CPS Taylor

(British Columbia & Worcester 1952) (11 May 1930 - 10 July 2022)

Born in Toronto, in his teen years Pat moved with his family to Vancouver, where he finished high school and went on to study biology and physics at the University of British Columbia. In 1952, he won a Rhodes Scholarship. He met his first wife, Elizabeth, while at Oxford and became deeply involved with different Christian student groups. It was here he committed himself to Christ. After marrying, the couple moved to Philadelphia, where Pat completed his PhD at the University of Pennsylvania. Their two eldest children were born during this time. Next stop was Cambridge for a post-doc and then Vancouver, where Pat took up a position as assistant professor of physics at UBC. Some five years later, with three children in tow, the family moved to London, Ontario, where Pat would join the brand-new Biophysics Department at the University of Western Ontario. He spent the rest of his career at UWO, retiring at the age of 65.

Science in general and biophysics in particular were far from Pat's only interests. He was a devout Christian, often giving talks about the relationship between Christianity and science, and he spent a lot of his time on campus meeting and encouraging Christian students, especially international students. His love of music centred on two passions: country dancing and bagpipes. He heard his first bagpipes in Scotland at the age of 8 and never looked back. His love of dance began with square dances held in the family home in Toronto and over the years branched out to Scottish and English country dance, Morris, Playford and even Swedish country dance. Travel-to Japan, China, Turkey, Ireland, Greece, Mexico, Australia, Alaska, and many other lands-was another of his pleasures.

At the age of 85, some 17 years after Elizabeth's death, Pat remarried. He spent his final years with his new wife Jeanine, dancing, playing duets, attending church together, and fully enjoying each other's company. His was a full life and a rich one, and he was grateful for every bit of it.