My deepest condolences to Janice, Taylor, James, Colin and Ann, and to all the Tener and Baker families as we mark the passing of our dear friend Robert. I echo all the remarks of friends who enjoyed the gracious and generous Tener hospitality from the moment we all first set foot at the University of Calgary to the help in troubled times and many times in between.

For me, lots of memories abound: going to Hadrian’s Wall, visiting the Bronte home, Hampton Court, Stratford-upon-Avon, Verona and Venice (twice) where they helped me celebrate my 60th and 61st birthdays. When I am asked how I enjoyed x, y or z, I always quote Robert who said that I had no taste because I like everything. I am grateful that I got to like so many things in their company. They gave me the great privilege of being an unofficial member of the family.

For many years I had an office next to Bob's and we talked a lot. He was a great colleague and, the first day he I arrived in the university, he invited me to dinner at his house. He and Jean were war, generous and gracious hosts, and it was always fun to have dinner at their house. Without knowing it, Bob got me on track to finishing my Ph.D. by one remark, and I have been extremely grateful to him over the years, especially for his support for my starting Creative Writing, and for his often direct, though sometimes wry, sense of humour. I regarded both Bob and Jean to be friends and I shall miss them both. A warm, generous man who was, in a non-clichéd way, the exemplar of a scholar and a gentleman, and one of the stalwarts of that old English Department of the 1960s,which was a happy place to be.

When I came to the University of Calgary Department as a young faculty member, Jean and Bob Tener were very welcoming. I shall always remember his sense of humour; he often cheered everyone up on a stressful day.

I remember Robert Tener as an elegant and eloquent scholar who was generous and helpful to a new and very young colleague in the Department of English. His wry wit and his impressive knowledge were formidable.