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porticoU N I V E R S I T Y O F G U E L P H M A G A Z I N E F O R A L U M N I A N D F R I E N D S

Getting into

thegame

Getting into

thegame

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What will life teach you?

manulife.com/guelph/health

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Premium is for a 40-year-old adult on Base Health & Dental Plan. Tax deduction assumes 40% marginal rate. Table is for illustrative purposes only and is not meant to be representative of every situation. You should seek the advice of a professional to determine your eligibility for tax deductions.

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i n and around the un ivers i ty

U of G launches anew master’s degree

in public health andreports on research thatdocuments the danger ofBPA in baby bottles, howcaptivity shortens the lifeof elephants and whyjealousy rages on Face-book. Students travel toWashington, England andTanzania to make theirvoices heard.

a lumni mat ters

A U of G grad student tells how

her research uncovered anew Kenyan inventionand how a scholarshipdonation made it possible.Alumni Affairs andDevelopment prepares for Alumni Weekend June19 and 20, and the Schoolof Hospitality andTourism Managementgets ready to celebrate its 40th birthday.

424

3 — president’s page • grad news — 28 • passages — 37

on the coverThese varsity Gryphons areamong U of G’s first athleticscholarship recipients.Photos by Kyle Rodriguez; Photoillustration by Paul Watson

contentst h e p o r t i c o • S u m m e r 2 0 0 9

— 13 —

THE OTHER U OF GThe University of Guelph has played a small

but important role in the development of its African cousin,the University of Ghana.

— 20 —

BUSINESS IS BETTER THAN AIDA Guelph grad who went to Africa in a

development role has turned to entrepreneurship and discovereda whole new way to belong and make a difference.

— 23 —

RESTORING A GEMWho knew that hidden in the ceiling of Macdonald Institute

was a shimmering architectural gem?

— 8 — cover story

GIVE STUDENT ATHLETES ASPORTING CHANCE

After decades of playing at a disadvantage, U of G varsity teams now have the go-ahead to offer athletic scholarships

to new recruits. It’s a positive note in the sour financial symphony facing U of G.

ALUMNINEWSLETTERSSEE PAGE 18

491167_PG1_7_m01.qxp 4/17/09 8:37 AM Page 1

2 The Portico

porticoSummer 2009 • Volume 41 Issue 2

EditorMary Dickieson

DirectorCharles Cunningham

Art DirectionPeter Enneson Design Inc.

ContributorsBarbara Chance, BA ’74Barry GunnLori Bona HuntWendy JespersenRebecca Kendall, BA ’99Teresa PitmanSPARK Program WritersAndrew Vowles, B.Sc. ’84

Advertising InquiriesScott Anderson519-827-9169

Direct all other correspondence to:Communications and Public AffairsUniversity of GuelphGuelph, Ontario, Canada N1G 2W1E-mail m.dickieson@exec.uoguelph.cawww.uoguelph.ca/theportico/

The Portico magazine is published three timesa year by Communications and PublicAffairs at the University of Guelph. Its mis-sion is to enhance the relationship betweenthe University and its alumni and friendsand promote pride and commitment with-in the University community.All materialis copyright 2009. Ideas and opinionsexpressed in the articles do not necessarilyreflect the ideas or opinions of the Univer-sity or the editors.Publications Mail Agreement # 40064673

Printed in Canada — ISSN 1714-8731

To update your alumni record, contact:Alumni Affairs and DevelopmentPhone 519-824-4120, Ext. 56550Fax 519-822-2670E-mail alumnirecords@uoguelph.ca

the

Make another educated choice...Bring your colleagues home

For more information, visit our web site:

www.conferences.uoguelph.ca

or contact us directly:

Tel: 519-824-4120 ext. 52353

E-mail: @hrs.uoguelph.ca

Do you have a conferenceor meeting in the nearfuture? Your alma materis the ideal location.

Our beautiful 850 acre campus

is known for its tree-lined

walkways and magnificent

architecture. This picturesque

scenery is the perfect location

for conferences or meetings of

any size.

Everything you need is all

housed on one campus:

• Accommodations

• Meeting Facilities

• Audio Visual

• Catering

• Printing Services

• Registration Services

(off-site available)

We look forward towelcoming you back!

OUR PLAN IS TO WALKALL OVERWESTERNHomecoming 2009

• Date — Sept. 26• Game time — 2 p.m.• Family fun — All day

www.alumni.uoguelph.ca

10%

491167_PG1_7_m00.qxp 4/14/09 1:51 PM Page 2

I t has been sa id that timing is every-thing, and this old adage is certainly ringing

true for individuals and organizations all overthe world, including the University of Guelph.We’re in the midst of one of the most turbulenteconomic periods in recent history. Like mostsectors in Canada,universities have been severe-ly affected by the global financial challenges.AtU of G, we are better prepared to weather thisstorm because of our multi-year planning processand the effort made to integrate financial plan-ning with academic goals and physical resources.Yet, the complexity and size of our projectedshortfall are unprecedented, largely the result ofthe continuing decline in both global financialmarkets and economic growth.

Many of the decisions that we’re making,whether they affect investments, academic pro-grams or staffing levels, are prompted by thecurrent state of our financial affairs.We haveestablished a new website at www.uoguelph.ca/president/budget to keep the University com-munity apprised of the budget challenges weface and how we are dealing with them. Iinvite you to visit our site to monitor the University’ssituation in the months ahead.

One of the most challenging things about navigatingthrough difficult times is that you must always wear a pairof figurative bifocals: staying focused on the present whilekeeping an eye on the future. Indeed, we’ve had to makesome difficult choices in the past several months to ensurethe University’s ongoing fiscal sustainability and set theinstitution on a course for long-term recovery.

Among other things, we will not offer some of ourendowed scholarships and bursaries this fall as a resultof significant diminishing investment returns. Since May2008, U of G has seen a $39-million decrease in themarket values of its endowments. Many other universi-ties in Canada and North America are in a similar sit-uation and have already taken this step.

Only 17 per cent of the University’s scholarships andbursaries are supported by endowments, so the vastmajority of our student assistance — 83 per cent — isnot affected by this decision. Nevertheless, there aresome 600-plus endowed scholarships that are “underwater,” which means there is no investment funding leftand the capital is in danger of encroachment. It isabsolutely essential that we protect the long-term via-bility of these endowment funds.

While prudent, the decision comes with great regret

because we know these awards are extremely importantto the students who receive them. In tough economictimes, even a modest scholarship can literally and figur-atively change a student’s life.You’ll hear that sentimentagain from some of our student athletes who are fea-tured in this issue of The Portico.Their coaches and theGuelph alumni who have endowed athletic scholarshipsprovide the longer view.

These donors know that one of the wisest invest-ments a person can make is to strengthen the things thatwill sustain us in the years to come.And the ideas, inven-tions and discoveries that will transform our future liein the minds of today’s students and those still too youngto enrol at the University of Guelph. Helping them tapinto that potential through the knowledge and experi-ences that university brings is paramount.

Now is the right time to adjust our bifocals to ensurethat whatever we do to weather these tough economictimes,we must always look to the University’s long-stand-ing commitments to give our students the best possibleeducation, build our research base, strengthen our part-nerships, open our doors to the world and create oppor-tunities for lifelong learning.By building on these strengths,we will emerge a stronger, more efficient university.

Alastair Summerlee

President

Summer 2009 3

the president’s pageGUELPH MATTERS — MORE NOW THAN EVER BEFORE

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A new Guelph-flavoured masterof public health (MPH) program will

draw on U of G research strengths, includ-ing expertise in epidemiology and infec-tious diseases, to help keep people healthyin Ontario, Canada and abroad.The newtwo-year degree program was approved byU of G’s Senate in 2008 and receivedapproval early this year from the OntarioCouncil on Graduate Studies.

As one of 20 new graduate programsin public health being established at insti-tutions across Canada, Guelph’s new offer-ing is the only one in Ontario availablethrough a veterinary school.

Whereas other MPH programs focus onpolicy or human health, students in theOntario Veterinary College program willlearn about epidemiology; environmentalpublic health; infectious diseases; and zoonot-ic, food-borne and water-borne diseases.

Prof.Andrew Papadopoulos, Popula-tion Medicine, is the program’s co-ordi-nator.A former public health professionalwith the City of Toronto, he now belongsto the University’s Centre for PublicHealth and Zoonoses.

Papadopoulos says it’s important toconnect animal and human health toensure food and water safety and to helpprevent and control diseases such as birdflu and severe acute respiratory syndrome(SARS). He says his experience during the2002/03 SARS outbreak “showed us thatthe health system had good trained peo-ple on the ground, but we needed to stepback to look at the system. The publichealth system needs people to think at aglobal level.”

Papadopoulos expects that 60 per centof the program’s students will be recentGuelph grads.

LIVING LIBRARYBREAKS DOWN BARRIERS

O ntario ’s f irst living library washeld March 5 and 6 at the Univer-

sity of Guelph. On those two days, the“books” checked out by participants werehuman beings, including a person livingwith a physical disability, a gay man, a Mus-lim woman, a cancer survivor and the vic-tim of a violent crime.

This was only the second time such anevent had been held in Canada.The con-cept started in Denmark in 2000, with thegoal of breaking down barriers betweendifferent groups of people.That’s why the“books” in a living library tend to bemembers of groups that frequently faceprejudice, stereotyping or social exclusion.

“It creates a forum for constructiveconversations on contentious issues,” saysJulia Chapman, who was editor of TheOntarion when she brought the event toGuelph.“We need to step up and realizethat different opinions exist, different beliefsexist and we should be respectful of this.”

An English and biology major, Chap-man volunteered as an Ontarion writer forthree years before accepting the positionof news editor. She plans to pursue a mas-ter’s degree in journalism.

4 The Portico

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&Public health master’sdegree gets nod

in around p e o p l e • r e s e a r c h • h i g h l i g h t s

Julia Chapman

Hillier honoured by CMEOn behalf of the College of Manage-ment and Economics, U of G presidentAlastair Summerlee presented retired Cana-dian general and chief of defence staff RickHillier with the Lincoln Alexander Out-standing Leader Award Jan. 13. Hillier washonoured for his exceptional abilities as acommunicator and for improving theimage and sustainability of the Forces.

Andrew Papadopoulos

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the

F emale elephants living in pro-tected populations in Africa and Asia

live longer than those in captivity inEuropean zoos, according to newresearch by an international team of sci-entists led by Guelph animal scienceprofessor Georgia Mason. Since thestudy was published Dec. 12 in Science,the world’s leading journal of scientificresearch, Mason has been quoted inmore than 1,000 major newspapers,magazines and broadcast news reportsaround the world.

The findings could mark the end ofa long-standing debate about the phys-ical and mental well-being of zoo ele-phants, and may also bring aboutimprovements in how these animals arekept.

“This is the first animal welfare paperto get into Science,” says Mason, whoholds the Canada Research Chair inAnimal Welfare and is an associated fac-ulty member in U of G’s CampbellCentre for the Study of Animal Welfare.

“These kinds of questions often gen-

erate more heat than light, and ourresearch shows what can be found outby analysing objective data.We hope itprovides a model for tackling similarissues with other species.”

Using data on more than 4,500 ele-phants, the researchers found evidencethat zoos cause shortened adult life spansin both African and Asian elephants. Inthe most endangered species (Asian), calfdeath rates were also elevated. For thisspecies, the researchers found that beingborn into a zoo (rather than beingimported from the wild), being movedbetween zoos and the possible loss of theirmother all put animals at particular risk.

The authors recommend screening allzoo elephants to identify individuals thatmight be in trouble.Until these animals’problems can be solved, they also call foran end to the importation of elephantsfrom their native countries and for min-imization of inter-zoo transfers.They alsosuggest that elephant breeding be restrict-ed to zoos that exhibit no harmful effectsin their captive-born animals.

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Study of Europeanzoos raises concernsabout elephant health

FACEBOOK JEALOUSY

A new study by University of Guelph

researchers finds that Facebook creates

jealousy and suspicion in romantic and sexual

relationships. The study, which appeared in the

journal CyberPsychology and Behavior, is the first

to provide evidence of a link between Facebook

use and jealousy.

“Facebook gives people access to informa-

tion about their partner that may otherwise not

be accessible,” says Amy Muise, who con-

ducted the study with Emily Christofides. Both

are PhD students in the Department of Psy-

chology working with Prof. Serge Desmarais.

Muise and Christofides surveyed 308 Face-

book users, all university students between the

ages of 17 and 24. At the time of the survey,

about half were in a serious relationship. Near-

ly 75 per cent said they had previous romantic

or sexual partners as “friends” on Facebook,

and close to 80 per cent reported that their part-

ner also had previous partners as “friends.”

