JOHN GORDON MACPHERSON

Condolences & Memories (3 entries)

• As former colleagues and friends of John we extend to John’s family our deepest sympathies on his passing. John was an intelligent, kind-hearted, and approachable colleague and mentor. He took a genuine interest in his profession and in everyone that he worked with. We reflect on the many years of devoted service John provided as a professional engineer with Acres International, Crippen Acres, Acres Manitoba Ltd and Hatch. John’s association with Acres/Hatch spanned over fifty years. His formal career of 42 years with Acres started in 1953 after graduating with a civil engineering degree from the University of Toronto. His initial assignments were on four hydroelectric construction sites, first working as a civil engineer, then eventually serving in the role of consultant’s resident engineer near Lake St. Anne, Quebec. John’s technical specialty was geotechnical engineering, with a particular interest in construction in extreme climatic situations. His early experience led him to the coordination and direction of multidiscipline construction and rehabilitation projects. While in eastern Canada, John worked on plans for the design and construction of Manitoba’s Red River Floodway as well as Kelsey and Grand Rapids Generating Stations in northern Manitoba. John and Carol moved to Winnipeg in the mid-sixties where he was one of the first employees of Crippen Acres’ Winnipeg office that was opened to support major developments in Manitoba’s hydroelectric industry. Like many people who move to Winnipeg, John and Carol established a residence, raised a family and remained there for the balance of his career, in relatively close proximity to a cabin he and his family enjoyed on Hawk Lake in northwest Ontario. In the late sixties and onwards, John and his senior colleagues adopted a philosophy of recruiting young local staff with high potential and they ultimately assembled a strong team of engineers and technicians based largely on this approach. Over the years John took on the roles of Geotechnical Department Head, Manager of Engineering, Executive Engineer, and Vice President and Regional Manager. During his career John worked in various capacities on the development of seven major hydroelectric generating stations in northern Manitoba and Saskatchewan, with Kettle, Long Spruce and Limestone Generating Stations being the largest. He was also involved in a variety of hydro planning studies for projects in other parts of Canada and overseas, as well as industrial projects, mining, water control and water resources projects throughout Manitoba and Ontario. Following retirement when many of John’s contemporaries had also retired or passed on, John remained connected to Acres where he continued to work on special assignments, sharing his knowledge and experience with second and third generations of staff. As one of John’s former colleagues recently remarked “He was first class and will be missed”. - Posted by: Ross Dewar, Alex Gerrard, Jim Smith, Cheng Wong ( (former colleagues and friends)) on: Oct 10, 2020

• I am a relatively recent acquaintance of John, having met him during my years in Winnipeg at our Hatch Office Christmas dinners. That said, I started my career with Acres and have had the opportunity to know John's excellent contribution to the engineering world through review and study of his work. John certainly was a pillar of our company and the profession. I thoroughly enjoyed my evenings talking with John, and appreciated that fact that we both share roots in and around the Stratford area. I am deeply saddened by the loss we all have encountered. - Posted by: Ian Ainslie (Colleague) on: Oct 06, 2020

• To John's family, I would like to offer my sincere condolences on his passing. I first met John and Carol in 1955. John was Resident Engineer (H.G. Acres) while I was a student inspector (summers of 1955 & 1956) during construction of the Lake Sainte Anne Reservoir in Northern Quebec. Throughout our career, we crossed paths many times. This was mainly related to our joint involvement with the construction of several Manitoba Hydro projects. John was a kind, gentle man with a great sense of humour. We had great times during Friday luncheons at the Gondola Pizza on Pembina Highway. We all looked forward to meeting several other friends and solving the world's problems. We also enjoyed the evening poker games with five other friends that were held a few times a year. It was an honour and a privilege to have known John, both at work and play. Rest in Peace my Friend. - Posted by: Donald Kilgour (Fellow Engineer and Friend) on: Sep 27, 2020