Many names were bandied around, as the group met to throw out suggestions. Southern Ontario Mathematics Institute for Mathematics? The Ontario Mathematics Institute? Not particularly inspiring, nor representative of the national spirit.

On one occasion, the group gathered at Carl Riehm’s Hamilton home. Prof. Riehm, a McMaster stalwart, was instrumental in getting the Institute off the ground and became the first Chairman of the Board. His wife, Elaine, a writer and local historian, often sat with the group as they deliberated.

As Prof. Riehm recalled in the Fields Institute Turns 25 retrospective, Elaine suddenly jumped up and suggested they name the new institute after John Charles Fields, the Hamilton-born mathematics professor who brought the ICM to Toronto in 1924 and created the Fields Medal.

Like all lightening-in-a-bottle moments, the group immediately recognized the brilliance of the name. Fields, whose actions established Canada as a place of mathematical seriousness and whose vision transformed the landscape of international mathematics through his idea for an award, remained a little-known figure outside small circles of academia.

Naming the institute after Fields drew attention to his contributions on the world stage, and evaded the problem of Ontario-centrism. Today, the Fields Institute is known around the world for its research excellence and welcoming environment, fulfilling the goals set out by the original group over 30 years ago.

This is just one of the many contributions Elaine made in her life. On March 29, 2025, she died after a brief illness, surrounded by loved ones.

Hers was a rich, full life of family, friendships, scholarship, community and achievement. Born in 1935 in Toronto, she went on to complete a degree in art history before marrying Carl and moving around the US as he built his academic career.

Returning to Canada, she raised her children and taught part-time. After a stint in local politics, she became Managing Editor of the Journal of Eighteenth-Century Fiction at McMaster. In 2011, she co-authored the definitive biography of John Charles Fields and, as a result, is considered his official biographer.

Last summer, we had the privilege of hearing Elaine deliver a talk about John Charles Fields during the Forward From the Fields Medal symposium. It was not lost on anyone that this was an event which could not have existed without her. Elaine appeared in fine form, and her talk was thorough and gripping. She posed afterward for a photograph with her book (see header photo), an image that has since become a treasured part of the Fields historiography.

Elaine is fondly remembered by the Fields and McMaster communities.

“I remember with great pleasure the many social occasions we enjoyed over the years with Carl and Elaine as friends and colleagues at McMaster. They are both greatly missed,” former Fields Director Ian Hambleton recalls.

Current Fields Director, Deirdre Haskell, who was also a McMaster colleague, adds, “I remember going into a coffee shop one day in Dundas, and admiring the elegant woman sitting nearby who was clearly taking her granddaughter out for lunch. They were having a wonderful time, and I suddenly realised that I knew her. Charming, warm, affectionate Elaine Riehm!  It was a privilege to know her.”