Robertson remembered as staunch supporter of Saskatchewan

Boyd Robertson, former head of the Royal Bank in Saskatchewan and president of the Saskatchewan Chamber of Commerce, has died at the age of 82.

Robertson was remembered by former colleagues as a fervent booster of his home province and staunch believer in the positive role business can play in the community.

“He was full of life,” said Ralph Boychuk, who like Robertson worked as a senior executive at RBC and served as president of the provincial chamber. “He reinvented how we did business in this province.”

Boychuk said Robertson strongly believed in the province’s economic potential and used his position as vice-president of the bank in Saskatchewan to support the province, especially the agriculture industry. “He was probably ahead of his time if you think of where we are today and what his vision was back then.”

Boychuk said Robertson worked hard, but played hard as well. “The results we had were proof of that. We were recognized in the province in a lot of different ways.”

Larry Hiles, who as head of CIBC in Saskatchewan was a competitor and colleague of Robertson as well as a former chamber president, said that Robertson always put the province first.

“He was (a) builder,” said Hiles. “He played a very active (role) in terms of the bank’s presence (in) the province, in the bank’s relationship with the politicians of the day and in the chamber with the business community. He didn’t shy away from involvement in any area of our economy.”

Robertson also tried to support the agriculture industry during the 1980s and 1990s, which proved to be a difficult time for both the banks and farmers.

“The 1980s started off as very flush times for agriculture,” said Hiles. “But then the high interest rates hit and that really changed (the farming business),” which saw the high interest rates turn into high debt loads for farmers.

The result was a lot of loan defaults in the farm community and writedowns by the banking industry.

“The banks found it very difficult as did the farmers,” Hiles said. But Robertson saw the potential for growth in the industry and worked to support that growth, he added.

Robertson spent 39 years with the Royal Bank, where he had 26 different positions in 14 different locations. He left the bank twice, once to go to university and then again to go and work for a U.S. bank in Montana. He came back to the Royal Bank and retired in 1989.

Born in Palmer, Sask., on March 26, 1932, Robertson grew up in the Riding Mountain area and finished his schooling in McCreary. He met his wife-to-be Barb (nee Ross) while working at the Royal Bank in Melita, Man. He was a former director of the Canadian National Institute for the Blind and also Special Olympics Canada.

Robertson was survived by his wife of 61 years, Barb; his daughter Cheryl; son Ian; as well as eight grandchildren and 11 great-grandchildren.

“HE PLAYED A VERY ACTIVE (ROLE) IN TERMS OF THE BANK’S PRESENCE (IN)

THE PROVINCE, IN THE BANK’S RELATIONSHIP WITH THE POLITICIANS OF THE DAY AND IN THE CHAMBER WITH THE BUSINESS COMMUNITY.”

LARRY HILES