In addition to verifying an explicit link between

jealousy and Facebook use, the study found

that the more time people spend online, the

more suspicious they become. Most study par-

ticipants knew that reading personal informa-

tion on Facebook increased feelings of jealousy,

but they said the social networking website is

simply too hard to resist, especially the temp-

tation to monitor their partner’s page.

Summer 2009 5

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A s a mom, Andrea Edginton, B.Sc. ’99

and PhD ’04, says it was an easy choice.

Her son was about 12 months old when she

pitched his feeding bottles last year and bought

new ones, following Health Canada’s

announcement of plans to ban plastic bottles

containing the chemical bisphenol A (BPA).

Recalling her decision, she says: “The alter-

natives are there, so why not use them?”

But as a scientist who studies how the

body gets rid of substances, she had linger-

ing questions. What exactly was the problem

with BPA in newborns and youngsters?

Edginton is a faculty member at the Uni-

versity of Waterloo’s pharmacy school. But fig-

uring out BPA led her back to Guelph’s Depart-

ment of Environmental Biology, where she had

studied environmental toxicology for her under-

graduate degree and explored the impact of

herbicides on frogs for her PhD.

Here she joined forces with Prof. Len Ritter,

who studies human health aspects of toxicol-

ogy, and together they discovered that “mom’s

instincts” had been correct. They found that,

compared with adults, newborns and infants

may have up to 11 times as much BPA in their

bodies. The chemical has been linked to can-

cer and reproductive and behavioural problems.

Their study appeared late last year in Envi-

ronmental Health Perspectives, published by

the National Institute of Environmental Health

Sciences in the United States. The paper, list-

ing Edginton as senior author, supports

Ottawa’s move to ban the substance in plas-

tic baby bottles and suggests the industry look

for replacement products.

“I would advise a pregnant woman to try

to reduce or entirely eliminate her exposure to

bisphenol A,” says Ritter, who is executive

director of the Canadian Network of Toxicol-

ogy Centres based at U of G.

BPA is found in many everyday products,

U of G students Normand Doan, Lauren Wallace, Richard Gilbert and Taryn Guldborg, along

with Wallace’s aunt Cathy Wallace, reached the summit of Mount Kilimanjaro in Tanzania Dec.

23, an effort aimed at raising money to fight HIV/AIDS and boosting awareness of the disease.

The team raised more than $14,000 that will go to Guelph’s Masai Project to build an AIDS

clinic in Lesotho. From left: Doan, Cathy and Lauren Wallace, Gilbert and Guldborg.

6 The Portico

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• David Lawless, a first-year biochemistrystudent at U of G,was one of three youngCanadians selected to represent the coun-try at an international gathering of youngleaders and activists held in England in Jan-uary.More than 40 countries were repre-sented at the annual Road to Davos Con-ference sponsored by the British Council.

• Daniele Magditsch, a third-year envi-ronmental biology student, attended theinauguration of U.S. President BarackObama with a group of outstanding uni-versity students from around the worldas part of the University PresidentialInauguration Conference. She was cho-sen because of her leadership skills andher attendance at the 2004 Global YoungLeaders Conference when she was ahigh school student in Brampton, Ont.

• Business students Jaclyn Bell, GraemeClose, Joshua Nasielski, MichelleSiman and Marc Tytus raised $10,000for the national “5 Days for the Home-less” fundraiser.They slept outside andrelied on donated meals from March 16to 20.

Guelph students go where it’s happening

Andrea Edginton

in around universityGet rid ofBPA

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including baby bottles, liquid formula con-

tainers and food cans, as well as reusable

water bottles. The substance can leach

from containers and be ingested.

Reports have suggested that expo-

sure to BPA can interfere with the normal

working of hormones in people and ani-

mals. Studies have linked BPA exposure

to cancer, early onset of female sexual

maturity, male fertility problems, impaired

learning and behavioural problems.

Edginton’s interest in toxicokinetics —

how a substance gets into the body and

what happens to it there — began during

her Guelph studies and continued in a

previous position with the systems biolo-

gy group at Bayer Technology Services in

Germany. Her current research looks at

what happens to a chemical inside a liv-

ing organism. In particular, she examines

how the physiology of children affects the

pharmacokinetics of drugs and how this

information can be used to optimize drug

therapies.

The BPA results reported by Edginton

and Ritter have been confirmed by anoth-

er Environmental Health Perspectives

study published last year that used human

subjects. It found that BPA levels in chil-

dren were 10 times higher than in adults.

“It was exactly what we had predict-

ed,” says Ritter. “Governments need to

move quickly to reduce or eliminate expo-

sure as much as possible, especially in

sensitive populations. And industry needs

to develop alternatives. The target, espe-

cially in sensitive populations, is zero.”

Health Canada is currently writing reg-

ulations to ban polycarbonate baby bot-

tles containing BPA. Canada is the first

country to move to ban the substance in

these containers.

NOTEWORTHY• U of G chancellor Pamela Wallin is

one of Canada’s newest senators,

appointed in December by Prime

Minister Stephen Harper. She will

continue her role at the University

along with her new Senate duties.

• During convocation ceremonies

Feb. 17 and 18, honorary degrees

were presented to U of G chancel-

lor emeritus and former Ontario lieu-

tenant-governor Lincoln Alexan-

der, hydrogeologist Frank Rovers,

aboriginal advocate Mary Simon

and agriculturist Jack Wilkinson.

Guelph lawyer and former Board of

Governors member Robin-Lee Nor-

ris, BA ’80, was named an Hon-

orary Fellow of the University.

• Psychology professor Boyer Win-

ters, who was featured in the last

issue of The Portico, has received

a $315,922 research grant from the

Canada Foundation for Innovation.

He is working to understand mem-

ory at the anatomical, cellular and

molecular levels to learn how and

why these mechanisms break

down.

• Dave Scott-Thomas, B.Sc. ’88,

head coach of cross-country and

track and field at U of G, was

named Male Newsmaker of the

Year by the Guelph Mercury. He

was recognized both for his award-

winning coaching at the University

and for forming the Speed River

Track and Field Club.

• Guelph MPP Liz Sandals

announced Feb. 27 that the Ontario

government will invest $3.62 million

at U of G over the next three years

to provide support for 231 new

graduate students in high-demand

sectors such as engineering and

environmental studies.

• The Ontario Universities’ Application

Centre reported that applications for

fall 2009 are up 4.6 per cent at U of

G and 17 per cent at the University

of Guelph-Humber — the highest

overall increase in the province.

Summer 2009 7

Homicideexpert goesinternational

S ociology professor MyrnaDawson made headlines in Aus-

tralia recently when she gave a keynoteaddress and presented research papersat the first International Conference onHomicide.

Dawson was interviewed aboutmajor initiatives that have occurred inCanada over the past three decades tar-geting intimate-partner violence andhomicide, as well as the changing crim-inal justice response to these crimes.

She is a member of the OntarioDomestic Violence Death ReviewCommittee, which assists in reviewingdeaths that occur as a result of domes-tic violence and in making recom-mendations to prevent such deaths inthe future. Several states in Australia areconsidering such initiatives.

Dawson was recently named theCanada Research Chair in Public Pol-

icy in Criminal Justice by the federalgovernment. She will receive $100,000a year for five years to examine theeffectiveness of violence prevention ini-tiatives, specifically those targeted atdomestic violence.

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Myrna Dawson

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It’s Time to Give Students a Sporting Chance

We werelosingpotentialathletes toschoolsthat couldoffer themfinancialassistance

We werelosingpotentialathletes toschoolsthat couldoffer themfinancialassistance

It’s Time to Give Students a Sporting Chance

Gryphonathletes andscholarshipdonorsappear inphotos by KyleRodriguez

PhotoIllustration byPaul Watson

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Summer 2009 9

By Lori Bona Hunt

E ric Vanderwey is a long wayfrom home, but at least theweather in Ontario this win-

ter made him feel as though he’d nev-er left Manitoba.“Minus 25 is cold nomatter where you are,” the six-foot,five-inch outside hitter for theGryphon men’s volleyball team sayswith a grin.

Today is one of those chilly days,and it’s the team’s last practice beforeheading to the Ontario University Ath-letics (OUA) quarter finals.Vanderweyis warming up with Ryan Killeen,another outside hitter who nearlymatches him in height but whose shag-gy blond locks are a stark contrast tothe Winnipeg native’s close-croppeddark brown hair.

Vanderwey, a second-year physicalsciences student, joined the Gryphonsin 2007 as one of the most heavilyrecruited volleyball players in the coun-try.A top-ranked high school player, heled his team to a top-four finish inManitoba and was a provincial All-Star.

Killeen, a rookie and a bachelor ofcommerce student, isn’t so far from hishome. He came to Guelph from justdown the road in Oakville. He, too, wasa highly sought-after athlete after play-ing at St. Ignatius of Loyola SecondarySchool and for the Mountain AthleticClub Team, whose entire starting line-up was pursued by Canadian Interuni-versity Sport (CIS) teams.

Also on the court today is the per-son who helped bring the pair toGuelph in more ways than one: assist-ant coach Larry Pearson. Both Vander-wey and Killeen were recruited byPearson and head coach Cal Wigston.The young athletes were swayed topick U of G after being offered athlet-ic scholarships that recognize both ath-letic and academic excellence.Thosescholarships were made possible becauseof Pearson.

A Guelph graduate, former varsityathlete and retired automotive execu-

tive, Pearson gave U of G $1.1 millionin the spring of 2007 to fund scholar-ships and enhance athletic facilities. Itwas the largest single donation evermade to the Department of Athleticsand among the largest individual dona-tions received by the University.

Pearson, who played volleyball forthe Gryphons until graduating with adegree in mathematics in 1972, wasinspired to make the gift for many rea-sons, including a desire to recognize theimportant role sports played in his life.And as a coach, he knew first-hand thatscholarships are vital to recruitment andthat U of G was sadly lagging in thisarea.“We were certainly losing poten-tial better athletes to schools that couldoffer them scholarships,” he says.

It was a complex problem with mul-tiple causes. For starters,Ontario,whichis home to more CIS schools than anyother province, limits scholarships to$3,500 a year (about half the tuition fora typical year). Most provinces are notas restrictive, so other schools, especial-ly those in Western and Atlantic Canada,tend to be more aggressive (and suc-cessful) when it comes to wooing ath-letes with scholarships.

In addition, Ontario didn’t allowentering students to receive athleticscholarships until 2007,even though suchawards were available to entering stu-dents in other provinces for many years.

Ontario also has more stringent aca-demic standards for its athletes. Enter-ing students must have an 80-per-centaverage to qualify, and all students mustmaintain a 70-per-cent average oncein university — five per cent higherthan in the rest of Canada.

And to top it off,U of G didn’t offerscholarships to any student athletes —entering or continuing — until 2006.

“When I joined U of G in 2004,wewere one of only two universities thatdidn’t have athletic scholarships,” saysTom Kendall,director of the Departmentof Athletics. It was a “philosophical deci-sion” made by University leaders at thetime, he says.

491167_PG8_23_m01.qxp 4/17/09 10:56 AM Page 9

That combination of factors meantGuelph was far behind other universities inboth resources and recruitment, and it wassomething Kendall set out to change. Hecame to U of G with more than 35 years ofexperience in athletics management, coach-ing, recruiting, teaching and chairing uni-versity departments in three countries. Mostrecently, he had been director of athleticsand recreation at St. Francis Xavier Univer-sity, which has a reputation for being amongthe most forceful universities when it comesto flexing the scholarship muscle.

“It took me about two years at Guelphto convince people that we simply couldn’tcompete recruitment-wise if we didn’t havescholarships,” says Kendall. Because of theUniversity’s financial restraints, he knew thebulk of scholarship dollars would have tocome from the outside, primarily alumniwith a connection to Gryphon athletics.

One of the first key relationships hedeveloped was with Pearson, who had beenan avid supporter of U of G, financially andotherwise, for many years.

“It was clear athletics needed a boost,”says Pearson.“We needed to do a better jobof recruiting and a better job of finding waysto get the athletes we were losing to otherschools.”

Academically, Guelph could hold its ownin the recruitment game, he says.“We had atrack record of being a good institution witha good menu of courses and curriculum.”What it didn’t have was scholarships. “Iwanted to help find a way to take volleyballto the next level. I thought if we could offerthe students some money, we could beequally in the running.”

It worked.The scholarships attracted starplayers like Vanderwey, who received one ofthe inaugural Pearson scholarships, andKilleen and even led to U of G being pur-sued by high-level players.

“We’re starting to receive calls and e-mails and having kids who are interested inplaying for us show up at the gym,” saysPearson.“That’s probably the best feedbackwe can get — we’re on the other side of thewindow now.”

