Obituary
It is with profound sadness that we announce Heinz's passing on January 23, 2018. Heinz lived a long and full life with many accomplishments and rewards. He was born in Stettin, Westpommern, Germany (now Szczecin, Poland) on November 11, 1928 where he lived until 1932 when the family moved to Berlin. His father left Germany in 1934 to start a new life for them in India. In April 1939 Heinz and the rest of his family were forced to flee the Nazis, first taking a train to Genoa, Italy and then a boat to India. At that time, the family initially settled in Bombay (now Mumbai), India, before moving to Karachi, Pakistan, where he completed his schooling. After finishing school, Heinz entered the University of Toronto Engineering program, after travelling to Toronto from Pakistan via a 2 1/2 month-long journey on a freighter.
In addition to excelling in academics at U of T (he would ultimately obtain a Masters in Engineering degree), Heinz also pursued various extracurricular activities, which included participating in several local musical and operatic productions. It was at one of these productions that he met and later married his wife of 63 years, Donna Gail Richards.
In 1959, Heinz and Donna Gail moved to Edmonton, where Heinz obtained a position with the local Architectural and Engineering firm, Rule, Wynn, and Rule. Heinz would remain with that firm for the remainder of his career, ultimately becoming managing partner of the firm, which became Schmidt, Feldberg, Croll, Henderson. During this time, Heinz was the consulting engineer on many significant Canadian projects (hospitals, banks, sporting facilities, and office towers) as well as international projects as far-flung as Riyadh, Saudi Arabia and Dar es Salaam, Tanzania.
Throughout his life, Heinz continually gave back to the community. He was a longstanding member of the Edmonton Rotary Club (joining in 1964 and serving as its President from 1993-1994). In addition to his charitable work with that organization, Heinz was also a well-known patron of the local Edmonton Arts scene, sponsoring and regularly attending performances of the Edmonton Symphony, Edmonton Opera, and Alberta Ballet, along with the Citadel Theatre, many other performing arts organizations. Heinz also donated generously to many other worthwhile causes.
A polymath, Heinz was comfortable switching easily in conversation from discussions on Economic theory to Mathematics to historical treatises on the Peloponnesian wars. Heinz was well-known for his intellect, knowledge, and sense of humour. A life-long learner, he studied Spanish right up to the last years of his life.
Heinz is survived by his wife, Donna Gail; his eldest child Kirsten (Rene Marion); his sons Peter (Line Lacasse) and John (Barbara); his grandchildren Sean (Anastasia), Maxime (Jason), Stephanie, Sarah, and Emilie; and two great-grandchildren, Tyler and Ciaran.
The family would like to thank Dr. Naikir and the Medical and Nursing Staff at the Misericordia Hospital for their care and concern during Heinz�s final weeks. In lieu of flowers, please donate to the charity of your choice in his name.
