Bruce Stovel 1941-2007

Abstract

Bruce Stovel 1941-2007 Patricia Demers Generosity is the word that first comes to mind when I think of Bruce Stovel. I realize that outgoing engagement is an easy tag for people whose equanimity, intuitive understanding, and largeness of spirit amaze and confound us. Bruce put all these qualities into action. He never sought or hogged the spotlight. But if he undertook to do something, his commitment was wholehearted. When he observed junior colleagues' classes, he wrote full and perceptive comments. He wouldn't stint on details in letters of reference for undergraduate and graduate students, who invariably won the scholarships. As an Associate Chair his decisions were not expedient; he considered each case, listened to each petition with sympathetic insight. As an Associate Editor for esc Bruce was a meticulous and, yes, humbling perfectionist. In the days before online editing, copy-editing was in every sense hands-on, attentive labour. I remember passing to Bruce texts that had been through a few editorial filters and that I thought were ready to go only to find them in my box the next day festooned with his precise red and blue markings. The difference between the dash and the hyphen was an article of faith for Bruce. He made silent corrections and innumerable improvements. A genial host who concocted a sinful chocolate mousse, an academic who connected with several communities, a blues man who didn't whine, Bruce was a rare colleague. Patricia Demers Associate Editor, English Studies in Canada, 1986-1989 Copyright © 2005 Association of Canadian College and University Teachers