And the Award Goes to… Don Wiles! - theHumm February 2019

By Sally Hansen

Art… and Soul

theHumm is celebrating this awards season by commending Almonte’s beloved and esteemed Don Wiles for his interest in his community and the contributions he continues to make that enrich its cultural and intellectual life.

Journalists should never miss a chance to invite a nonagenarian to share their most treasured piece of advice. Soon to be 94, Dr. Wiles was momentarily surprised at my invitation, and then counseled, “Be interested.” He is a persuasive example of the wisdom of his words.

Wiles is a life-long scientist. Whether it’s music or woodworking or radiation or sailing or piloting or solid state hot atom chemistry, he is interested — interested enough to earn a Ph.D. in Nuclear Chemistry in 1953 from M.I.T., and interested enough to learn multiple languages and visit 39 countries with “more yet to come.” As a result of his complementary interests in his community and in life-long learning, he instigated the popular Learning in Almonte Lecture series and the companion Almonte Lecture series, both described in further detail below.

Born in Truro, Nova Scotia, on August 30, 1925, Don remains a true Maritimer at heart, with deep ancestral roots reaching back to 1750 that prompted his interest in genealogy. His mother was a teacher, and Don was teaching woodworking (he was self-taught) to junior high school students while earning his B.Sc. in Chemistry at Mount Allison University, followed by his B.Ed. in 1947. After earning his M.Sc. in Chemistry at McMaster University in 1950, he met his wife Billy at the M.I.T. Sailing Club while pursuing his Ph.D. They have been married almost 67 years, and Billy volunteered that one of the enduring attractions is: “we both like doing things.” Their first child was born in Oslo where Don was continuing his studies, and Billy learned Norwegian as she navigated the challenges of motherhood.

Two years later they were back in Vancouver as Don began his academic career as a Research Associate at UBC, and in 1959 they brought their three children to Ottawa where he began his ongoing affiliation with Carleton University. After becoming an expert in nuclear chemistry and radioactivity, he served as chair of Carleton’s Chemistry Department for eight years. In 2011 Carleton awarded Wiles the honorary degree of Professor Emeritus; DLL (honoris causa) “in recognition of distinguished contribution to scholarship and service to Carleton University.”

Just this past May, Wiles received the CURAC (College and University Retirees Associations of Canada) 2018 Tribute award. The honour is in recognition of Don’s initiative in founding Carleton University’s Retirees Association in 2006 to provide all retired employees with a social and organizational connection to the University and each other. He served as the organization’s first president until 2012.

I Think, Therefore I Teach

Wiles continues to pursue knowledge about the natural world using his extensive formal training as a scientist, but more importantly at this stage of his life, Wiles continues to be an educator. After his official retirement at 65, he taught for another twenty years and is still at it. But unlike most people, he doesn’t just teach — he creates educational opportunities and resources. During his academic career his refereed publications numbered in the sixties, he published several books, and he created a course and wrote a textbook on The Chemistry of Art and Artifacts. Many of Canada’s museum technicians have learned about aspects of chemistry relating to art history and archaeology from this text, including the chemical and physical processes leading to the deterioration of materials of historical and cultural importance. Wiles’ persistent sense of humour and his lack of guile are evident in comments interspersed in the text such as, “It is not likely that anything will replace simple common sense as the starting point in identifying an article from the context of its discovery.”

Learning in Almonte

In 2004 he and his friend Reiner Hollbach conceived the Almonte Lecture Series, an annual offering of seven monthly lectures between September and April. Don gave the first lecture, and so many people showed up they had to obtain a larger venue. This year’s January lecture was also presented by Dr. Wiles. Titled “Radiation and Human Health”, Don gave “a summary … of my own exposure to radiation, including my own gamma-ray spectrum.” The program for the wide-ranging and popular series is available at almontelectures.net/2018-19-lecture-season and covers topics as diverse as “Women’s Health in Africa” to “Social Enterprises: What are they and why do they matter?”

Wiles was also the catalyst for the sister educational initiative, Learning in Almonte, modeled after Carleton University’s Learning in Retirement series. It offers an eclectic selection of courses for area residents that run for six weeks on either Tuesdays or Thursdays. The current offering is titled “The Psychology of Decision Making.” Instructor Warren Thorngate promises “insight into the factors involved in decision making,” and says the course “may present avenues for achieving good outcomes, be they economic or personal.” Even though the first session took place in January, it might be wise to visit learninginalmonte.com to sign up for the remaining five, and check out the upcoming topics.

After many years of tapping into his extensive network of academics, and endless hours of planning and organizing, Don has finally handed over responsibility for the two series to a trio of like-minded community volunteers, but he still attends all the lectures, sitting in his reserved place of honour in the front row — still learning, still interested.

In 2015 Almonte’s Young Awards Foundation bestowed their annual Cultural Achievement Award to Don Wiles in recognition of his outstanding contribution to his community. In 2017 Don was presented with a plaque recognizing the invaluable contribution he has made to the culture of Almonte. Library Board Chair Mary Lou Souter commended Don on the golden legacy he has bestowed on his community, not only for his organization of the Learning in Almonte initiatives, but also for his dedication to their longevity.

This brief account barely skims the surface of the life and legacy of Dr. Donald R. Wiles. It doesn’t give Billy the credit she deserves for running the family farm near Carp before they moved to Almonte. It doesn’t mention the extensive travels during summer holidays that their children finally appreciate. It celebrates a life well lived and the indomitable spirit of a generous man who believes worrying is a waste of time. Congratulations Don.

(More information is available at carleton.ca/donwiles ).