John Crawford "Chon" Cairns

1921 - 2014  (92 years)

• Name	John Crawford "Chon" Cairns
  Born	19 Jul 1921	Galt (Cambridge), Waterloo Region, Ontario, Canada
  Gender	Male
  Hall of Fame - Cambridge	2004
  Interesting	education, public service
  Military	WW2 RCAF
  Eby ID Number	Waterloo-220175
  Died	14 May 2014
  Person ID	I220175	Generations
  Last Modified	25 Apr 2024

  
  

  Father	Hugh Cairns,   b. 1887, , Scotland ,   d. 1952  (Age 65 years)
  Mother	Lilly McAuley Crawford,   b. Sep 1896, Paisley, Renfrewshire, Scotland ,   d. 1992  (Age ~ 95 years)
  Married	7 Oct 1920	, Waterloo Region, Ontario, Canada
  Family ID	F22779	Group Sheet  |  Family Chart

  
  

  Family	Beverley Woolmer
  Last Modified	26 Apr 2024
  Family ID	F59986	Group Sheet  |  Family Chart

  
  

• Notes

  Obituary for John Crawford Cairns In loving memory of John ('Chon') Cairns, who passed away on the 14th of May 2014, surrounded by family, poetry, and song. John was born in Galt, Ontario, the eldest of three sons of Hugh and Lily (Crawford) Cairns, Scottish immigrants of modest schooling but formidable self-education. His childhood, shaped by the Great Depression, was a happy time, about which he often reminisced in later life. In his book My Life as a Kid, he described hockey games on frozen ponds, getting up at 5 am to deliver 3 newspaper routes by bicycle, and pitching for the Galt baseball team in the provincial finals. Graduating from Galt Collegiate Institute in 1938, John worked briefly as a bank teller before joining the Royal Canadian Air Force in September of 1941, inspired by radio coverage of the Battle of Britain. He served, until September 1945, primarily in India and Burma as a radar technician for Coastal and Transport Commands. The war years, marked by their sense of purpose, sacrifice and camaraderie in the face of adversity, strongly influenced his global outlook and lasting determination to make a positive impact in the world. Following the war, a veteran's scholarship allowed John to attend the University of Western Ontario where he earned a Bachelor of Arts degree in 1951, being made a member of the Honour Society for outstanding extracurricular activities and academic achievements. As editor of the Folio, he published Alice Munro's first three short stories. While at university, he fell in love with the artistically talented Beverley Woolmer. They were married on October 25, 1951, sailing immediately to Tanganyika, East Africa, where John worked for six years as a District Officer and Commissioner, one of the few Canadians in the British Administrative Service, while Beverley organized the export of local carvings. Those days in East Africa were among the happiest in John and Beverley's life, and saw the birth of daughters Sandra and Lisa, postings in Kilwa, Mikindani, Morogoro and Dar Es Salaam, and long safari journeys to remote tribal villages. John's experiences in East Africa were distilled in his book Bush and Boma: The Life of a District Officer, illustrated by Beverley and published in 1958. Returning to Canada, John taught high school for two years while earning a Master of Arts degree at the University of Western Ontario and a teaching degree. In 1962, with newly born twin daughters Eva and Stephanie in tow, the family set forth for Africa again where John was advisor to the Government of Eastern Nigeria under a Canadian External Aid program. There he introduced programs for educational reform in primary, secondary and teacher training levels in Eastern Nigeria and served as a team leader for re-designing the English language education of Cameroon. Son Graeme was born in 1964, when the family was on leave in Canada. In 1966 the family returned to Canada where John was responsible for adult education programs for aboriginal peoples throughout the North West Territories under the Department of Indian Affairs and Northern Development. The family moved to Paris, France in 1968 when John became Director of UNESCO's Experimental World Literacy program. John's work at UNESCO was characterized by travel to every corner of the world, Cold War political intrigue, and the development of ground-breaking literacy programs. He was particularly proud of his work on functional literacy and education for women. In 1972 he was appointed Secretary General for the Third International Conference on Adult Education in Tokyo, Japan. Wanting to return the family to its Canadian roots, John joined the University of Guelph in 1974, serving until 1986 as Director of the Centre for International Programs. He initiated approximately 100 international projects, developing the University of Guelph as a leader in Canada for international development programs. At home, John and Beverley undertook the hands-on restoration of a heritage stone house in the village of Elora, with a wild flower garden that has been captured by many artists. Twin grandchildren Allegra and Riel joined the household. After retirement from the University of Guelph, John was active as an international consultant into his mid-eighties, working in a broad array of international settings. As monitor of CIDA's Canada/China Management Education program from 1989 to 1995, he contributed significantly to the introduction of modern management education by China's leading universities and that country's move towards a free market economy. John entered the last years of his life with characteristic energy. Springs were spent tending the garden in Elora and enjoying gin and tonic on the front porch; summers chopping wood, putting on new roofs and taking daily morning baths in the icy stream waters at Berkenfels, the family cottage in Quebec. Fall and winter days were spent by the window watching birds at the feeder, and evenings reading by the fire. He returned to visit Mikindani, and took journeys to enjoy the rugged landscapes of the Scottish moors and the Yukon. He visited children and grandchildren scattered in China, the Yukon, Western Canada and Europe. During this time John wrote My Life as a Kid and made final revisions to an unpublished novel set in post-colonial East Africa. John received the first World University Service of Canada's Lewis Perinbam Award in International Development in 1986. In 2004 he was inducted into the Galt Collegiate Institute Stairway of Excellence and the Cambridge Hall of Fame. In April of 2014 John suffered a fall, followed by illness and surgery. Developing postoperative pneumonia, he was unable to recover. As one son-in-law said, they don't make many like 'Chon' anymore: a man who took safari-length hikes well into his 80s, could build a stone wall, re-roof a house, recite reams of poetry, and who gave the gift of education to lives across the globe. A lover of great literature, rugged scenery, an honest day's work, Celtic music evenings, gin and tonic and a good apple pie, he described his life as "a great adventure and something worthwhile". We will miss John's wisdom, jokes and poetry. Our memories of him will keep all of us on a better course. John was predeceased by his brother Jim, and is survived by his brother Alan, wife Beverley, five children (Sandra; Lisa (Woody); Stephanie (Eric); Eva (David); and Graeme), six grandchildren (Allegra; Riel (Melissa); Rowan; Sebastian; Logan; and Anders) and three great grandchildren (Isaac; Calian; and Kwaya). "John Crawford Cairns Obituary - Waterloo, ON | Obittree™". 