Gillis Oslund passed away suddenly at
his home in Red Deer on April 8,
1997
at the age of 72 years.
Gill was born in Slave Lake, Alberta and received his primary
education there. He completed grades nine and ten in Idaho.
Shortly thereafter (1943)
he joined the RCAF and received training as a navigator in
various flying schools from Vancouver to Summerside. He was
about to be shipped overseas when the war ended. Gill received
the remainder of his high school and university entrance in ten
months at Red Deer via the Armed Forces, and entered the Faculty
of Forestry Engineering at the University of British Columbia
from which he graduated and subsequently earned his P.Eng.
Gill received his commission as an Alberta Land Surveyor in
1956
and began his legal surveying career as a branch manager for
Canadian Engineering Surveys Ltd. in Drayton Valley. He ran the
office there until
1958
when he began work with Mr. C.H. Snell
in Red Deer and eventually became owner of the firm Snell &
Oslund Surveys Ltd. Gill's two sons, Stuart and Geoffrey,
were employed by the firm.
Gill was always active in Association affairs, serving on
Council and as president in
1964.
Many present-day surveyors, including yours truly, have
benefited from Gill's wisdom, experience, and above all, his
full adherence to the Code of Ethics. If we all were to pattern
our professional lives after the example set by Gill Oslund, our
Association would have few problems in that regard.