In 2008, the men’s volleyball team camethird at the OUA championships after mak-ing its first playoff appearance since2003/2004.This year, the team made it tothe semi-finals, losing to McMaster, the

defending champion.Men’s volleyball isn’t the only sport ben-

efiting from U of G’s expanding scholarshipprogram. Less than three years after the firstathletic scholarships were created, the Uni-versity has 10 named awards.This academ-ic year, 53 athletes received some form offinancial support thanks to proceeds froman athletics endowment. Scholarships rangefrom $750 to $3,500 a year.

It’s a good start, but more needs to bedone, says Kendall. U of G has some 30varsity sports and more than 660 studentathletes, so 53 financial awards amount toonly about eight per cent of student athletes.It’s simply not enough, he says.

“The demands on student athletes todayare huge. Between training, practices andgames and carrying a full class load anddoing well in school, there’s no time to geta part-time job.And there’s a huge differ-ence in the cost of an education today thanin the past.”

Look at the schedule of figure skater San-dra McCubbin, for example. In addition toeight hours a week on the ice, the second-year biological sciences student spends atleast 10 hours a week in the gym to main-tain her fitness level and the better part ofevery weekend at competitions during theskating season. Plus she’s taking five cours-es in a high-demand program.

“I don’t have time to fit much else in,”says McCubbin, who grew up in Barrie,Ont., and was a member of the CanadianJunior National Synchronized Skating Team.

Luckily, she has a scholarship, albeit notone specifically for athletics. She holds U ofG’s most prestigious entrance award, a Pres-ident’s Scholarship. It requires recipients toexcel academically (they must maintain an80-per-cent average) and hold leadershippositions on campus and in the communi-ty. She is involved in numerous environ-mental initiatives in addition to her sport.

“I can’t imagine going to school, skating,training and having to work,” says McCub-bin.“I feel extremely fortunate about thescholarship I received, and I don’t take it forgranted. If I didn’t have it, working to affordschool would have to be the priority, and Iwould have to give up skating for sure.”

Second-year human kinetics major Alli-son Leslie also knows first-hand the timesqueeze involved in being a student athlete.

An internationally ranked wrestler, shespends two hours a day at practice duringthe season, which runs from September toMarch, plus additional hours running andtraining in the gym. During the summer,she trains for the world championships,which are usually held in August.

Last year, Leslie qualified for the WorldJunior Championships in Turkey after win-ning the Canadian Junior Wrestling Cham-pionships. She also captured a silver medalat the OUA championships in the women’sjunior 67-kilogram weight class and fin-ished fourth at the CIS tournament.Thisyear, she won an OUA gold medal andcame fifth at CIS.

“There isn’t much of a break — it’s pret-ty much a 12-month sport,” says Leslie, whoalso juggles four courses a semester.

In her rookie year, she had two scholar-ships: $1,500 from the Department of Ath-letics and the Bob McLeod Scholarship, a$750 award given to a national championwho has excelled both academically and inwrestling. She didn’t need a scholarship thisyear because she was “carded,” which meansshe received direct financial support fromthe Ontario Athletes Assistance Programbecause of her excellent performance atnational and international levels.

But having scholarships in her rookieyear was crucial, says Leslie, who hails fromFergus, Ont. Not only did it help financial-ly, but it also made her feel that U of G wasrecognizing her talent and ability.

“I was being recruited by other schoolsand was even offered scholarships worthmore money, but the fact that Guelph alsooffered me something helped affirm mychoice. I know I couldn’t have made a bet-ter decision. This is the best club in thecountry with the best coaches. I know I willhave more success here than anywhere else.”

Kendall says building up Guelph’s schol-arship repertoire will lead to more studentswith multiple choices and offers coming toU of G, students like Leslie and footballGryphon James Savoie.

Regarded as the top defensive back inthe country when he was playing for hisNiagara Falls, Ont., high school, Savoie couldhave gone anywhere.“I was being recruit-ed by every university in the country,” saysthe second-year student.“It came down tothe program and the scholarship.”

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The program is landscape architecture, aperfect fit for Savoie, who is the son of a car-penter and likes to work with both his mindand his hands.The scholarship is the WilliamWeber Football Award, created by the not-ed 1950s Gryphon quarterback.

Savoie says the financial assistance is help-ful, but he also likes the scholarship’s accom-panying academic requirements and the con-nection it gives him to Weber.“I’m a studentathlete but a student first,”he says, adding thathe spends just as much time on his school-work as he does on his sport.During the foot-ball season, that amounts to about 35 hours aweek with practices, games and workouts.

“I love the fact that I have to keep a cer-tain grade average to keep the scholarship.I not only want to get good grades, but Ialso want to get a good job, and the schol-arship is a huge incentive for me to keep ontop of school.”

Savoie wrote Weber a thank-you letterwhen he first received the scholarship andhad an opportunity to meet him in personin 2008 when Weber’s team was inductedinto the Gryphon Hall of Fame (Weber wasinducted individually in 2003).

“Getting to meet Bill was really great,”says Savoie. “I’m so thankful to him; hehelped me make one of the best decisionsin my life coming to Guelph. I’ve neverdoubted it and I’ve never looked back.”

He adds that Weber’s connection toGryphon football makes the scholarshipespecially meaningful.“He lived the studentathlete life, and his knowing how difficult itcan be makes it even more special. Thescholarship is like he’s saying: ‘I know, I’vebeen there and I want to help you out.’”

That’s exactly what Weber, a Chicagoveterinarian, had in mind when he estab-lished the award.“I learned a long time agothat you have to have a lot of good peoplearound you all pulling on the rope in thesame direction,” he says.“Football helpedme develop a winning attitude and taughtme about teamwork, and I’ve carried itthrough my entire life. Everything I do nowI do from a team perspective, whether itinvolves family or my practice.”

Weber, who graduated from the OntarioVeterinary College in 1959, says lessonslearned on the Gryphon football field camecourtesy of his coaches, people like ChuckBelchamber,Tom Mooney and Jay Fry.

The demands on student athletes todayare huge

491167_PG8_23_m00.qxp 4/14/09 1:32 PM Page 11

GRYPHON STANDINGS2008 / 09

ACADEMIC

ALL-CANADIANS

■ Brae Anne McArthur

(track and field), CIS

Desjardins Top 8 Aca-

demic All-Canadian

recipient

BASEBALL

Missed OUA playoffs

BASKETBALL

■ Women — defeated in

OUA quarter-final game

■ Individual — Samantha

Russell named OUA

West Rookie of the Year

■ Men — defeated in

OUA playoffs

CROSS-COUNTRY

Historically — 13 national

titles

■ Women — gold at OAU

(5th consecutive) and

CIS championships (4th

consecutive)

■ Men — gold at OAU

(4th consecutive) and

CIS championships

■ Individual — Matt

Brunsting, CIS cross-

country athlete of the

year

FIELD HOCKEY

OAU silver medallists,

4th in CIS tournament.

Gryphons lead OUA

schools with five athletes

receiving Quest for Gold

■ Individual — Jessalyn

Walkey joins national

team

FIGURE SKATING

Gold at 2008 / 09 OUA

championships — first

title since 1993 / 94

FOOTBALL

Defeated in OUA quarter-

finals

GOLF

■ Women — 7th at OUA

championships

■ Men — 4th at OUA

championships

HOCKEY

■ Women — silver at

OUA championships

■ Individual — Tamara

Bell named OUA

Rookie of the Year,

Dayna Kanis wins

Marion Hillard Award

as outstanding student

athlete.

LACROSSE

■ Women — missed

OUA playoffs

■ Men — gold at Cana-

dian championships

NORDIC SKIING

■ Women — 4th at

Nordic OUA champi-

onships

■ Men — 3rd at OUA

championships

Overall best season ever

ROWING

■ Women — Kerith Gor-

don and Samantha

Fairle earn bronze at

OUA championships,

Julia Bruzzese

advances to Canadian

rowing championships

in single skulls

■ Men — Jakub

Kwiecinski advances

to Canadian rowing

championships in

single skulls

RUGBY

■ Women — gold at OUA

tournament, bronze at

CIS; eight OUA titles in

last 13 years

■ Men — defeated in

OUA quarter-finals

SOCCER

■ Women —missed

OUA playoffs

■ Men — defeated in

OUA West quarter-finals

SWIMMING

■ Women — 4th at

OUA championships,

9th at CIS

■ Men — 5th at OUA

championships, 9th

at CIS

■ Individual — Chantique

Payne, CIS silver medal

in 50-metre butterfly

TRACK & FIELD

■ Women — gold at

2009 OUA champi-

onships, silver at CIS

finals

■ Men — silver at 2009

OUA championships,

bronze at CIS finals

■ Individual — Lindsay

Carson named CIS

Female Track Athlete

of the Year, Kyle

Boorsma named OUA

track events MVP, Rob

Jackson receives CIS

Student Athlete Com-

munity Service Award

VOLLEYBALL

■ Women — missed

OUA playoffs

■ Men — 5th in OUA

standings

■ Individual — Gabe

Degroot named OUA

Libero of the Year

WRESTLING

■ Women — 4th at OUA

championships

■ Men — 3rd at OUA

championships

“Chuck would always tell me:‘You haveto keep in shape on the athletic field to keepin shape in the classroom.’And Jay wouldsay:‘Weber, you have to want it.You have tohave a goal and you have to want it.’Thereis no doubt they influenced my life.”

The academic rigours of Guelph’s vet-erinary program also had a positive effect,says Weber.“I had good study habits; I wasvery focused. I always knew I wanted to bea vet, even though my mother wanted meto go to McMaster and study theology.”

He also wanted to play football, but healmost didn’t get the chance. On his first dayof practice, he was pulled off the field andsent to see the principal of OVC, who saidthe rigours of the veterinary program madeit impossible to be both an OVC student andan athlete.“I had to convince them I couldbe a good student and play football. It wasan arduous beginning, but it didn’t deter me.”

Weber went on to lead his team to theOntario-Quebec Athletic Association titlein both 1955 and 1958.

Pearson shares Weber’s sentiments aboutthe student-athlete experience.“I was luckyto be involved in many sports and to be partof some successful teams. I’ve certainlyenjoyed what that does for you as a person.”

Pearson, who lost his son Jason, an avidathlete, in a 2001 automobile accident, sayshe has gained much from the young peoplehe coaches and supports at U of G.

“Of course, they can’t take Jason’s place,but helping them was something I really feltwas important for me to do. I have the goodfortune of being able to help financially, andthere’s no question that the kids are veryappreciative of the help, as are their parents.”

Indeed,Vanderwey says the scholarshipmade all the difference for him. “I reallythought I’d stay out west, where they havemore money to give because there are feweruniversities and fewer sports. I never eventhought of Guelph. But then I met Cal andLarry,heard I could get a scholarship and camehere for a visit. I ended up really liking it.”

So today, some 40 years after he firstdonned a Gryphon uniform, Pearson bumpsthe ball around with Vanderwey and Killeen,preparing them for their playoff game.

Both players say it’s “kind of cool” know-ing who their benefactor is, but they insistit has no bearing on the court.“He’s just oneof the guys,” says Killeen. ■

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The University of Ghana campus sharesimportant qualities with its Canadian cousin.It also shares part of its history and severaldozen graduates.

This magazine will reach 56 Guelphalumni living in Ghana. Most of them com-

pleted their undergraduate degree at theUniversity of Ghana before coming toCanada for graduate work.About a dozenGuelph alumni are faculty members at theUniversity of Ghana, teaching primarily inagricultural and home science departments.

And among the other Guelph graduates arescientists who work for Ghana’s ministry ofagriculture, elected officials in the country’sparliament and development experts work-ing for one of several international NGOsoperating in the country.

U of G is justifiably proud of its high-calibre academic programs, its excellent teaching staffand the remarkable cultural exposure it offers to students.Known for its expertise in agriculture,science and the humanities, the university has undergone unprecedented growth in recent years.

The residential campus sits on top of a hill overlooking the city, and U of G graduates never failto mention how beautiful the campus is and often refer to the university’s distinctive architectureand generous green spaces.

This may sound like the University of Guelph, but the palm trees and red clay rooftops tell a dif-ferent story.This U of G is located 8,700 kilometres east of Guelph and is 40 degrees closer to theequator.This is the University of Ghana in West Africa.

THE OTHER U OF G THE OTHER U OF G

Story by Mary DickiesonPhotos by Patrick Brown Egue

Summer 2009 13

491167_PG8_23_m01.qxp 4/17/09 10:58 AM Page 13

From north to southThe University of Ghana story begins in1948. It was the first university establishedin Ghana and remains the largest and mostrecognized. Ghana was still a British colonyat the time, so the University College of theGold Coast, as it was called then, reportedto Britain’s education ministry and award-ed degrees through the University of Lon-don.A change in name and full universitystatus came in 1961, four years after thecountry gained its independence.

