Delmore “Buddy” Daye was born in New Glasgow, Nova Scotia in 1931. As a young man, he moved to Halifax and became a merchant mariner. He first came to public attention as a champion boxer. Always a popular and prominent member of Halifax’s African Nova Scotian community, he was involved in the formation of the city’s Neighbourhood Centre of which he became Program Director for Youth.

A firm believer that violence gets you nowhere, he negotiated with scores of bitter and frustrated young African Nova Scotian leaders and followers to seek solutions to their very real employment and living problems. In 1971, he was appointed Manager of Province House and on January 1, 1990 Buddy became the first African Nova Scotian to hold the post of Sergeant-at-Arms. Outside of his responsibilities, he was a Director of the Black United Front, a member of the Halifax Athletic Commission, a member of the Mental Health Association, and a member of the Company of Young Canadians. After his death in 1995, Halifax renamed Gerrish Street between Gottingen and Maynard Streets, to Buddy Daye Street.