1943 - 2021
Jim Carruthers was born in Drumheller, AB, and spent his youth in neighbouring communities. He was involved in the Scouting movement and developed an early interest in photography that would remain a life-long passion. He left home in 1961 to attend Canadian Services College Royal Roads. From the start he was keenly interested in pursuing electrical engineering and was also involved with the College yearbook and the band. Attending RMC from 1963 to 1965, he maintained his academic trajectory while becoming active with the Institute of Electronics and Electrical Engineers (IEEE) as Vice-President of the RMC student branch.
Carruthers graduated from RMC in 1965 with a bachelor’s degree in Electrical Engineering and was commissioned into the RCN as a Sub-Lieutenant. On completion of training, he was assigned to HMCS Gatineau to hone his practical engineering skills at sea. Later, after gaining experience with sonar, missile and data systems on HMCS Terra Nova, he decided to further his formal education and, in 1971, commenced graduate studies at the Nova Scotia Technical College where he received his PhD in Electrical Engineering. During a subsequent posting to NDHQ in 1974, combining his technical skills and academic knowledge, he first began to espouse a revolutionary approach to systems integration in warships. After a year on the Canadian Forces Command and Staff Course, he took his visionary concept to the next level and became the driving force and champion behind the development and introduction of the Shipboard Integrated Processing and Data System (SHINPADS). SHINPADS was a distributed digital systems approach to ship integration which provided redundancy and survivability at reduced life-cycle cost and remains a prevailing design used in warships of the RCN and other major navies of the world.
Carruthers retired from the Navy in 1982 and went to work for Norpak Corporation, a small Ottawa-based electronics firm that was on the verge of bankruptcy. He was soon appointed CEO and through hard work and expertise, he managed to dramatically turn around the fortunes of the company. Under his leadership, the enterprise became, and remains (under a different name), a recognized international centre of excellence for television closed captioning technology. He left Norpak in 2006 to begin a new life advocating in support of two institutions close to his heart: RMC and the RCN.
Carruthers was a strong supporter of RMC, and the RMC Foundation in particular. In 2001 he gifted a substantial endowment to the Foundation. His generosity and example were instrumental in the RMC Class of ’65 becoming one of the most active and generous graduating classes. Through his leadership and active involvement, his Class established three highly successful award programs: the Teaching Excellence Awards at RMC and at RMC Saint-Jean; and the Professor in Leadership Program at RMC. He served as President of the Foundation in 2015/2016. Generously, Carruthers personally provided funding to the RMC Rowing Club to buy three new boats and annually purchased and presented swords for the top naval cadets in the graduating class. From 2001 to 2012, he provided yearly scholarships for four Reserve Entry Training Plan cadets and funding assistance to new cadets from his hometown of Drumheller. In recognition of his generosity and outstanding support to the military colleges, the RMC Club made him an Honorary Life Member.
Early on, Carruthers recognized that a maritime nation like Canada needed to have an avenue for serious debate of naval issues, to be a recognized source for expert opinion on maritime matters and to be a strong advocate for the RCN. He was personally instrumental in the creation of the Naval Association of Canada (NAC), an organization open to anyone with an interest in maritime issues, and he served as the first President from 2013 to 2017.
He worked tirelessly to establish a firm financial footing for the NAC which led to the launch of the annual Battle of the Atlantic Gala, held at the Canadian War Museum. The legacy of his genius, vision and enterprise continues in today’s NAC and has been crucial in helping to educate Canadians on the need for a capable and effective RCN. In 2017 he was awarded the Admirals’ Medal; bestowed upon individuals who foster the advancement of maritime/naval affairs in Canada.
Plaque inscription:
Engineer, Visionary, Philanthropist