Saskatoon philanthropist Joe Remai remembered as a 'true community builder'

Joseph Remai, one of Saskatoon's best-known real estate developers and philanthropists, has died at the age of 89, his family confirms.

Remai, known as "Joe," died on June 12.

He grew up on a farm near Carrot River, northeast of Saskatoon, one of 11 children born to Hungarian immigrants. After getting an engineering degree, he co-founded Remai Construction along with his brother Frank in the early 1960s. 

"Joe started with basically nothing, and he had good fortune.… But I think it was his drive and determination that made him successful and enabled him to support the community," said Barry Remai, one of his sons.

He started by building schools and hospitals and eventually expanded to apartments, commercial spaces and hotels across Saskatchewan. 

He lived with Parkinson's disease for over a decade, but complications from a stroke in 2022 led to his declining health. Barry said his father was full of determination and energy, even in his 80s. 

"I remember I was at our office one day and I could hear this thumping.… There was some work that needed to be done on the roof of our office, and he'd climbed the ladder, about, you know, 15, 20 feet up," said Barry.

"Nothing scared him."

But beyond his work in construction, Joe Remai became a force in philanthropy in health, education, and community development. 

Premier Scott Moe, offering condolences to Remai's family in a post on social media, called him "a true community builder" whose impact will be felt far and wide.

Just last year, Remai made a $25-million donation to Saskatchewan Polytechnic — the largest from an individual in the school's history, it said — for the Joseph A. Remai Saskatoon Campus. 

"We are extremely grateful for Joe's transformative impact," Larry Rosia, Sask Polytech's president and CEO, said in a statement.

"Joseph A. Remai Saskatoon Campus and will benefit the lives of our students, their families, and Saskatchewan communities well into the future."

Sask Polytech also created the Joseph A. Remai Legacy Endowment Fund, which will offer long-term student support.

"He believed in education, in better health care, and in building a stronger future for all of us," Moe said. "His legacy will live on in the lives he touched and the communities he helped shape."

The Joseph Alfred Remai Family Foundation, founded in 2012, has funded projects across Saskatchewan, donating over $12 million over the years, according to its website.

"We're going to continue to support the community in ways that we think would sort of honour Joe's original vision for it. And I think he would be very happy to see that," Barry said. 

But what people didn't see is who Joe Remai was behind the scenes, said Barry: a father, a mentor and a man who loved laughter. 

"He was just a high-energy fellow with a great sense of humour," Barry said. "We're going to miss him dearly. And he had quite an impact on his family and everyone he knew." 

A service is set for June 27 in Saskatoon, an online obituary says.