J. Beverly Oke

One of Canada's most distinguished astronomers, J. Beverly Oke, passed away early Tuesday morning, 2 March 2004, of heart failure at his home. A consummate scientist and instrumentalist, Bev received his B.A. and M.A. from the University of Toronto and his PhD from Princeton. He was on the U. of T. faculty between 1953 and 1958, after which he became a professor at
Cal Tech (1958-1991), including service as Hale Observatories Director (1970-1978). Following early retirement in 1991, he was a Visiting Worker at NRC-HIA. In Victoria he played leading roles in scientific research with the Keck Telescopes, mentoring students and post docs, serving as the Instrumentation Editor for the PASP, designing instrumentation for VLOT & TMT, and leading the exhibit design for the Centre of the Universe. Bev and Nancy Oke have untold friends, including numerous former students, throughout the world, many of whom have been their houseguests over the years.

The funeral service is at 2:00 pm, Friday, 5 March 2004 at the St. John the Divine church, 1611 Quadra Street, Victoria. His wife Nancy and their family may be reached at their home address, 2563 Bermuda Place, Victoria, BC V8P 3G2; or by email to Nancy: ncoberm@shaw.ca
A full obituary will be prepared at a later date.

Jim Hesser