2021. Obittree.Com. https://obittree.com/obituary/ca/ontario/waterloo/erb--good-family-funeral-home/john-cairns/1870373/. _________________________ John C. Cairns was born in Galt on July 19, 1921 and received his elementary education at Central Public School before graduating from Galt Collegiate Institute in 1938. He then worked as a teller on the Bank of Montreal in Galt until he joined the Royal Canadian Air Force in September 1941. He served in the military until September 1945 in Canada, the United Kingdom, India and Burma as a radar technician for the Coastal and Transport Commands. Following the war he attended the University of Western Ontario where he earned a Bachelor of Arts degree in 1950. In 1951 he was made a member of the Honour Society, University of Western Ontario, for outstanding extracurricular activities and academic achievement and then took a position as a District Officer and District Commissioner in the British Administrative Service in Tanganyika, East Africa. His experiences in that country are recounted in "Bush and Boma: The Life of a District Officer" published in England in 1958. Following his time as an administrator in East Africa he returned to Canada where he taught high school in Delhi, Ontario and Kitchener-Waterloo. At the same time he completed a Master of Arts degree at the University of Western Ontario and obtained a teaching degree. He taught high school until 1962 when he became an educational advisor to the Government of Eastern Nigeria under a Canadian External Aid program. While in this position he introduced programs for widespread educational reform in primary, secondary and teacher training levels in Eastern Nigeria and served as a team leader for re-designing the English language education system of Cameroon, West Africa following that country achieving it's independence from the administration of France and Great Britain in the early 1960's. During his time in Africa he wrote three text books on the teaching of the English language that were published by the African University Press in 1967 and 1968. Mr. Cairns left Africa in 1966 to accept a position as Head of the Adult Education section of the Northern Administration branch of the Canadian Department of Indian Affairs and Northern Development where he planned and managed the department's adult educational programs for Canada's aboriginal peoples throughout the North West Territories. He remained with the Department of Indian Affairs and Northern Development until 1968 when he was named Director of both UNESCO's Experimental World Literacy program and the Division of Adult Education for UNESCO in Paris, France. Concurrently he served as Acting Director for UNESCO's Department of Out of School Education. In these positions Mr. Cairns coordinated and administered global educational programs that covered everything from basic literacy to university education in over 50 countries. This involved the management of some 60 international specialists at headquarters and over 350 staff officers employed in field offices around the world. During this period Mr. Cairns decided upon and helped design the basic UNESCO approach to evaluation used throughout the Experimental World Literacy Program. This work involved the largest evaluation of socio/economic development activities carried out to that date in the United Nations system. While with UNESCO Mr. Cairns planned and/or chaired 24 international Seminars and Conferences on educational issues including the Third International Conference on Adult Education held in Tokyo, Japan in 1972. He also represented UNESCO at 15 conferences and meetings during his time with the organization. In 1974 Mr. Cairns moved to the University of Guelph where he served until 1986 as the Director of the Centre of International Programs. In this position he was responsible for the overall planning and management for approximately 100 university international development projects. During this period Guelph was recognized as the leading university in Canada for international development programs and Mr. Cairns was invited to speak on his experiences at 30 major educational conferences in Canada and the United States. In 1985 Mr. Cairns began service as a consultant involved in the planning, monitoring or evaluating of educational programs for countries in Africa, Asia, Latin America and the Caribbean. In this capacity he was prepared over 80 professional reports on educational systems for the Canadian International Development Agency (CIDA), the Council of Ministers of Education and other agencies and various non-governmental organizations in Canada, the United States and Latin America. As monitor of the CIDA's Canada/China Management Education program (CCMEP II) from 1989 to its completion in 1995 Mr. Cairns was responsible for professional analysis/advice concerning the introduction and development of modern management education into nine of China's leading universities. This model, later extended into more than 15 more Chinese universities, played a major role in providing the trained personnel for China's move towards a more open free market economy. In addition to the four books and the 80 professional reports mentioned earlier, Mr. Cairns has published numerous articles focusing on adult education, literacy and rural development. He has served as the Canadian representative at the International Association of Community Educators, as a member of the management committee of the International Council for Adult Education and on the Board of Directors of both World Literacy of Canada and Laubach Literacy International, Syracuse, New York. He has been a member of the executive board of the Canadian Commission for UNESCO and of the International Boards of the University of Calgary and the Sumner Institute of Linguistics in Dallas, Texas. John C. Cairns passed away in 2014. "Cambridge Hall Of Fame". 2021. Cambridge.Ca. https://www.cambridge.ca/en/learn-about/cambridge-hall-of-fame.aspx#.

  
  

• Event Map

  Born - 19 Jul 1921 - Galt (Cambridge), Waterloo Region, Ontario, Canada  = Link to Google Earth