Professor, community activist.
Raised at Cranford, New Jersey, son of English teachers Brenton and Mabel Stearns, he received a BA degree from Bates College (Maine) and a Bachelor of Divinity degree from the University of Edinburgh. Although intending to pursue a career in the ministry, he realized while attending the Princeton Theological Seminary that his beliefs had changed and he then completed a doctoral degree in Philosophy from Emory University (Atlanta, Georgia).
After holding appointments in Philosophy in several American universities, he came to Winnipeg in 1970 to take a position in the Philosophy Department at the University of Winnipeg. He served on the boards of the Association of United Ukrainian Canadians, Ivan Franko Museum, and Canadian Society for Ukrainian Labour Research. He served as President of the Manitoba Association for Rights and Liberties (MARL) in the 1980s.
Following the dissolution of his first marriage to Louise White, he married historian Lily Kowal around 1981. He was a member of the Manitoba Historical Society and the Unitarian Universalist Church.
He died at the St. Boniface Hospital on 5 November 2021.
Obituary, Winnipeg Free Press, 13 November 2021.
This page was prepared by Gordon Goldsborough.
Page revised: 11 January 2022
Memorable Manitobans
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