On Dec. 3, St. Mary’s County lost one of its most dedicated public servants. Denis David Canavan, Director of Land Use and Growth Management, tragically passed away. Canavan, 60 of Bel Air, Md., formerly of Rumson, NJ, died at his son's home in Havre de Grace, Md., after a hard fought battle with cancer.
 
Canavan began his position with St. Mary’s County in May 2003. Throughout the years, he led a team dedicated to improving the quality of life for St. Mary’s County residents.

Canavan’s St. Mary’s County colleagues and coworkers expressed that Canavan would be missed, both personally and professionally.

“Of the hundreds of people I have worked with over the course of my career, no one was better than Denis,” said John Savich, St. Mary’s County Administrator. “Planning and Zoning issues can be very emotional, but Denis was always unflappable. Not everyone would agree with his decisions, but he was the best. His [planning and zoning] experience enabled him to come up with answers. He was great.”

"I worked with Denis for just a year,” said Bob Schaller, Director of Economic and Community Development for St. Mary’s County. “He brought such experience to the office, he was very professional and really knew his trade.” Canavan’s colleague went on to say that Canavan was a pragmatic person in a very difficult position as the chief compliance officer, but that he handled every situation openly and honestly by explaining why he was making a decision to those that didn’t agree with his rulings. “He was a tremendous professional.”

Canavan earned his Bachelor’s Degree in Urban Planning in 1970 from Saint Anselm College, located in Manchester, NH and a MA Degree in Urban Planning and Public Policy Analysis in 1977 from Morgan State University, located in Baltimore.

The dedicated public servant became a nationally recognized expert on planning and farmland preservation issues during his career. Canavan received the National Agricultural Conservation Award from the American Farmland Trust; the National Award for Best Comprehensive Master Plan; Functional Master Plan for the Preservation of Agriculture and Rural Open Space from the American Planning Association and was a public speaker on planning and farmland preservation issues throughout the country.

Canavan’s exemplary career included Planning positions with Harford County, Montgomery County, the Maryland-National Capital Park and Planning Commission and Anne Arundel County.

Canavan of Bel Air, leaves behind his wife Barbara, son John and siblings Michael, Catherine, Marie and Maureen.
 
Services will be held at the family owned McComas Funeral Home, P.A., Bel Air on Sunday, Dec. 7 at 12 p.m.  Interment will be in Calvary Cemetery, Queens, NY.  Friends may call at the funeral home in Bel Air on Saturday, Dec. 6 from 2 to 5 p.m. and on Sunday from 10 a.m. to 12 p.m. prior to the service.

The family asks that In lieu of flowers, contributions may be made to the Golden Retriever Rescue, Gold Heart, P. O. Box 206, Mount Airy, MD 21771 or the Mason Dixon Bernese Mountain Dog Club.

Memory tributes may be sent to the family at mccomasfuneralhome.com.