The Canadian government supportedthe independence of Commonwealth coun-tries in Africa, and when Ghana gained itsindependence in 1957, it also became thefirst country on the continent to receive aidfrom Canada.That assistance focused onGhana’s food security and agriculture, thedevelopment of its fledgling democracy, andpublic health improvements through waterand sanitation.

Because of its historical expertise in agri-culture, the University of Guelph becameone of the first universities in Canada to takeon the challenge of — and, as it turned out,reap huge benefits from — internationaldevelopment work in Ghana.A few small

government contracts in the 1960s led to aseven-year project administered by theCanadian International DevelopmentAgency that involved faculty and studentexchanges between the universities of Ghanaand Guelph from 1970 to 1978.

The Ghana-Guelph Project was a part-nership from the beginning — not adonor/recipient relationship — and that isgenerally considered to be the No. 1 reasonfor the program’s success and its lastingimpact on both institutions.

Ghanaian Henry Akano, who earned anMA at Guelph in 2005, wrote a case studyof the Ghana-Guelph Project in which henoted the program’s emphasis on extensionwork and training in home science, agri-culture and veterinary medicine. RetiredOAC professor Jim Shute, who directed theGhana-Guelph Project from beginning toend, said at least 120 Canadians and Ghana-ians participated and produced an impres-sive amount of scholarship related to Ghana’sagricultural and rural development.Akanosaid the Ghana-Guelph Project is still wide-ly cited as a success story in interuniversitypartnerships.

Canada’s high commissioner to theRepublic of Ghana agrees. Darren Schem-mer visited the University of Guelph in Feb-ruary to talk to students about career oppor-tunities with Foreign Affairs andInternational Trade Canada, but he alsopraised the West African country where hehas lived for the past two years.

The Ghana-Guelph Project was amongCanada’s first aid investments in Ghana, hesaid.Today, Canadian citizens invest $70 mil-lion a year as aid in Ghana’s growing democ-racy, and Canadian businesses have investedmore than $1 billion, mostly in the miningsector.As a result, trade with Ghana is grow-ing rapidly, and the country is now Canada’ssecond largest market in sub-Saharan Africa.

In turn, Ghana is a country working hardto improve the standard of living for its cit-izens and has many successes to celebrate,said Schemmer. By the end of this year, thecountry will meet three of the UN’s mil-lennium goals for developing countries: 100-per-cent participation in primary education,equal access for boys and girls in primaryand secondary education, and a 50-per-centreduction in the number of people living onless than $1 a day (based on 1990 levels).

There’s a little bit ofGuelph in Ghana Kwado Asenso-Okyere, M.Sc. ’76, was one

of those young Ghanaian students who

came to Canada as part of the Ghana-

Guelph Project. After earning his Guelph

degree in agricultural economics, he went

back to teach agribusiness management

at the University of Ghana.

“Most of the people who were trained

at Guelph took up faculty positions and lat-

er leadership roles at the University of

Ghana,” says Asenso-Okyere. He later

earned a PhD at the University of Missouri-

Columbia, became a full professor at the

University of Ghana in 1997 and ultimately

served as vice-chancellor from 2002 to

2004. Now a division director for the Inter-

national Food Policy Research Institute, he

oversees the International Service for

National Agricultural Research, which aims

to improve the livelihoods of small-scale

farmers in the developing world by strength-

ening agricultural research and innovation

systems.

Asenso-Okyere points to advances with-

in the University of Ghana’s Department of

Home Science during his tenure there and

says the department “could not have

moved on without the faculty who were

trained at Guelph.”

Still teaching in that department are

Docea Fianu, M.Sc. ’74; Clara Opare-Obi-

saw, M.Sc. ’74; Laetitia Hevi-Yiboe, M.Sc.

’75; and Nabilla Williams, M.Sc.’74.

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491167_PG8_23_m00.qxp 4/14/09 1:32 PM Page 14

Summer 2009 15

Schemmer said 52 per cent of Ghana’s peo-ple were considered poor in 1990; today thefigure is 26 per cent.

From south to northDorothy Odartey-Wellington heard aboutthe Guelph-Ghana Project when she wascompleting her undergraduate degree at theUniversity of Ghana in the late 1980s. Shewas studying French and Spanish, not homescience, so it didn’t occur to her then thatshe would one day help maintain the rela-tionship between these two U of Gs.

But here she is today, a faculty memberin Guelph’s School of Languages and Liter-atures. Five floors up from her office in theMacKinnon Building is the Department ofEconomics and the office of Prof. JamesAmegashie. He also earned his undergrad-uate degree at the University of Ghana andwas just arriving on the Accra campus asOdartey-Wellington left to pursue graduatework in Canada.

They both grew up in the Accra region,attended a public secondary school and head-ed to the University of Ghana because it was“the” place to be if you were interested inlaw, medicine, business administration, engi-neering, linguistics or economics.And likemost Ghanaian scholars, they knew theywould leave the country to pursue graduatestudies.For most serious students then, as now,the destinations of choice were the UnitedKingdom, the United States and Canada.

Odartey-Wellington’s interest in languageand linguistics brought her to Canada pri-marily because McGill University offeredfunding for her graduate work. She came tothe University of Guelph in 1997 to teachSpanish and has since been recognized by theCollege of Arts for excellence in teaching.

“One driving force behind how I teachis the need to communicate well,” she says.“I don’t want students to take my class justto get a credit. I want them to take whatev-er they get from the class and apply it insome way that is meaningful to their lifeoutside the classroom.”

Odartey-Wellington says her teachingstyle draws heavily on her research on con-temporary Spanish literature, female Span-ish writers and the Afro-Hispanic literatureof Equatorial Guinea. In 2008, she publisheda book that examines the work of six con-temporary novelists in Spain’s Generation X

group of writers.Amegashie left Ghana for the London

School of Economics, where he earned agraduate diploma in 1994, followed by amaster’s degree at Queen’s University and aPhD at Simon Fraser University. He cameto Guelph in 2002, drawn by the prospectof working with other faculty interested inhis area of microeconomics.

His research in this field has drawn con-siderable attention from the media.Amegashie applies game and contest theo-ry to everything from boxing contracts andcollective bargaining to immigration poli-cy, the treatment of superstars and the effectsof popularity voting on American Idol. In adifferent vein, a paper he recently submit-ted for publication examines why someforms of discrimination are more toleratedthan others.

Growing painsWhen asked to describe their undergradu-ate alma mater, both Amegashie andOdartey-Wellington mention Ghana’s dis-tinctive campus. Its white stucco buildings,red rooftops and proliferation of outdoorsculptures enhance a tropical climate that

demands courtyards lined with palm treesand wide porches to provide shade.

“I’ve never seen a university in NorthAmerica that is as architecturally cohesiveas the University of Ghana,” says Amegashie.

His memories date to a time when theGhana campus housed only 3,000 students.Today, the university has an enrolment of30,000. Like Canadians, more and moreGhanaians are looking to attend post-sec-ondary education because they see the careeradvantages of a university degree. Ghana hasalso restructured its secondary school system,resulting in an Ontario-like double cohortof university applicants.The 11,700 first-yearstudents admitted to the University of Ghanain 2008 represented an 80-per-cent increaseover the 2007 figure of 6,500.

Despite its high student numbers, theUniversity of Ghana continues to postimpressive results year after year, says alum-nus Effah Douglas. He and Jonathan OkyereNtoni spent the fall 2008 semester inGuelph through an exchange program spon-sored by Foreign Affairs and InternationalTrade Canada.

“The University of Ghana continues toturn out many prominent citizens serving

A Guelph alumni gathering at the University of Ghana included the following

faculty, from left: zoologist Daniel Attuquayefio; home scientists Laetitia

Hevi-Yiboe, Clara Opare-Obisaw and Docea Fianu; and soil scientist Kofi Laryea.

PH

OTO

CO

UR

TES

Y S

TELLA

AM

OA

, UN

IVE

RS

ITY O

F GH

AN

A

491167_PG8_23_m01.qxp 4/17/09 10:59 AM Page 15

the nation in various capacities,” he says.“The current president and his vice are bothalumni of the university.”

Ghanaian students have also experiencedbig changes in the way their post-secondaryeducation is funded. When Odartey-Wellington entered university in 1984,everything from tuition to food was free tothose who passed the national admissionexamination. During Amegashie’s time, stu-dents had to pay only for their food.Today,they pay for tuition, accommodation andmeals, just as Canadian students do.

Henry and Rosemond Anim-Somuah,both graduates of the University of Ghana,came to Guelph almost two years ago withtheir three children. He is completing a PhDprogram in agricultural economics; she’senrolled in a PhD program in rural studies.Besides the weather, they say the biggest dif-ference between the two universities is theaccess Guelph students have to much larg-er library resources.

Edwoba Atta-Konadu, a master’s studentin applied human nutrition, says the open-ness of Guelph professors is what she likes

best about working here. After leavingGhana, she completed a second undergrad-uate degree at the University of WesternOntario, then came to Guelph specificallyto do a master’s with Prof. Heather Kellerin the Department of Family Relations andApplied Nutrition.

“I have a keen interest in geriatric nutri-tion, and Dr. Keller is an expert and well-renowned in that area,” says Atta-Konadu,whoplans to work in the field of public health.

International exchangesGhanaians rarely come to Guelph as under-graduate students, despite a long-standingexchange program between the two universities.Bilateral exchange agreements,where studentspay tuition and fees to their home university,don’t necessarily translate into airplane tickets,says Lynne Mitchell,Guelph’s director of inter-national programs.She says Canadian studentscan better afford to study abroad — and livingin Ghana, for instance, is considerably cheaperthan living in Canada — so there’s generally awaiting list of Guelph students hoping a Ghana-ian undergraduate will come here and triggerthe exchange.

It has been two years since Mary Choy,BA ’08, spent a semester at the Universityof Ghana. A year earlier, Guelph welcomedAdwoa Fosua Boakye-Appiah, whose under-graduate semester in Canada was funded bythe Commonwealth Universities StudyAbroad Consortium.This network of 75universities works to increase internationalstudy opportunities for their students.

Funding is a problem even for graduate stu-dents, says Odartey-Wellington,who is tryingto encourage more students from Ghana’s Mod-ern Languages Department to spend a semes-ter studying at Guelph. She has appealed toalumni of the department to donate to anedowment fund that will provide funding forthe Ghana-to-Guelph portion of a studentexchange. She hopes funding will be in placeto bring at least one Ghanaian student toGuelph for the fall 2009 semester. In turn, stu-dents from Guelph’s Department of Languagesand Literatures will have the opportunity tostudy in Ghana.

The University of Ghana’s student body of 30,000 will hardly notice the absence of onestudent spending a semester in Canada, but the exchange will make a significant differenceto language students on both campuses.

Studying in Ghana a privilegeUniversity of Guelph graduate Ian Wagg,

B.Sc. ’04, says it’s interesting to see how

people respond to his CV when they note

he has a master’s degree in public health

from a school in the developing world.

When he finished his undergraduate

degree in biomedical sciences, Wagg won

a Commonwealth scholarship to study at

the University of Ghana School of Public

Health (SPH). He says the eight-month pro-

gram was time well spent because it

brought him into contact with some of

Ghana’s top researchers and gave him a

unique perspective as the only Westerner

in his class.

“It was a privilege to work with some of

the top minds in Africa,” he says. “Prof. Fred

Binka, who is now director of the SPH, was

featured in Newsweek magazine last year

for his efforts in health promotion in devel-

oping countries. I have never met anyone

(even through medical school here in Cana-

da) with more heart and energy than him.

My classmates in Ghana were also won-

derful. They are all contributing so much in

a system that can be very challenging to

say the least.”

Wagg spent the last four months of his

stay in Ghana at the Navrongo Health

Research Centre, which conducts research

into antimalarial bednets. He has since com-

pleted four years of medical school at the

University of Toronto and will begin a resi-

dency in rural family medicine this summer.

To advance his interest in tropical infec-

tious diseases, Wagg says: “I hope to work

in South Africa during a portion of my res-

idency training.”

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Odartey-Wellington recalls her own stu-dent experience when she went on anexchange to Cuba. It gave her an opportu-nity to experience a new culture andlifestyle, and she wants her own students toreap those benefits.

“I’ve seen the tremendous changes thatstudents go through when they travel, learna new language, deal with a different cultureand develop long-term relationships,” she says.

