Community activist Alan Ruffman dies

Alan Ruffman, fierce community activist, died in his sleep on Dec. 28. He was 82 years old.

Ruffman was a scientist, scholar, author, relentless activist and investigator. He was integral in the creation of the Ecology Action Centre, founding director of Friends of the Halifax Common, and he discovered the identity of the unknown child who died on the Titanic.

“Alan was a really brilliant man,” said his friend and current FHC director Howard Epstein. “He was a citizen activist.”

He spoke out on many community issues throughout the decades — including arguing against the proposed widening of Robie Street just a few weeks before his death.

“Alan was a powerful, passionate advocate on a variety of issues over many years,” said Mayor Mike Savage on Tuesday. “Whether one always agreed with him or not, there is no doubt he made a significant contribution to public discourse in Halifax.”

Ruffman grew up in Ontario, moved to Nova Scotia as a young man and became a marine geologist. He ran the consultant firm Geomarine in downtown Halifax.

“It was an office packed with maps and papers and his collection of information on all kinds of topics as he visited museums and libraries all over the world. He wrote dozens and dozens of papers on all kinds of topics, including the Titanic,” said Epstein.

TITANIC BABY

Ruffman worked for years to track down the identity of the unknown child (identifying him as Sidney Goodwin in 2008) and wrote Titanic Remembered -- The Unsinkable Ship and Halifax in 2013.

“That was typical of Alan that when he looked at a question, he’d pursue it until he got an answer,” said Epstein. “He was a non-stop talker and conversation with Alan was a real pleasure, but he certainly managed to dominate a dinner table.”

Ruffman was a strong influence and inspiration as the Ecology Action Centre took flight in 1971 and he was involved ever since, executive director Maggy Burns said in an interview Tuesday.

“He had such a broad intellect. Such a smart guy and tireless in his work for a better world. It’s a real loss for sure,” she said.

Epstein said Ruffman was particularly interested in energy issues and transportation in urban areas.

Ruffman spoke out against many proposals throughout the years with his wife Linda Christiansen-ruffman, a retired sociology professor at Saint Mary’s University. Epstein called them “a very effective team.”

“It’s a big loss to the progressive, activist community in Nova Scotia because he kept a sharp eye on the doings of city council and the provincial government,” Epstein said.

“But city council particularly, he was one of the main people resisting the proposal to run a roadway through the downtown of Halifax in the 1970s. Thank heavens that was successful because we ended up with the Historic Properties preserved.”

From setting up a unique blind date to sending a marriage proposal in a bottle, Ruffman was an out-of-thebox thinker, Christiansenruffman said.

He had a natural curiosity of many different subjects, she said, and wanted to make things better in the community.

“We lived and worked together for 55 years of marriage,” she said, highlighting that Ruffman was also a feminist activist, even before they married. “We’ve had a marvelous life together.”

Christiansen-ruffman said she is planning a celebration of life in the near future.

In a Facebook post, Epstein wrote: “If it were still done, Alan should be put to sea in a flaming dory piled with his papers; it would be a fitting send-off for the warrior, the man, the friend.”