Robert Lewis Grynoch was born on 20 October, 1912 in France, the son of Baruch Grynoch, an engineer and industrialist. He was educated in Paris and Strasbourg. He qualified MD Strasbourg in 1939 and obtained the Conjoint Diploma in 1948 followed by the FRCS in 1952. He held resident posts in Reims, Leeds General Infirmary, Otley General Infirmary and Bradford General Hospital and came under the influence of Digby Chamberlain and James Dawson. In 1954 he obtained his MD Alberta and his specialist certification of Canada in 1956. He became FRCS Canada in 1972. Grynoch served for seven years during the second world war as a Captain in the RAMC. After several house jobs in Canada, he became general surgeon at McLeod Municipal Hospital in Fort McLeod where he worked for the rest of his life. Grynoch had many extra-curricular interests including skiing, climbing, ice-hockey, and art, church work and the study of driftwood. His physical activities were considerably reduced following a severe coronary occlusion in 1959 but he continued with reduced clinical duty until the day before he died. In 1945 he had married Catherine Elizabeth Parsons and their three children all became medically qualified. He died on 11 December 1975, survived by his wife and family; John Richard, MD Toronto, Andrew Robert, MD Queen's University and Roberta Eve, MD Calgary, Alberta.