Partnership growsEchoes of the Ghana-Guelph Project con-tinue with faculty and graduate studentexchanges between the two U of Gs andwith other Ghanaian universities who sendresearchers and students to Guelph. Oneexample is scientist Joseph Berchie, whorecently completed a six-month researchterm in the laboratory of Guelph plant agri-culture professor Manish Raizada.

Berchie earned an undergraduate degreefrom the University of Ghana in 1986, fol-lowed by studies at the University of Not-tingham.An agronomist and plant physiolo-gist working on plant-breeding technologies,he is a researcher at the Crop Research Insti-tute in Kumasi,Ghana, as well as a PhD can-didate at the Kwame Nkrumah Universityof Science and Technology (KNUST).

He came to Guelph to conduct a con-trolled-environment study as part of his doc-toral research on the Bambara groundnut, anutritious and drought-tolerant legume thatis indigenous to sub-Saharan Africa butbecame underutilized after European colo-nization. He hopes to revive the groundnut’spopularity with African farmers as they faceincreased water shortages.

Several Ghanaians have travelled toGuelph as part of a $1-million CIDA pro-ject designed to enhance Ghana’s capacityto undertake agribusiness development in away that reduces poverty and promotes gen-der and social equality.

Guelph professor Spencer Henson in theDepartment of Food, Agricultural andResource Economics (FARE) heads the pro-ject. He says agriculture is a central compo-nent of Ghana’s economy, especially for peo-ple living in rural areas. “The failure rate ofnew agribusiness enterprises remains high,especially among those operated by women,and there is a significant impact on the abilityof people to work their way out of poverty.”

He is working closely with private andpublic institutions to help them avoid thepitfalls of poor co-ordination and failure toadapt programs to local needs, especially theneeds of women in rural areas.

Ghanaian graduate students working withHenson and other FARE faculty includePhD candidate Henry Anim-Somuah andM.Sc. students Prosper Koto and EdwardAsiedu. John Jatoe completed a PhD in 2008and returned to Ghana to work as a lectur-er in agricultural economics at the Univer-sity of Ghana. His wife, Eunice, remains inGuelph to complete a master’s degree incapacity development and extension.

In the Department of EnvironmentalBiology, Prof.Andy Gordon and researchassociate Naresh Thevathasan are midwaythrough a $3-million multi-year CIDA pro-ject to teach sustainable agroforestry prac-tices. Increasing degradation of the naturalresource base relied on by rural communi-ties is a major contributor to a persistentlylow quality of life in central and northernGhana, says Thevathasan.

Through APERL (Agroforestry Practices

to Enhance Resource-Poor Livelihoods),the Guelph team is helping local agencieshire and train community members, tech-nicians and faculty in agroforestry researchand technologies.

Andrea Ellis Nsiah,B.Sc. ’07, volunteeredwith APERL, and while working in Ghanaat the KNUST campus in Sunyani, she meta Ghanaian student who is now her husband.He is still in Ghana, but Ellis Nsiah returnedto Guelph last fall to begin a graduate pro-gram in rural planning and development.Thesecond year of her master’s program will takeher back to Ghana to do field work in agro-forestry, and she says her husband hopes topursue graduate work in Canada Their long-term settlement plans are undecided.

Two of the most recent recruits toAPERL are Samuel Boadi and StephenAshie, who arrived in Guelph in March fora six-month faculty exchange.While he’snew to the campus, Boadi says he knewabout Guelph from his uncle Peter Donkorwho earned a diploma in agriculture in1980. Donkor is currently working withKNUST. ■

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Ghanaians who work and study at the University of Guelph form a vibrant welcom-

ing committee for their countrymen. Showing their patriotism on Ghana’s March 6

independence day are, front row, from left: Joseph Berchie, Sylvester Ayambila

and Edward Asiedu. Back row: Rosemond Anim-Somuah, Prosper Koto, Prof.

Dorothy Odartey-Wellington, Prof. James Amegashie and Henry Anim-Somuah.

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BotswanaGeography professor Alice Hovorka says 85

per cent of the low-income people in southern

African cities don’t have stable sources of

affordable nutrient-rich foods. Her research on

urban food security in Botswana is part of a

project supported by the Canadian International

Development Agency.

GhanaGraduate student Lisa Westerhoff, BA ’06, is

studying the effects of climate change on food

and financial security, water supply and illness

in the small community of Mimkyemfre in south-

eastern Ghana.

KenyaViolence following the December 2007 elec-

tion in Kenya forced Florence Mutua to delay

fieldwork for her PhD research aimed at improv-

ing animal husbandry practices and marketing

strategies for pig farmers near Kakamega.

CongoCarolyn Peach Brown is an expert on com-

munity-based natural resource management —

specifically the African cherry grown on Mount

Cameroon in Africa — and a post-doctoral fel-

low in U of G’s Global Environmental Change

Group. Her research focuses on institutional

arrangements for climate change adaptation in

the Congo Basin.

ZimbabwePathobiology professor Dale Smith, DVM ’80

and D.V.Sc. ’84, taught at the University of Zim-

babwe for two years in the late 1980s and,

since joining the Ontario Veterinary College in

1990, has returned to Zimbabwe twice to teach

big-game immobilization techniques to wildlife

managers.

South AfricaSouth African-born Nadia Marques and three

of her Gryphon teammates represented Cana-

da in women’s field hockey at the 2008 Fed-

eration of International Sports Universities (FISU)

Games in Johannesburg, South Africa. The

FISU Games are the second largest multi-sport

games in the world after the Olympics.

GhanaPlant agriculture professor Mary Ruth McDon-

ald says the Ghanaian village of Karni is pro-

ducing more and better-quality vegetables since

adopting sustainable production practices.

ZimbabweResearch by Prof. Julie Cairnie, English and The-

atre Studies, looks at the attitudes of poor British

citizens who moved to southern Africa in the

early 1900s to improve their own station by tak-

ing advantage of Africa’s indigenous people.

Comoros IslandsSeveral years ago, Prof. Charles Goubau at U

of G’s Campus d’Alfred helped to open a hor-

ticultural school in Comoro. Today, Prof. Harry

Cummings, School of Environmental Design

and Rural Development, is organizing a Cana-

dian research group that will work with the Inter-

national Crops Research Institute for the Semi-

Arid Tropics to help eradicate poverty in African

and South Asian rural villages.

NigeriaProf. Helen Hambly, Environmental Design and

Rural Development, has joined the international

advisory group for the $4.2-million African Rur-

al Radio Research Initiative funded by the Bill

and Melinda Gates Foundation. It supports

capacity building for information technologies

and participatory media in five African nations.

KenyaA group of 13 Guelph students paid their own

travel expenses, raised money to buy building

materials and will provide the labour to build a

classroom addition at Bukati Primary School in

Busia, Kenya. The school serves 1,500 fami-

lies. About 250 of its 700 students have been

orphaned by HIV/AIDS.

South AfricaVeterinary technician Laura Kiemele was recent-

ly awarded the OVC Pet Trust Award of Excel-

lence, which includes a $500 prize that she used

to buy supplies for her upcoming contract in

Soweto, South Africa. She’ll work for six months

with Community Led Animal Welfare, the first

animal welfare group to work in Soweto.

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Ghana was the beginningSpeaking at the University of Guelph in Feb-

ruary, Canada’s high commissioner to the

Republic of Ghana, Darren Schemmer, said

Ghana is “Africa for beginners” in the eyes

of many Canadian businesses and NGOs

that use the country as a base for their

operations throughout Africa. His comment

could also apply to the University of Guelph.

Guelph faculty and graduate students

went first to Ghana under contract with the

Canadian International Development

Agency, and then to almost every other

African country to share expertise and

develop partnerships in education. U of G

now has exchange agreements with two

institutions in Africa, and our faculty and

students pursue research and philanthrop-

ic activities across the continent.

Currently, U of G is participating in the

development of a new university in

Botswana. Scheduled to open next year,

the Botswana International University of Sci-

ence and Technology (BIUST) will fill the

country’s need for greater access to tertiary

education and address an acute shortage

of scientists. While BIUST will also offer pro-

grams in the liberal arts and business,

approximately 60 per cent of its academic

programs will be science-based.

In concert with several other Canadian

universities, Guelph administrators, faculty,

staff and even alumni have been involved

in the design of the BIUST core operations

(academic, organizational and human

resources) as well as branding and mar-

keting strategies for the new institution. The

overall project is being co-ordinated by the

Association of Universities and Colleges of

Canada in partnership with World Univer-

sity Service of Canada.

It’s an investment for the future for both

countries. Speaking at an education fair in

Gaborone, Botswana’s minister of educa-

tion, Jacob Nkate, said his country will con-

tinue to send students to Canada for grad-

uate studies.

“No country can isolate itself from oth-

er countries and still expect to develop. To

this end, we will continue to send students

to Canada, particularly at the master’s and

PhD level,” he said.

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NigeriaAfter seeing the educational system deterio-

rate in his native Nigeria, Guelph history pro-

fessor Femi Kolapo created a corporation that

seeks donations of computers, books and

sports equipment to send to African schools.

He also developed an online journal to address

the need for systematic research on education

and recreation in Africa.

CameroonGuelph faculty in rural development created a

diploma program in tropical agriculture for

Cameroon’s University of Dschang almost 15

years ago. Today, there are three streams of

study for farmers, who take the programs by

distance education, and five Cameroon uni-

versities have adopted the Dschang model to

develop their own distance-learning programs.

GhanaGhanaian grad students Cynthia, M.Sc. ’07,

and Frank Arku, PhD ’08, looked at the cultur-

al effects of microfinance projects in Ghana,

specifically the impact on gender roles. Their

paper “More Money, New Household Cultural

Dynamics: Women in Microfinance in Ghana”

was published online in the April 2009 issue of

the journal Development in Practice.

UgandaFor her graduate work in rural studies, Jennifer

Ball, B.Sc.(Agr.) ’05, is collecting and inter-

preting the narratives of female peace builders

in Uganda.

TanzaniaTwenty years ago, Prof. Peter van Straaten,

Land Resource Science, travelled to Tanzania

to search for local mineral resources that could

be used to improve soil productivity. His “rocks

for crops” project now involves farmers in East

Afria, South America and Asia.

South AfricaA U of G project designed to support an AIDS

clinic in Lesotho, South Africa, won a 2008

Global Best Award presented by the Interna-

tional Partnership Network in co-operation with

the Conference Board of Canada.

TanzaniaAdam Lewandowski, B.Sc. ’09, is a friend to

Africa. A varsity athlete, he initiated a drive that

has sent 1,400 pairs of running shoes to school

children in Kenya. After a volunteer experience

in Tanzania, he raised more than $5,100 to

send a Tanzanian student to university. And this

summer, he’s working with Students Without

Borders in Botswana, where he will train locals

in sport and health education. Lewandowski

also won a prestigious Commonwealth Schol-

arship to study medicine at Oxford University

this fall.

GhanaGraduate student Joy Sammy, B.Sc. ’97, is

studying the impact of community-based eco-

tourism on traditional value-based conserva-

tion methods in Ghana. Her case study involves

the Boabeng-Fiema Monkey Sanctuary.

MalawiFood scientist Don Mercer, Kemptville Cam-

pus, was one of five U of G staff who spent

their 2008 vacation as international volunteers

with Leave for Change, a program created by

the World University Service of Canada. He

travelled to Malawi to present workshops on

food production, processing and safety.

GhanaProf. Manish Raizada, Plant Agriculture, asks

his students to search the world for cheap

prize-worthy ideas and tools that could be used

to help poor people in developing countries. In

the first year, he personally spent $1,000 to buy

large plastic storage bags to protect crops

grown in Ghana.

SudanDenig Kuir fled the civil wars of southern Sudan

when he was just 13. Tamirat Tsigie was a uni-

versity student forced to leave Ethiopia because

he took part in student demonstrations against

the government. Both are now studying at U

of G through the World University Service of

Canada student refugee program.

RwandaA PhD candidate in plant agriculture, Monica

Parker spent six years working in agriculture in

Rwanda. She was a technical assistant to the

Ministry of Agriculture, developing passion fruit

as a viable crop, then had a private-sector job

on a flower export farm.

MoroccoWith project funding from the Association of

Universities and Colleges of Canada, Chris

Kinsley and Anna Crolla of the Ontario Rural

Wastewater Centre have installed a “built wet-

land system” in Morocco to study waste-water

treatment and reuse applications in an arid

climate.

BotswanaDVM students Adrienne Weatherston, Melissa

Knowles and Charlotte Friendship will break

ground this summer as U of G’s first Global Vets

team to work in Botswana.

MalawiFor her master’s degree in the Department of

Sociology and Anthropology, Heather Alexander,

BA ’07, focuses on humanitarian organizations

in Malawi that stereotype Africans while raising

donations to support poverty-reduction work.

