Obituary of David Porteous

David (Dave) Lester Porteous died peacefully on May 22nd in Saskatoon, Saskatchewan at the age of 91. Dave is survived by his wife and partner Sharon Porteous (nee Scobie) (they married on Valentine’s Day 1952), daughters, Catherine West of Saskatoon, Susan (Scotty) Porteous of Toronto, Roberta (Richard) Duguay of Kamloops, Lyn (Darryl) Porteous of Saskatoon, son Samuel (Dana) Porteous of Shanghai, grandchildren, Charmaine, Rebecca (Nate) & Andrea (Edward) and great grandchildren Darian, Christian, Luke, Alyssa and Genevieve. He was predeceased by his parents, Henry Anson & Margaret, his brothers John & Carmen, his son Cameron & his grandson Che´. Dave was born on February 04 1926 in his beloved Malagash, Nova Scotia in a farmhouse surrounded by apple orchards by the sea. He studied at Mount Allison University (getting up very early in the morning to stoke the fires to help pay his tuition) graduating with a degree in mining engineering. His work took him and his growing family across Canada (several times) and around the world. He did everything from hiking through the hardscrabble terrain of Northern Ontario with a diamond drill on his back to contributing to the development of an early laser based surveying system in the mid 1960s. Later in his career while serving as Chief Mining Engineer he helped many young mining engineers develop their craft. After all this and more than a decade after he had formally retired he still had enough energy in his mid-seventies to embark with his life partner Sharon on one last adventure; a search for emeralds in Northern Saskatchewan. Although Dave worked as an engineer in a technical field he had a great interest in literature and a prodigious memory for favorite lines from the poets and authors he favoured. He had many interests but his first love was his family and they always came first. Dave loved them all deeply and they loved him. Among the many things he quietly accomplished, that love stands as his greatest legacy. He was a kind, gentle, intelligent man now sorely missed by all who knew him. The family would like to thank St. Paul’s Hospital staff and those at the Cardio Unit at Royal University Hospital for their professionalism and care. They would also like to thank Lyle Burkell at the Saskatoon Funeral Home for his compassion and help through this sad time. In lieu of flowers please make a donation to the charity of your choice.