Class of 1965 is found by a long lost member
By: WJO
The class of ’65 is well known within military circles as the Class of Generals as they have had a number of classmates remain in the service and rise to the leading positions in the Canadian Armed Forces. At the same time they also have their share of doctors, dentists, lawyers, entrepreneurs, pastors, diplomats and most importantly – a number of real nice and generous gentlemen.
Currently the Class of 1965 is ranked #2 based on Lifetime Donations to the Foundation.
For the record, as per the Foundation Website – Top 10
1966 – $ 2,499,188 1962 – $ 604,750
1965 – $ 1,759,134 1963 – $ 577, 416
1969 – $ 719, 350 1938 – $ 567,674
1953 – $ 675,404 1936 – $ 445,800
1924 – $ 615,039 1961 – $ 386,701
It’s a long story, but quite by undesign, 6559 GS (Gerry) Muller found himself looking at the RMC 65 class list, and noted that – Mueller G.S., RMC# 6559 – was listed as “Lost”.
Gerry entered RMC for the beginning of the school year in 1961. By the end of November he found himself being processed for a medical discharge for a condition which eventually turned out not to be that serious.
At that time University of Waterloo engineering admitted a 1st year class into the coop program in January, and that’s where he went, in Chemical Engineering. During his 1st term, he connected with the Company of the Highland Light Infantry (now the Highland Fusiliers) that had its armory in a Kitchener office building, but very quickly went on his 1st coop work-term in Brockville, where he similarly connected with the Brockville Rifles.
Before much be came of that, other than getting to know people, Gerry was back in Waterloo for the Summer, then back in Brockville for the Fall. Much to his surprise, given his peripatetic connection, he was commissioned 2nd Lt. in the Brockville Rifles, but then his next work-term took him to Hamilton, and the military and he came to the understanding that even the militia couldn’t cope with an officer that constantly moved about the country and would need to transfer regiments frequently. So he went on Supplementary Reserve for a few years, until he went off to England for three years, and that ended his non-distinguished military career!
He graduated from Waterloo in ’66, and went to England and the University of Manchester on an Athlone Fellowship.
After completing an M.Sc. (1967) and Ph.D. (1969) at the University of Manchester, he returned to Canada and took up a position of in the Mechanical Engineering Department of (then) Sir George Williams University. Within a couple of years he was offered and accepted a position with the University of Waterloo.
He was on the faculty at Waterloo from 1971 to 1988, serving also in various administrative positions. During the ’80s his interests and future directions took a drastic shift, and while continuing to teach, administer and do research at Waterloo, he also managed to fit in three years of interning in pastoral psychotherapy, and eventually completed a Master of Divinity degree at Laurier (and Trinity College at U of T). In May ’88 he was ordained Deacon, and in November ’88 Priest in the Anglican Church of Canada.
Over the next years he was a parish priest in Cambridge (’88 – ’91), Mississauga (’91 – ’96) and Scarborough (’97 – 2001). In the Fall of 2001 he returned to University of Waterloo, to Renison University College, the affiliated Anglican college, as Chaplain and Lecturer in Religious Studies. Five years later he retired.
Gerry took the initiative and contacted 6660 Waine McQuinn – Class of 65 Webmaster who promptly sent an e-mail off to 6604 Jim Carruthers (class president for life and current President of the Foundation) who set the stage for the connection back with many of the classmates who entered the college with him almost 53 years ago.
As he so ably said: “None of this has gone as I expected it to when I showed up in Kingston in 1961, but as John Lennon said, life is what happens while you make other plans. And most of it has been good.”
Long time members of the class are delighted with the find and soon Gerry will be connected to the Class who have their own highly impressive website and monthly newsletter.
6439 Hugh Spence (class secretary for life) put it all in perspective. “We finally have someone in the Class qualified to say Grace at reunion dinners. And to do the honours at a commitment to the deep.”