac surgical centre in Bhopal, India in 1977. It was there that he became a major influence in the practice of cardiac surgery and the teaching of medical and nursing students.
Peter was a member of the "Pete's Club," founded in 1959, that was a group of cardiac surgeons from Great Britain and Western Europe. This group was committed to improving and developing innovations in cardiac surgery. He was also a member of the "Jane's Surgical Group," which met for 36 consecutive years, starting in 1953. The Jane's Group provided a forum for the exchange of scientific knowledge and the opportunity to establish new relationships in the international surgical community.
For the past 16 years, Peter was on the Board of Directors at the Ian Anderson House Hospice in Oakville, ON, and served on the Grants Committee of the Oakville Community Foundation.
Peter's life was defined by eternal optimism, adventure, enthusiasm and incredible friendships. He was an avid historian, with an unsurpassed thirst for knowledge and was an accomplished athlete, tennis player, skier, fly fisherman and published author. He travelled to all corners of the world and especially to all corners of Canada. Peter was a fiercely loyal and proud Canadian and in recent years visited the historical sites of WWI and WWII, including attending the 90th anniversary of the Battle of Vimy Ridge.
Peter was a generous, kind man who was unwavering in his love and dedication to his family and friends. He will be deeply missed, but his legacy is one which all his loving family and friends are committed to perpetuate.
A Celebration of Life Service was held in Oakville, On, November 20, 2014.