Born in Kamloops, British Columbia, the son of George Rista and Hilda Louise (McCrum), he received a B.A. from the University of British Columbia in 1944.
Born in Kamloops, British Columbia, the son of George Rista and Hilda Louise (McCrum), he attended Lord Byng Secondary School, graduating in 1940. He then received a B.A. from the University of British Columbia in 1944.