Horst Sander remembered as a Prince George community leader

Community leader Horst Sander passed away on Sept. 9 at 91 years old.

Sander was born on May 29, 1933 in Germany.

He and his wife Helma made their home in Prince George in 1963.

Sander was the president and CEO of Northwood Inc. from 1979 to 1990 and his commitment to community service was strong.

“What can I tell ya’? We lost a helluva good Prince George guy,” longtime friend Tom Steadman and former owner of the Prince George Canadian Tire, said from his Bracebridge, Ont., home.

His first encounter with Sander was one Steadman never forgot.

“When we first had that hairbrained idea to justify a university in the north, the $5 petition is what I ran in the beginning," he said. “We had gone to all of the key people in Prince George, business leaders and so forth, and I went and knocked on Horst’s door at Northwood, so to speak, and let me go to the end of the story – he was the most pleasant, most encouraging, most hospitable rejection that I ever had." Steadman laughed at the recollection.

Sander told Steadman that it was an idea that would never happen.

At the end of the campaign 16,000 northern BC residents had signed a petition and contributed $5 to the Interior University Society advocating for a university in Prince George.

“Murray Sadler and I went back a year later after we had a little credibility and we put the $5 pitch to Horst and we got his $5 and each of us got a gold Northwood pen and to this day that pen is in my briefcase," Steadman said. "That was a wonderful moment because Horst was a key figure for us. He was the president of one of the largest companies in Prince George, he was well thought of throughout the community so that was a big deal for us. And he was as pleasant saying 'no' as he was saying 'yes.'”

As we all know there is a University of Northern BC that now provides undergraduate and graduate learning opportunities that explore cultures, health, economies, sciences, and the environment. There are 3,656 students currently in attendance.

Steadman, who still works as special advisor to Geoffrey Payne, president and vice-chancellor of UNBC, came to Prince George for a visit in May and went to see Sander during his stay.

Steadman reminded Sander of his gift of the Northwood gold pen.

“He said ‘I never thought you guys could pull that off,’” Steadman laughed. “And of course he was the one to lead the implementation planning crew as chair and Murray Sadler and I both served on that and Horst really stickhandled the process over the top, so to speak, and it came out of that process with the recommendation to get that thing done. That’s my colour commentary on Horst. He was just a wonderful man.”

Sander also served on the BC Premier’s Advisory Council and the boards of the Child Development Centre, PG Regional Hospital and the Prince George Community Foundation.

“Horst was a remarkable community supporter,” Noreen Rustad said.

“He was generous with his time and talents. While CEO of Northwood Pulp he ensured Northwood financially supported many worthwhile projects in our community. He personally helped me when we were setting up our office for the first time for the Prince George Community Foundation. Horst was one of the people who helped to make our city vibrant and liveable. His work on the start up of UNBC was invaluable to our community. With his passing we mourn a Prince George pioneer.”

Sander was named Prince George Citizen of the Year in 1999, received an honorary degree from UNBC in 2000 and received Her Majesty the Queens Golden Jubilee Medal in 2002.

A celebration of life and reception will be held on Sunday, Oct. 13 at the Coast Inn of the North Ballroom from 11:30 a.m. to 3 p.m.

In lieu of flowers, donations can be made to a charity of choice or to the Sander Family Fund at the Prince George Community Foundation.