Read the full stories at www.uoguelph.ca/

theportico.

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Even though she had spent 12 years work-ing in East Africa with various non-govern-mental organizations, it wasn’t until shelaunched a new business that Anja Oussoren,B.Sc.(Agr.) ’93 and M.Sc. ’96, began to trulyunderstand her adopted home and the com-plexity of the challenges facing the region.

“When you are working for a foreignorganization, you can’t quite get into the‘knitting’ of things because you’re still a for-eigner,” says Oussoren, who started IvoryConsult Ltd. in Nairobi in 2006.“But I’venoticed since risking everything to start myown business that if you put yourself in thesame boat as all the other business people,you begin to understand life here at a muchdeeper level.

“Gone is the dependence on a monthlypaycheque from a foreign source.You’recompletely dependent on the country itself,so you begin to view and interact with thecommunity in a completely different way.As much as that has been difficult from timeto time, it’s a very beautiful thing.”

Oussoren’s path to a life and career inAfrica has been anything but direct.A care-free early childhood on a dairy farm in theNetherlands taught her some early lessons

BUSINESS IS BETTER THAN AID“If you put yourself in thesame boat as all the otherbusiness people, you beginto understand life here at amuch deeper level.”

By Barry Gunn

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about the importance of community andagriculture, lessons that carried over whenshe moved with her family to Canada at age11. Her family continued farming nearOmemee in Ontario’s Kawartha Lakesregion between Peterborough and Lindsay.

After high school, she completed under-graduate and graduate degrees at U of G.Butalthough her parents still live here, she saysshe never really felt at home in Canada.

“I had known since high school that Iwanted to work overseas in some capacityin agricultural development,” says Oussoren,who travelled in Latin America and theCaribbean for coursework and with missiongroups during her undergraduate years.“ButAfrica was never on my radar.”

That changed after graduation when sheapplied for a position in Zaire (now theDemocratic Republic of the Congo) withthe Mennonite Central Committee.Whenan outbreak of the Ebola virus scupperedthat plan, she accepted a placement as anagricultural development worker with theChristian Reformed World Relief Com-mittee in Tanzania.

“At the time, I had no idea where thatwas.”

Over the next two years, Oussoren wasinvolved in working with farmers to helpthem do their own on-farm research, dig-ging shallow wells and community organiz-ing.At the same time, she was completinga master’s degree in ethnobotany throughU of G and the International Centre forResearch and Agroforestry (now known asthe World Agroforestry Centre). Her researchfocused on the vital role of so-called “Cin-derella trees” — indigenous tree species thathave been overlooked by researchers andinternational markets focused on cereals,grains and other cash crops.

One example is Mkwaju, an undomes-ticated tree found in East African woodlandsstretching from Tanzania to Malawi. It ishighly valued by locals for its tasty fruit, astimber and for use in medicinal products.

It was during her second year in Tanza-nia that Oussoren first thought she mightbe in Africa for the long haul.

“I ended up loving it so much. I gainedso much appreciation of the people andlearned so much from them: how they tack-le life and how they’re grateful for life itself,their resiliency in facing so many challenges,their creativity and their entrepreneurial skills,

and their ability to laugh and enjoy life.Thoseare a few of the hallmarks of people here.”

It was also during those years and thedecade afterward in Kenya, when sheworked with various NGOs and local insti-tutions on capacity-building initiatives, thatshe quickly learned “there is no way we cantalk about agriculture and community devel-opment without talking about water.”

It’s easy to take water for granted in aplace like Canada, where most people haveseemingly limitless access to a safe, clean sup-ply at the turn of a tap. In Kenya, where 80per cent of the land is semi-arid or arid,water is the key to a healthy population andsustainable economy.

But after years of working with NGOs,Oussoren began to believe a change of tackwas needed to navigate the many challengesto Kenya’s economic and social development.In her view, there are distinct differencesbetween the “aid approach” to developmentand the business approach.

“I think it’s only through an economical-ly sustainable model that we can actually beginto make a dent in putting Africa on the worldmap — where it has always belonged — asan equal, respected, dignified and contribut-

FAR LEFT: The region of Bamba

began its water quest in 1997 with

the goal of creating a water supply

within two kilometres of every house-

hold. Here, Oussoren helps the peo-

ple of Bamba dig one of four water

catchment dams. During the region’s

brief rainy season, surface water

runoff is collected and stored for

future use.

CENTRE: Although the Bamba dams

provide a more convenient water

supply, Oussoren says the quality of

the water needs improvement. In this

photo, she and a friend, Hannah, are

looking at organisms they can see

in the water collected from the dam

pond.

LEFT: Oussoren and her business

partner, Clive Wafukho, inspect an

under-the-counter water treatment

system and run a sample through the

company’s on-site water-testing lab.

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ing player.And, in fact, as a leader in worldaffairs. It has to have an economic foundationand make economic sense.Aid never makeseconomic sense — it skews economics.

“There have been many times over thepast 15 years that I’ve thought the best thing

for Africa would be for all non-govern-mental and aid agencies to just pack up andleave.The aid industry has created a massivesense of dependency that is extremely crip-pling, to the extent that many people haveinternalized the sense that, without aid, wecan’t move forward.

“I have seen the other side of East Africa,and there is so much here. The humanresource potential is huge, and the naturalresource potential is massive.There is so muchthat could be accomplished. I know with-drawing aid would create a lot of upheavaland suffering, and the issues are very complex.But in the long run,Africa would come outbetter off than continuing to depend on aidon and on and on.That just needs to stop.”

In 2006, wanting to break away from theconstraints of the NGO environment, Ous-soren launched Ivory Consult Ltd. withKenyan businessman Clive Wafukho. Thecompany works with rural and urban com-munities, local governments and private busi-nesses to develop “water solutions”customizedto their needs.The company founders aresocial entrepreneurs whose philosophy stress-es business fundamentals that uphold people’sdignity and their right to choose.

“Business provides a whole new platformfor doing good,” says Oussoren.

Ivory Consult has clients in eight Africancountries, including Kenya. It’s divided intoa consulting unit — working with com-munities on water management issues anddesigning and constructing water reticula-tion schemes, for example — and a watertreatment unit that designs, installs and ser-vices water purification and treatment sys-tems for households, office buildings, insti-tutions such as schools and hospitals,communities and private industries. Thecompany also handles large water projectsfor governments and NGOs.

Oussoren adds that working with water inKenya presents many unique opportunities. Inurban areas, aging infrastructure means pipedwater is of dubious quality at best. Ivory Con-sult’s integrated systems use technologies suchas reverse osmosis, carbon filtration and ultra-violet light to filter out and eliminate micro-biological,physical and chemical contaminants.

In rural areas, up to 20 per cent of thenew boreholes drilled each year to supplywater are unused or underused because ofmineral contamination. High concentrations

of fluoride are of particular concern inKenya, as are heavy metals and pollutantsfrom industry and, in some cases, agricul-tural runoff. Ivory Consult supplies theexpertise and the equipment to deal withsuch contaminants.

As with launching any business any-where, Oussoren has experienced birthingpains. But after three years of what she calls“intense and purposeful efforts to build astrong foundation,” the company is begin-ning to take off, and she’s hopeful about thefuture. She’s also inspired by being able toserve society through a socially responsiblebusiness model while making an impact onpublic policy and development.

Her optimism prevails despite the factthat she has witnessed some of the darkestperiods of recent African history.

“These periods testify to the ongoingstruggle by Africans to have equal opportu-nities to make an identity and life for them-selves — opportunities that have been force-fully stolen, looted and murdered for by therest of the world over the past 500 years.”

Oussoren describes a chilling scene from1994 when she was taking in the view oneday from a hilltop in northeastern Tanzania.She looked down at what she thought werecrocodiles floating lazily in the river below,butthey were actually corpses drifting down fromRwanda.She also recalls a meeting four yearslater in Rwanda with a teenage girl scarredphysically and emotionally by the carnage.

In 1997, Oussoren attended several ses-sions of the Truth and Reconciliation Com-mission, where South Africans of all racesstruggled to ease the collective sufferingcaused by Rwanda’s brutal apartheid regime.

She is hopeful despite the uneasy peacethat holds now in Kenya following a peri-od of political unrest that peaked in late2007 and early 2008. At that time, fierceprotests left hundreds of people dead fol-lowing disputed elections that returned Pres-ident Mwai Kibaki to power. In all her yearsin Africa, it was the first time Oussorenfeared for her own safety and that of her twodaughters. She kept an emergency kit withthe most important travel and other docu-ments ready for a quick escape if needed.

“If I were alone, I wouldn’t do that, but Icannot sacrifice my daughters on the altar ofmy ideals,” she says.“I am at home in Kenya.This is where I am supposed to be.” ■

TOP: Oussoren inspects one of 15

water tanks built in Kisayani, part

of a gravity-fed water system that

includes 53 kilometres of piped

water. The man with her lives in the

community and is an agricultural

trainer serving on the water project

management board.

BOTTOM: Peninah, left, is cancer-

free thanks to medical aid secured

by Oussoren, who met the woman

while working in her village on

a gravity-fed water scheme. Read

Peninah’s story and more about

Oussoren’s life in Africa at

www.uoguelph.ca/theportico.

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M acdonald Institute is more thana century old, but the red-brickcampus landmark still holds a

surprise or two. Just ask Wilfred Ferwerda,project manager in Physical Resources. Oneday last year, he got a call from the contrac-tor renovating MINS 300, the classroom atthe top of the building’s central staircase.

Before they could refurbish the space,workers had to remove a decades-old dropceiling.And that’s when Ferwerda got thiscall:“Wilf, you might want to come downbecause we’ve discovered a skylight embed-ded in the ceiling.”

He couldn’t believe what he saw.Directlyoverhead in the middle of the room was a five-by nine-foot rectangle of stained-glass panelssporting a bright yellow floral design.The piecehad lain forgotten above that drop ceiling,probably since before the Second World War.From above, the glass had also been coveredover during a long-ago roof repair.

The discovery sent Ferwerda back to hisoffice to hunt down the original drawingsfor Macdonald Institute, built in 1903. Noskylight showed up on the horizontal view.But on another drawing showing the thirdfloor from above, a rather cryptic “ceilinglight” was dotted in above the space labelledas an auditorium.

What would the project team do withits find?

By the time the refurbished classroomopened last fall, the skylight had become anarchitectural centrepiece. Guests at a dedica-tion ceremony admired the 100-seat space,its freshly painted yellow wainscotting andwindow trim, and its suspended ceiling islandsholding audiovisual equipment and lighting.

But what caught many eyes was that bitof building heritage directly overhead.Thewindow had been cleaned up, and lightinginstalled above it. Flip a wall switch, and thewindow emits a warm buttery glow.

“I was happy we were able to incorpo-rate it into the project,” says Ferwerda, whohas led extensive refurbishment of the build-ing’s facade, portico entrance and centralstairwell.“Everybody likes it.”

“Everybody” includes Frances Stretton,B.H.Sc. ’56. Retired in 1989 after 31 yearsof teaching high school home economics inToronto, Stretton gave the largest individualdonation towards the classroom renovation.Referring to the newly renamed Frances M.Stretton Classroom, she says:“It’s beautiful.The window is like a buried treasure.”

She spent plenty of time in MINS 300during the early 1950s, learning about artand architectural history and the history offurniture.

“We used that space all the years I wasthere, and I don’t remember that windowever being exposed.We had a wonderful artdirector and we had amazing classes upthere.” ■

An architectural gem uncoveredBy Andrew Vowles

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A l u m n i A c h i e v e m e n t s E v e n t s

uof guelph

W hen she was in Kenyato do research for her mas-ter’s degree in capacity

development and extension, AllisonGratz,B.Sc. ’03,met a group of womenwho had developed “an amazing clayand brick stove” that reduced theamount of time they had to spendpreparing food. Gratz was the first per-son to document their invention in anacademic study.

Meeting these Kenyan women wasan unexpected find, made possiblebecause Gratz had received financialsupport from several of the U of G’s

graduate scholarship funds.At a Uni-versity-wide awards program Feb. 2,Gratz was able to meet some of herbenefactors, sponsors of the Julie May(Goode) Whittaker Graduate TravelScholarship and the TD Bank Finan-cial Group OGS Fund. In fact, Gratzspoke at the awards ceremony on behalfof all Guelph students who receivedfinancial awards in the past year.

“I am just one student,” she said.“Look around the room at all thebright young faces you see.As sponsors,you’ve really made a great investment,one many students like myself would

really struggle without.To my fellowaward recipients, let’s be good stewardsof what we have been given and go onto multiply the fruits of it.”

