Saint John Business Leader Hans W. Klohn Dies At 92
SAINT JOHN – Hans W. Klohn, a well-known local business leader, died Wednesday at the age of 92.
Klohn came to New Brunswick from Kiel, Germany, in 1952, where he began a decades-long relationship with K.C. Irving and the Irving family. At age 25, he came to Canada to oversee a structural steel contract for Irving Pulp & Paper and shortly afterward was appointed by K. C. Irving as the mill’s construction manager.
Klohn co-founded Ocean Steel and Construction Limited with K.C. Irving in 1955.
In a statement, John Irving, CEO of the OSCO Construction Group, praised Klohn as a great partner and friend to his father.
“Hans Klohn will be greatly missed by all of us who admire him and had the privilege of knowing and working with him,” said Irving. “I had the benefit of working with him for over 40 years and he was one of my father’s closest friends and an exceptional partner.”
According to Klohn’s obituary, the close connection between the families was memorialized in 2011 when, through the support of the families of Arthur and Jack Irving, the Hans W. Klohn Commons Building was opened at UNB Saint John directly across from K.C. Irving Hall.
Klohn was named an honorary life member of the Saint John Construction Association and selected by the Canadian Precast Prestressed Concrete Institute as a titan of the industry.
He was awarded an honorary degree from UNBSJ in 2011 and inducted as a member of the New Brunswick Business Hall of Fame.
Klohn supported many charities including the Lutheran Church, the Saint John Boys and Girls Club, the United Way, Romero House and the Children’s Wish Foundation.
Due to current circumstances surrounding public gatherings, a formal celebration of life will be held at a later date.
Tamara Steele is a reporter with Country 94/97.3 The Wave, a Huddle content partner.