Winston (Win) Murray Langille
BSc (Acadia), MSc (McGill), LLD (Acadia)
1921-2018
Professor, Athlete, Coach, Community Member
Winston Murray Langille of Truro, Nova Scotia died on July 13, 2018. Win was born in Westchester Station, Cumberland County, the only son of the late Alex and Edna Langille of Truro. He is survived by Joyce (Burton), his wife of 73 years; his Children Donald (Deborah), Halifax; Brian (Cynthia), Toronto; Robert, Truro; and Martha (David Redmond), Addis Ababa; and grandchildren Joanna, Nicola, Maeve, and Sophie.
He was predeceased by his sisters Rita (Mahon) and Helen (McCarthy).
Win graduated at the top of his class at Colchester Academy winning the Governor General’s Gold Medal. He studied Chemistry at Acadia and McGill and joined the faculty of the Nova Scotia Agricultural College where he was Professor of Chemistry and Soil Science until his retirement. Win authored a large number of scientific papers (he was particularly proud of his early work on acid rain) and he is widely remembered as a demanding but fair teacher. He expected his students to expect a lot from themselves.
Win was an outstanding natural athlete who seemed equally at home with a baseball, a hockey stick, a rugby ball, a tennis racquet, a golf club, or a curling stone in his hand. He enjoyed great success at University and beyond in many sports. Later in his life he could be heard broadcasting games on CKCL. Generations of NSAC student athletes, and little league baseball players, benefitted from his coaching – which included lessons about character, fundamental values, and life as much as learning the game. Although he always came to play, for Win it was how you played the game that mattered, not whether you won or lost. The Athletic Centre at what is now the Agricultural Campus of Dalhousie University is named in his honour. He was inducted into the Nova Scotia Sports Hall of Fame in 1980 as a member of the 1946 Truro Bearcats, who won the Nova Scotia Senior Baseball championship in that year.
Win was also, along with Joyce, a wonderful supporter of Acadia University, serving in its Alumni Association for many years. Acadia awarded him an Honorary Doctorate of Civil Laws in 1994.
Win was an outstanding member of the Truro Community offering many hours of service over many years in many ways and with a large number of organizations including, for example, St Andrew’s United Church and the Kiwanis Club. One of his visible legacies in Truro is the Kiwanis Park, in the creation of which he played a central role. Among other honours he was named Truro’s "Citizen of the Year."
But his largest legacy is an invisible and enduring one – his positive impact upon the characters of generations of young people he felt he was privileged to teach and coach. Just as importantly, he was a wonderful husband, father, grandfather, and friend who lent his wisdom about living to all those close to him.
Cremation has taken place under the direction of Mattatall~Varner Funeral Home, 55 Young Street, Truro, with a private internment ceremony. A public celebration to remember Win will be held at the Langille Athletic Centre on the Dalhousie Agricultural Campus on Monday July 23rd 2018 from 3-5 pm. Donations can be made in Win’s memory to the Dean’s Fund at the Faculty of Agriculture, Dalhousie University, formerly the NSAC, at PO Box 550, Truro, NS B2N 5E3 Attn: Jenna Forsyth ((902-893-6721). Or on line at https://alumniapps2.dal.ca/ Private messages of condolence may be sent to the family by viewing Win’s obituary on-line and selecting "Send A Condolence" at: www.mattatallvarnerfh.com