There’s no doubt that Gratz willmultiply the fruits of her Guelph edu-cation. In fact, that’s the reason for themaster’s program she’s taking in theSchool of Environmental Design andRural Development. Capacity devel-opment and extension is focused onpreparing students to work with rur-al/remote and small communities inCanada and around the world, to helpthose communities realize their ownresources and use them to develop sus-tainable economies.

In her Kenyan research, Gratz waslooking for factors that affected the useof fuel-efficient stoves in rural areas inan effort to encourage the adoption ofnew technologies. It was a bonus todiscover a group of women who haddesigned and built a stove that not onlycooked three foods at once and keptthem warm afterwards — thus freeingup a woman’s time during her day —but also served as a chick brooder andegg incubator.

“All of this was done with minimal,if any, outside influence,” she says.“Idon’t even know if these women wereliterate.”

Gratz, who earned her undergrad-uate degree in plant biology, says shechose to continue her studies atGuelph because of the University’sreputation as a centre of excellence forboth international development andenvironmental studies, two areas she ispersonally and academically interestedin.”

One last word for those who spon-sor scholarships: “Thank you forenabling us to commit ourselveswholeheartedly to our studies andresearch, and for partnering with us totransform this world for the better.”

alumni P

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Multiplying the fruit

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Allison Gratz

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N e t w o r k i n g

A t the annual University-wide awards ceremony, president

Alastair Summerlee welcomed 240 stu-dents, their families and the sponsorsof more than 60 prestigious U of Gawards, including 18 new awards.

The event recognizes supporterswho have contributed to the Univer-sity-wide awards program and bringsstudents and donors together, often forthe first time. It also enables U of G tocelebrate non-college-specific awards,as well as new awards within individ-ual colleges.

“The University of Guelph is grate-

ful for its generous donors, withoutwhom so much of the student awardsprogram would not be a reality,” saidSummerlee.

Some donors give to the Universi-ty’s general scholarship fund; othersspecify their gifts to support a partic-ular academic program or area of per-sonal interest. Endowed scholarshipsensure that future Guelph students willbe supported by the investment pro-ceeds from the donor’s original gift.

To learn more about giving to Uof G scholarships, visit www.alumni.uoguelph.ca.

matters

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Guelph’s time is nowThe University of Guelph is fortunate to have

an engaged family of alumni who care

deeply about the future of their alma mater.

There is a varying level of commitment with-

in our alumni base — we owe tremendous

thanks to those who are very involved and

encourage those who haven’t been active

to get behind their university. Whether you

decide to make financial contributions, vol-

unteer, act as an ambassador or help us

deliver the U of G message, we’re calling

on all alumni to join us.

As each graduate knows, the Universi-

ty excels in many areas that address the

root problems of current global challenges.

Guelph is uniquely poised to be a world

leader in food, water, animals, the environ-

ment and public health. We are indeed

emerging as a strong leader in the most

important areas of life.

As key stakeholders of the institution,

alumni can feel proud that their university is

stepping forward in a bold way to make

important world-changing and life-improv-

ing discoveries. The University of Guelph’s

time is now.

Now. It matters.

Joanne Shoveller

Vice-President

(Alumni Affairs and Development)

It was a celebration

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University of Guelph president Alastair Summerlee gets a lift from recipients of

the President’s and Chancellor’s Scholarhips. From left: Stephynie Sargent, Evan

Bell, Isdin Oke, Duncan Parviainen, Nicole Markwick, Lindsay Morris, Jeannette

Goode, Kerith Gordon and Nadine Frost. Lydia Frost is kneeling in front.

Summer 2009 25

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u of g

In front: Erna Witherspoon, left, and Ann

Smith, both BSA ’52. In back: Anne Pennock

and Shirley Allen, both B.H.Sc. ’58.

Basketball players reunite

A women ’s basketball alumni fam-ily day held Jan. 10 brought together

former players, coaches and friends. Every-one enjoyed a pre-game reception and thencheered on the Gryphon women’s team asit battled Western. A slideshow featuringLibranni and athletics photos brought backbasketball memories for the former teammembers.

So you think you can salsa?

G uelph grads proved they coulddance at a February young alumni

event in Toronto. More than 80 alumnienjoyed hors d’oeuvres and cocktails, thenjoined the salsa lessons at Ba Ba Luu, a danceclub in the heart of Yorkville.

If you’ve got an idea for a young alumnievent in your city, contact Mary-Anne Morozat mamoroz@uogueph.ca or search for “Uni-versity of Guelph Alumni” on Facebook.

alumni matters

Greetings! This year’s Alumni Weekend theme is “A Time

for You, a Time for Guelph.” Most, if not all, of

us have fond memories of the time spent at our

alma mater, and we look forward to Alumni

Weekend as a time to reconnect with friends

and other alumni. It will be my honour to wel-

come you personally to campus for Alumni

Weekend 2009 — a time to rekindle memories

and visit the places on campus that mean so

much to us. I look forward to seeing everyone

in June.

William P. Weber, DVM ’59

Honorary Chair

ALUMNI WEEKEND — JUNE 19 AA time for you, a time for Guelph

ALUMNI WEEKEND — JUNE 19 A

FRIDAY EVENING

• Alumni-in-Action

welcome tent

• Star Party in the physics

observatory

SATURDAY MORNING

• OVC AA welcome break-

fast and annual general

meeting

• Mac Institute restoration

celebration

• Mac-FACS-FRAN AA

annual general meeting

• Campus walking tours

• HK/HB AA breakfast and

annual general meeting

• CBS AA breakfast and

annual general meeting

SATURDAY NOON

• President’s Lunch

celebrating the class

of 1959

• Neal Stoskopf, BSA ’57

and MSA ’58, will be

named Alumnus of Honour

• Alumni Volunteer Award

will be presented to Mary

Lynn McPherson,

B.Sc.(Agr.) ’80

26 The Portico

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Alumni answer the call

W ith economic news domi-nating the headlines, it’s easy to

focus on the doom and gloom. But thisgives us all the more reason to celebratethe great philanthropic stories that con-tinue to unfold as dedicated Guelphalumni give back, showing tremendousgenerosity to the University.

Macdonald Institute holds a specialplace in the hearts of many Guelphgrads, so it’s not surprising that alumnihave been rallying to support its six-yearrestoration project. Many alumni cameforward with donations to fund the finalstage of the project, including an out-standing leadership gift from Janice Pear-son Taylor, B.A.Sc. ’85. She says she fond-ly remembers her student days atMacdonald Institute and believed the

restoration project was important.The University of Guelph Alumni

Association pays tribute to Taylor and allgraduates who share her feelings. It isimpressive to see this outpouring of sup-port for University projects.

Indeed, the culture of philanthropyamong our alumni body is important,and the support for U of G initiativesduring an economic downturn has beeninspirational.Thank you to all of ouralumni who continue to support theUniversity.Your generosity makes a dif-ference.

L inda Hruska

B.Sc. (Agr. ) ’85, M.Agr . ’88 President , UGAA

COMING EVENTSJune 22 • Gryphon Golf Classic to raise

funds for U of G athletics, Cutten Club, con-

tact Joe Varamo at jvaramo@uoguelph.ca

for details.

Sept. 10 • First day of classes. Check

the U of G homepage for fall events and

lectures: www.uoguelph.ca.

Sept. 11 • OAC Alumni Association golf

tournament, Victoria Park East Golf Club in

Guelph, details at www.alumni.uoguelph.ca.

Sept. 25 to 27 • HTM 40th anniversary.

The School of Hospitality and Tourism

Management invites all HAFA/HTM grads

to attend one or all of the weekend events.

Visit www.alumni.uoguelph.ca/htm40 to

register.

Friday • Golf at the Cutten Club, all day

Mix and Mingle at PJ’s, 7:30 p.m.

Saturday • Pancake breakfast, 9 a.m.

• HAFA/HTM annual meeting, 10:30 a.m.

• Iron Chef luncheon, 11:30 a.m. •

Gryphon football, 2 p.m. • Delta Guelph

reception, 6 p.m. • Gala dinner, 7 p.m.

• Speaker Simon Cooper, president of

the Ritz Carleton Hotel.

Sunday • Delta Guelph brunch, 10 a.m.

to noon • Golf at the Cutten Club, all day.

Sept. 26 • Homecoming, Gryphons

vs.Western Mustangs at 2 p.m., Alumni

Stadium. • To plan a class reunion dur-

ing Homecoming, contact Mary-Anne

Moroz at mamoroz@uoguelph.ca.

Nov. 19 to 22 • Fair November Craft

Sale, University Centre.

June 18 and 19, 2010 • We’ll help you

plan a class reunion for Alumni Weekend

2010, contact Helen McCairley at hmc-

cairl@uoguelph.ca.

9 AND 209 AND 20

SATURDAY EVENING

• Alumni Dinner

celebrating the class

of 1984

• Lost in the ’80s pub night

Events sell out quickly,

so register early to avoid

disappointment.

Details at

www.alumni.uoguelph.ca.

SATURDAY AFTERNOON

• President’s House tours

• Faculty of Environmental

Sciences open house

• UGAA annual general

meeting

• Macdonald Stewart Art

Centre tour

• Treasures of the library

archives

• FES 10th-anniversary

celebrations

Summer 2009 27

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28 The Portico

C a r e e r s • F a m i l i e s • L i f e E x p e r i e n c e s • M

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Cowboy shirts connect two worlds

I t may not be a global fashionmecca, but Nairobi, Kenya, is the

birthplace of a unique clothing com-pany that blends the western style ofCanada with the vibrant and colour-ful energy of Africa. Co-founded byBart Sullivan, BA ’02, and KenyanAndrew Kimani, Kilakitu Clothingblends culture and style while helpingto support the local community.

Kilakitu is known for its line ofclassic men’s cowboy shirts, throwbacksto the 1970s Stetson shirts that wereonce in high demand in North Amer-ica and around the world and can stillbe found in many wardrobes today.Sullivan picked up his Stetson at a sec-ond-hand shop in Berlin, en route toKenya, where he moved in 2008.

One day he realized that his cream-coloured shirt was showing the effectsof daily commuting in rough and grit-ty Nairobi, so he asked Kimani, a tailor,to re-create the shirt in darker colours.Kimani used fabrics found in the sec-

ond-hand clothing markets of Nairobi— clothing that people in Canada andother wealthy countries have discarded.Amazed by the result, Sullivan thoughtthere might be a market for this type ofshirt, and Kilakitu Clothing was born.

Their first batch of 58 shirts wasoffered online and nearly sold out inthe first week. Sullivan says he’s nowworking to manage the growingdemand and plans to expand the com-pany into other African nations.

“The beauty of the ‘Kenyan Cow-boy’ shirt is that it’s a blend of twoworlds,”he says.“It has the western formof the cowboy shirt mixed with theexpressiveness of African colour prefer-ences. My tailors are the ones who pickthe colours and patterns. It was funnyat first because I was picking all thesesubtle and comparatively drab combi-nations until one day I let them pick.They were outrageous! At first it was abit overwhelming for me: pink, orangeand lime green cowboy shirts? But I’ve

come to realize that this is part of thebeauty of the collaboration.”

Sullivan was raised in Guelph,where he organized concerts anddemonstrations and hosted variousradio shows on CFRU. He travelled toMexico, Barbados and Malaysia beforeenrolling at U of G, where he com-pleted an individual studies BA thatcombined computing science andrural extension studies.

His introduction to Kenya occurredin 2002 after he accepted an internshipwith the African Virtual University, aWorld Bank organization providing sub-Saharan Africa with satellite-based dis-tance education at the university level.

He draws on his radio backgroundand experience in rural extension stud-ies in his current job with Farm RadioInternational, an Ottawa-based NGO.Specifically, he is helping the AfricanFarm Radio Research Initiativeexplore the role that radio can play inimproving access to relevant and use-ful information for African farmers.

“I see my place in the world as aconnector,” he says. “I love meetingnew people, learning what they’re upto and then connecting them to otherpeople I know. I’ve recently discoveredthat it’s something I’ve done all my lifethrough music, social movements andnow through a clothing companybased in East Africa.”

Sullivan has high hopes for theexpansion of Kilakitu Clothing andwould like to create Kilakitu Recordsto facilitate collaborative music projectsbetween African and western musi-cians, in much the same fashion as hisclothing line.

To learn more about Kilakitu Cloth-ing, go to www.kilakituclothing.com.

By Rebecca Kendall

Andrew Kimani, left, and Bart Sullivan

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M e m o r i e s 1940■ Ivan Stinson, BSA ’49, livesin Guelph, where he’s gettingready for the 60th anniversaryof the Class of 1949 at this year’sAlumni Weekend, which runsJune 19 and 20. He reminds usthat Class of ’49 members havebeen generous donors to theUniversity.Their signature pro-jects have included installing theclock on Johnston Hall, restor-ing the portico for which thismagazine is named, funding thewater garden next to theRutherford Conservatory andproviding four annual scholar-ships of $2,500.

