NEILS, Eldor (Al) S.

Eldor (Al) S. Neils, 96, of Sun City Arizona, was born in Sauk Rapids, Minnesota. He spent many years in Edmonton and Lethbridge Alberta and moved permanently to Sun City in 1993. He passed away in his sleep on the morning of January 16, 2004. He attended Alberta College, the University of Washington, and the American College of Corporate Management. He started his career as a clerk and bartender in The Pincher Hotel in British Columbia. Al's long career included being the General Manager of eight major Breweries for Molson Canada. He also managed Malt Plants during Prohibition, and numerous large hotels and Soft Drink Plants. His responsibilities included the construction and management of Hockey arenas and major hockey clubs sponsored by Molson. His business career ended in 1972 as the Vice President of Molson Brewery Ltd, running all Molson operations in Alberta and Northwest Territories, Canada. Al was heavily involved in civic, and charitable groups throughout his life. Among his many activities were the Rotary Club, Director of the British Commonwealth Games, Chief Salary Negotiator for the University of Alberta, Chairman of the Klondike Days Association, Director of the Edmonton Chamber of Commerce, Director of the Citadel Theater, and the Canadian Institute of International Affairs. Al served proudly as a Captain in the Quartermasters Corps of the U.S. Army during World War II. He was, also, State and Province Champion in tennis and badminton, and remained an avid tennis and golf player during retirement and attended as many garage sales as possible. He is survived by his loving wife, Caroline, his devoted son Mark, sister Esther Fisher of Great Falls Montana, nephew William of Cottonwood, Arizona and his stepsons, Andrew, William and Laurance Dowd. Services were private. Published in the Arizona Republic on 1/21/2004.