Calvin W. Ruck was born in Sydney, Nova Scotia, and graduated from the Maritime School of Social Work at Dalhousie University. A member of many organizations, including the Society for the Protection and Preservation of Black culture in Nova Scotia, the Nova Scotia Association for the Advancement of Colored People, the North Preston Medical Child Care Society, and the East Preston Lions Club, he was actively involved in the area of human rights as a volunteer and a civil servant.