In Memoriam – Doug Logan
(Taken from Zone 28 newsletter) Doug chose not to have an obituary or a service. Thank you to Zone 28 Rotary Membership Coordinator Louisa Horne for sharing this beautiful tribute to a dynamic leader who will be missed by so many.
Zone 28 lost a special leader on February 19. My friend and colleague, Past District Governor Doug Logan (D7820, 2008-09), died with grace after a short illness. Having had a lifetime of service, he was currently serving as Z28 Action Plan Champion after a term as a successful Membership Coordinator.
Doug inspired, encouraged and mentored many Rotarians and his innovative mind will continue to influence my thinking. Doug and I spent countless hours talking on the phone, on long drives to Rotary events, over tea in his office, at conferences and elsewhere about how best to tell stories that would enable change. Doug was a true change agent – for him, there was no box to think outside of.
Kindly read more for Louisa's entire tribute.
As District Governor, he shook things up with his approach to leadership and strategic thinking, creating District 7820’s first Strategic Plan. He had an exceptional ability to identify underlying issues and not focus on symptoms of a problem but rather create an engaging approach to address the roots of it – and then constantly challenge that approach to make it even better. Creating workshops and facilitating together from Halifax to Houston to Hamburg was great fun – we had a facilitation connection that allowed us to adapt and improvise on stage while playing off each other to deliver an impactful message. Doug’s critical debriefs, in which he did not hesitate to call me out on areas to improve, always resulted in a better experience.
Doug was born in Vancouver, BC, grew up in Dartmouth, Nova Scotia, attended Trent University in Ontario and lived in various other places. Most recently, he and Gloria lived in Batawa, Ontario near their four children, where they could also enjoy their grandchildren. He joined the Rotary Club of New Glasgow in 1998 and served in various roles there. He later joined the Rotary Club of Halifax Harbour as an e-member and continued his service to Rotary at the Zone level.
His career in consulting and management included senior leadership positions with various businesses as well as government and community organizations. He spoke internationally on building high performance organizations and had a rare ability to bring diverse concepts and interests together in a common whole. He volunteered with various organizations -- I first met him over 25 years ago when I served on a Board he chaired, for NovaKnowledge, an organization committed to developing a sustainable knowledge-driven economy for our province. It didn’t take long for Doug to do what he was so good at – recognize other roles for people and quietly encourage them to pursue opportunities. He did that for me with Rotary.
Author of two business-oriented books and a mystery novel, Doug was a skilled writer. A Paul Harris Fellow, Rotary Benefactor and Bequest Society Member, his work and volunteer life were about helping people be their best and his perseverance, independent thinking, compassion and creativity helped people think differently – he changed my thinking regularly. His super cool shirts and glasses were part of his persona and our discussions about Rotary’s membership and the strategies needed to address the underlying issues made it all irresistible. He was a kindred spirit in many ways to me – and a treasured friend to many of us, including one Rotary colleague who described him as the brother he never knew he had until Rotary connected them.
Doug’s legacy is one of impact and his influence will continue to be part of every Rotary presentation I give in the future. Comments on a Facebook post about his death refer to him being a tireless leader, an inspiration who did not accept the status quo, his passion, dedication and commitment to making things better, and about being enriched by his service to humanity – a class act who could offer a different perspective to a question asked and who showed people he believed in them and changed lives in the process. To me, he was a co-shift disturber, a wall to toss ideas at and always get honest and frank feedback, collaborator, mentor and wise advisor. I am so grateful for that – and for the privilege of being his friend.