Lord of the Western Keep: Dr. John Murray Clearwater

Thursday 3 March 2022

Dr. John Murray Clearwater

I received the sad news today that my good friend and scholar Dr. John Murray Clearwater had passed away after a lengthy battle with cancer. Some may remember my post from April 19, 2019 regarding the Casablanca film version of Lockheed 10 Electra model aircraft kit that he kindly built for me.

Lockheed 10 Electra 1/53 scale

https://lordofwesternkeep.blogspot.com/2019/04/casablanca-lockheed-electra.html#more

John with some model loot he scored at a sale

John was a member of the International Plastic Modelers Society (IPMS) Ottawa branch. He had the ability to build an impressive number of models per year, all to a high standard. You can see his impressive and eclectic output of plastic models here:

http://clearwatermodels.blogspot.com/

He was much more than just a plastic modeler, he was also a gifted scholar / historian specializing in post war nuclear policy, a classic British car collector, world traveler, cat lover and a good friend.

http://web.ncf.ca/da710/

Dr. John Murray Clearwater

Born on 8 February 1966 to Thomas Murray and Olga Clearwater of Winnipeg, John became Canada’s foremost nuclear weapons specialist. He was a Diamond Jubilee Medal recipient for his work against nuclear weapons and for veterans. John leaves behind his beloved wife of over twenty years, Ms. Pamela Jayne Wheat of Sugarland, Texas.

After a Master’s degree at Dalhousie University, and working for the Royal Canadian Air Force, John earned his PhD in the War Studies Department of King's College London under the guidance of Sir Lawrence Freedman. John defended “The Birth of Strategic Arms Control” which later became a university textbook. In January 2006, John moved to Cambodia to take up a temporary posting as the new visiting professor of political science at the Royal University of Phnom Penh. He taught civil society and international relations, and led a master's seminar for professors on human rights.

John moved to Ottawa in 1994 and worked for the Department of National Defence. He published four books on nuclear weapons, two of which were the basis for television documentaries. John then became the editor-in-chief of the prestigious international monthly journal Arms Control Reporter, published in Cambridge, Massachusetts. He was the author of a federal study for the Minister of National Defence on Canadian troops exposed to radiation during nuclear weapons testing. The report to Cabinet resulted in ex gratia payments to thousands of irradiated soldiers.

John loved to travel and visited North Korea twice. He sailed more than once on the QE2 along with his wife Pam. Following their trip around the world, John became the manager and chief operating officer of Visa Services Canada, Inc. a national company which specialised in getting visas for passports for over a decade. He also sat on the international board of directors of PVS Global sarl (Liechtenstein).

John was the first Canadian to be certified as an international class judge at the world kettlebell championships by the International Union of Kettlebell Lifting, having judged in Canada, Korea, Latvia, Germany and Serbia. He also liked to paint and build things and was a long-time member of the International Plastic Modellers Society (IPMS) Canada. But, most of all, he was an avid cat fancier.

John made a daily effort to keep in touch with friends all over the world. Donations in his memory can be made to the Life and Hope Association (LHA) children’s charity in Siem Reap, Cambodia, where both John and Pam were long-time board members; www.lifeandhopeangkor.org, or give2asia.org/lha, or to any charity that benefits cats.

John and his wife Pam on a MASH holiday

Casablanca diorama featuring Lockheed 10 Electra built by John

Some images below of John's beloved Rolls Royce Princess automobile at the annual All British Car day at Britannia Beach in Ottawa from 2016 to 2018 the year he sold it.