Former Halifax mayor Ron Wallace dies

Ron Wallace, the longest-serving mayor of Halifax, has died at age 91.

Municipal Coun. Gloria McCluskey, a former mayor of Dartmouth, said Wallace will be remembered as a charming, lighthearted man with a smile that lit up his whole face.

"You always felt at ease when you were in his company," McCluskey told CBC News on Wednesday.

In fact, she said, Wallace was such a gentle man that she was surprised to learnhe wasonce aboxer.

"When we were leaving Dartmouth city hall, I found this framed picture of Ron Wallace in his boxing trunks in a boxing pose, and I found it hard to believe he was in that sport. I could never quite see Ron Wallace in the ring boxing and punching someone,"McCluskey said.

Wallace was an optometrist who served two terms as an MLAbeforeholding the mayor's jobfrom 1980 to 1991.

He was invested into the Order of Canada in 2001.

Wallace died at home Tuesday night after a recent cancer diagnosis. He leavesa wife, five children and 14 grandchildren.