R. Owen Mitchell
Best friend, wine connoisseur, trivia champion, sports fanatic. Born on Dec. 20, 1955, in Regina; died on July 20, 2015, in Toronto, of heart failure, aged 59.
Owen was born to a solidly left-wing prairie family and grew up in a modest home just two blocks from the Regina airport. His parents had only a few ground rules: never say anything unkind, always be informed, and pay no mind to appearances, physical or otherwise.
After graduating from the University of Regina, he took a job in the provincial finance department. When investment bankers came to visit from Toronto in their fancy suits, Owen would ask them how he could get a job like they had. He had found his calling, and graduated at top of his MBA class at the University of North Carolina Kenan-Flagler Business School.
Owen rapidly became a Bay Street player. It was the early 1980s and he was one of the few new recruits who could use Lotus 123 to build intricate financial models. He moved up the ranks quickly. But in the late 1990s he hit a rocky patch when he inadvertently financed a company that was secretly laundering money with the Russian mafia. The resulting trial ran for months and in the end, the Ontario Securities Commission imposed significant fines and penalties. Owen left investment banking and his marriage fell apart, but he quickly rebounded, joining a company he had recently taken public.
The style with which Owen lived was captured at the celebration of his life held in September in the ballroom of Toronto's King Edward Hotel. His "work wife" Rebecca MacDonald spoke powerfully of his brilliance, his loyalty – and his penchant for being late. The audience was filled with a who's who of Bay Street, as well as an equal number of administrative assistants, event planners and former models attired in bright, form-fitting dresses, just as Owen would have liked.
The service began with his son Truman's eulogy, in which he shared a poignant letter Owen had written to him just a month before he died, on the occasion of Truman's 18th birthday. After imparting humorous advice about women and making money, Owen said, "Son, you have taken the kindness you see in the world and made that a core element of your character. Make sure that kindness does not get lost in your travels." The letter ended with, "I feel blessed to be your father." After reading it, Truman proceeded to roast his dad on subjects ranging from his bad choices in girlfriends to his occasional overindulgence of red wine. People winked at each other as they recognized Owen in his son.
Truman was the light of Owen's life. They were two peas in a pod, unmatched in their knowledge of arcane baseball, basketball and football statistics and their joy in bickering over draft picks.
Before his sudden passing, Owen had fallen in love with a beautiful nutritionist, Lisa Cianfrini. There had been many girlfriends over the years, but it was obvious that these two had something special. Owen was always generous, especially with his wine collection. In a speech at the celebration service, friend Peter Mackenzie said that since Owen's death, he had noticed many sad and thirsty women wandering the city.
Owen was a brilliant man, but he never made anyone feel inferior. He avoided conflict but was incapable of being insincere or unkind. One quote from his son's eulogy was the closest to summing up his unique character. Truman called his father a "glorious mix of imperfections and unexpected grace."
Deb Robinson is Owen's former wife.