Alumni are spreading the Laurier spirit in western Canada

July 4, 2018

Last week, I travelled to western Canada to connect with Laurier alumni in Calgary and Vancouver and update them on Laurier’s growth and momentum in Ontario, and beyond.

I was pleased to see how passionate our alumni are about their alma mater and how they carry their memories and Laurier spirit with them, no matter how far they settle from our campuses.

In Calgary, I met an alumnus from 1968, celebrating his 50th year anniversary and another alumnus from 1971, celebrating 47 years as a Laurier grad. There were also alumni in both cities who had only graduated in the last couple of years. I met alumni from Arts, Business, Science and Social Work who shared nostalgic stories of their favourite courses and co-curricular experiences. It was inspiring to hear about the varied careers and volunteer activities our graduates are pursuing in business, not-for-profits and educational settings.

In both cities, our alumni were excited to hear about some of Laurier’s big changes, including the construction of the Lazaridis School of Business and Economics and completion of the YMCA on the Brantford campus. Everyone was excited about the recent announcement of Laurier’s growth into Milton and wanted to know more about the environmentally-focused STEAM programs we are developing there.

Our alumni reception at the Vancouver Aquarium was particularly poignant for me as I was born in Vancouver. I credit those early visits to the aquarium with piquing my interest in coastal ecosystems, which eventually led me to study fish biology.

Thank you to all of our alumni who came out to these special events. It is always moving to hear about how experiences at Laurier shaped our graduates. I want to especially thank Cindy and Trevor Gardner, our alumni hosts in Calgary, and Dolf DeJong, our alumnus host in Vancouver, for all their work in making these events a success.

I look forward to maintaining these important relationships in Calgary and Vancouver. Clearly, our alumni are inspiring lives of leadership and purpose in western Canada!