1950■ Noreen Broadwell, DHE’54, sent an update and a com-pliment for The Portico, whichshe describes as “very interest-ing reading.” During her one-year program at MacdonaldInstitute, she met her late hus-band, Chuck, BSA ’54.“It wasthe most informative and mostromantic year of my life,” shesays. They were married forclose to 53 years. Broadwell alsoearned a BA from the Univer-sity of Western Ontario in 1994and received the Kiwanis Fel-low Award for her work in thecommunity.■ Bud Ings, DVM ’52, ofMontague, P.E.I., has publisheda book called Mud, Sweat andTears in which he shares hisexperiences of growing up ona farm and running a veterinaryclinic, as well as his sabbaticalfrom veterinary medicine toenter politics. Ings spent eightyears in the Alex Campbell gov-ernment, then returned to vet-erinary work in 1980.“I missedthe people and the animals,” hesays.Acorn Press launched thebook in November 2008, andall proceeds are going to theP.E.I. Humane Society.

Summer 2009 29

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A manda Flanagan, B.A.Sc. ’06,wrote in her blog that when she

was a little girl, she liked to watchWorld Vision programs on television.She said the images made her sad andhappy at the same time.

Now Amanda is taking similar pho-tos herself and posting them on thewebsite for a non-profit organizationshe established in Kenya after a workexperience there in 2006/2007.TheTumaini Community DevelopmentCentre is named after the Swahili wordfor hope, and it reflects Flanagan’s hopefor her projects in Kenya.

The centre has a school for 120orphans and vulnerable children, a fishfarming project, a tailoring school foryouths who couldn’t complete sec-ondary school because of a lack offunds, and an emergency-care spon-sorship program.

After completing that first workplacement, Flanagan returned to herGeorgian Bay home in Gore Bay, Ont.,for a few weeks before heading to

Nicaragua for six months as the com-munity nutritionist for an Oxfam pro-ject. She says she loved that experience,too, but knew she’d left her heartbehind in Africa and had to figure outhow she could return to Kenya.

The opportunity came through herU of G friend Evelyn Duffy, B.A.Sc.’06. Duffy knew of an opening at theairline where she worked in Jeddah,Saudi Arabia — close enough for Flana-gan to travel to Kenya during vacationtimes.That reference later turned intoa job for Duffy herself. She is nowsponsorship co-ordinator for the Tumai-ni Community Development Centre.

Flanagan plans to continue her pro-jects in Kenya while completing a mas-ter’s degree in public health for devel-oping countries from the LondonSchool of Hygiene and Tropical Med-icine in London, England.

To read more about Flanagan’s suc-cess stories and the Tumaini centre, vis-it The Portico online at www.uoguelph.ca/theportico.

Hope — in Swahili and English

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1970■ Peter Adrian,ADA ’70, livesin Rozelle, Australia. LastAugust, he retired from his jobas an environmental plannerwith the New South WalesDepartment of Planning andtravelled to England,Europe andthe United States with his wife

to visit family and friends.Whenthey returned home in the win-ter,Adrian went back to work-ing for the department parttime.“We’re looking forward togetting to Guelph on our nexttrip to Canada,” he says.■ Laverne Arthur,ADA ’72,opened an independent med-

ical practice in Lakefield, Ont.,in March 2008 in associationwith the Chemung RegionFamily Health Organization.Being a family physician is histhird career. After graduatingfrom U of G, he farmed fulltime for 15 years, then he andhis wife, Anne, became highschool teachers.The new doc-tor has five children, two ofwhom attended U of G.■ Michael Brown, MA ’71, isa retired pastor and a profes-sional dive instructor who livesfrom November to May in Aru-ba and the rest of the time inMuskoka. His website iswww.arubawindsong.com.■ Elizabeth “Liz” (Davis)Cunningham, B.A.Sc. ’78, hasretired from 30 years of full-time employment to stay athome with her children, Sean,9, and Erin, 14. She also volun-teers in the community and is apart-time student.■ Jim Fischer, B.Sc. ’76 andM.Sc. ’92, and his wife, Donna,of Walkerton, Ont., recentlyretired after 30 years as dairyproducers. In 2005, Jim receiveda B.Ed. degree at Lakehead Uni-versity and is now an occasion-al teacher with the Bruce-GreyCatholic District School Board.They have two children: Lind-say, B.A.Sc. ’02, and Aaron,ADA ’03. Lindsay went on toearn a B.Ed. degree from Nipis-sing University and is a coreFrench teacher in Mildmay,Ont.Her husband, Jeff Brigden, BA’02, is a cost accountant withGay Lea Foods Co-operative inTeeswater. Aaron is apprentic-ing as an automotive technicianin Lacombe,Alta. Jim and Don-na are continuing with FischerLind Farms Ltd., growing hay,wheat, soybeans, corn andseedling conifers. They alsooperate Edge-of-Algonquin, anFSC-certified forest near Algon-quin Park, and last year estab-

lished Westwind Woods B&B ina log home on their farm.■ Dennis Fitzpatrick, B.Sc.’75 and M.Sc. ’78, is vice-pres-ident (research) at the Universi-ty of Lethbridge.When U of G’swomen’s rugby team was inLethbridge last fall for thenational championships,“it wasan occasion for celebration,” saysFitzpatrick, who cheered hisown team to a gold medal andthe Gryphons to bronze.He alsohad a reunion dinner with U ofG animal science professor JimAtkinson, PhD ’78, a longtimeGryphon rugby coach.■ Patricia Foster, B.A.Sc ’72,and Michael Fitzgerald,ADA’69,were married April 12,2008,in Fergus, Ont., with severalGuelph graduates in attendance.They are both recently retiredand are enjoying their home inGuelph and their cottage in theHaliburton Highlands.■ Raja Hadawi, B.Sc. ’75,worked with various federaldepartments for 33 years inenvironmental protection andenvironmental engineeringbefore retiring to pursue othergoals. But it wasn’t long beforehe was offered and accepted aposition as a contract adminis-trator with SNC-Lavalin Con-sulting in Edmonton,Alta., tooversee the construction of twolarge oil-pumping stations nearFort McMurray.■ Bobby Hannah, B.Sc.(Agr.)’71, was one of three honoureesto receive a special award of dis-tinction from ACTRA (Allianceof Canadian Cinema,Televisionand Radio Artists) for lifetimeachievement in stunt work. Pre-sented Feb. 19, the award cele-brated his long career and sig-nificant contributions to thefilm industry.■ Donna Hilditch, B.A.Sc.’79, has worked for the Ministryof Community Safety and Cor-rectional Services for 30 years

30 The Portico

L eigh Brownhill, MA ’95, is a writer, editor and researcherfocused on social movements, feminism and the political

economies of food and energy, globally and especially in Africa.She has taught in Kenya, where she conducted research on thesocial history of women for a PhD in international development.She has published several articles with sociology professor TerisaTurner, including an award-winning nine-page comic strip calledNakedness and Power, which features women’s naked politicalprotests in Kenya in 1992 and in Nigeria in 2002.The cartoonwas first published in World War Three Illustrated in 2004 and waschosen to appear in the inaugural edition of Best American Comics2006, published by Boston-based Houghton Mifflin.

It focuses on a 2002 revolt against petroleum pollution led bynearly 600 Nigerian women who staged mass protests against thepetroleum industry using the “curse of nakedness” as their weapon.

The curse refers to a cultural belief held by many Africansthat purposefully exposing female genitalia to men who havecaused anger results in the men’s “social death.”“No one willcook for them, marry them, enter into any kind of contract withthem or buy anything from them,” says Turner, who notes thatevery statement in the comic is 100-per-cent accurate.

She says the format of a comic strip enabled the tworesearchers to explain the struggle of these African women andthe issues of survival they face in a way that’s easy for a wide anddiverse audience to understand.To view the comic strip, visitBrownhill’s website at http://lbrownhill.com.

Women take action

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Leigh Brownhill, left, Ruth Wangari wa Thung’u and Prof. Terisa

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Summer 2009 31

and is currently at the CentralEast Correctional Centre inLindsay, Ont.■ Barbara (Dyer) James, BA’75, is an indoor air quality spe-cialist and a provincial judge ofsailing in Quebec. She has beenjudging since 1995 and quali-fied as a national-level judge in2008. She also competes threetimes a week in inter-club rac-ing and led her team to thewomen’s nationals in October.■ Ric Jordan, BA ’75, is man-ager of U of G’s Arboretum andis serving a three-year term onthe University’s Board of Gov-ernors.■ Suffian Kargbo, M.Sc. ’79,was featured in a three-partinterview published in SierraLeone’s online Patriotic Vanguardon Jan. 7 and 20 and Feb. 17.The article is about his politicalcareer as a member of parlia-ment for his home district ofTonkolili.

He was first elected in 1982after a distinguished career thatincluded serving as SierraLeone’s first national soil scien-tist to work at the LandResources Surveying Project(later the Land and Water Devel-opment Division) and as direc-tor general in the Ministry ofAgriculture, Natural Resourcesand Forestry.

Kargbo told Patriotic Vanguardthat he always enjoyed his cho-sen profession but never intend-ed to be a politician.Thirty yearslater, he still represents his con-stituency,now called #64,as chairof the parliament’s agricultureand food security committee.

In the Vanguard feature,Kargbo talks about his politicalphilosophy and his role in Sier-ra Leone’s last war, the sugarscandal of 1987 and the GreenRevolution. Read the wholeseries at www.thepatrioticvan-guard.com.■ Vickie (Bennett) Lawson,

B.Sc. ’79, is a secondary schoolteacher at Waitakere College inNew Zealand. She and her hus-band, Steve, have three children— Philip, Charlotte andGenevieve — and a small live-stock block where she has bredsome Hanoverian horses.■ Linda Manning, BA ’75,lives and writes in Cobourg,Ont., where she recently taughtan eight-week course in creativewriting.Two of her children’splays, Marcie Saves the Circus andWhat Do You Do With aDinosaur?, have been listed bythe Playwrights Guild of Cana-da in a new online cataloguecalled Scripted for Schools.■ Patricia Nuttall, B.Sc. ’78,moved to England more than20 years ago and is a patient ser-vices manager at the BMI BathClinic. She says she’d love tohear from wildlife biology stu-dents who graduated around1978. Her e-mail is nuttallpa-tricia@yahoo.com.■ Sandra Richards, B.A.Sc.’79, is a secondary schoolteacher in Port Hope, Ont.,teaching hospitality and tourismand social science.■ Constance Roy, B.Sc. ’76,is a nurse in Powell River, B.C.,and welcomes e-mail from oth-er grads at nmconstance@netscape.net.■ Margaret Sadler, BA ’71,and her husband, Marcus Busch,have returned to Alberta aftertheir third year-long sabbaticalof volunteer service.They spent1992/1993 in northern Japan,2000/2001 in Mauritania and2007/2008 in Cambodia.Thesecond and third sabbaticalswere with the Lutheran WorldFederation Department forWorld Service.“It’s a great wayto learn more about the world,”says Sadler. “We can’t recom-mend it highly enough. Whyisn’t everyone doing this?”■ Paul Valeriote, BA ’73, is

director of sales for GuardianMobility, based in Ottawa. Hehas held more than 35 differentjobs since graduation andencourages others to embracechange in their lives. He is pres-ident of his local Rotary Cluband a member of the board ofdirectors of the Centre for theArts in Elora, Ont.

■ Arlene Wilcock, B.A.Sc.’75, is a competition law officerwith the Competition Bureauof Canada in Hamilton, Ont.She says she’s proud that herdaughter, Angela Musico,B.A.Sc. ’07, followed her toGuelph. Musico completed adietetic internship with Hamil-ton Health Sciences last August

L ouise Kent, BA ’02, is a singer-songwriter and motivation-al speaker who has spoken to more than 100,000 people

since becoming a Free the Children ambassador in 2004. She hasa passion for mentorship, a degree in international developmentand first-hand experience of living conditions in disadvantagedcommunities in Guyana, China and India.

Now she’s taken on a new challenge as executive director anda performer for Me to We Music, the socially conscious musiclabel of Canada’s Free the Children enterprise. She performedfor 8,000 youth at last October’s National Me to We Day inToronto and launched her debut album, The Small Things, inNovember. In addition, she produced a YouTube music videothat jumped to No. 1 in the United Kingdom, Spain, Italy, France,Poland, Ireland, Japan, the Netherlands and Brazil.

Through her music and her speaking tours, Kent is encourag-ing ethical living and social responsibility while helping to fundthe organization’s development initiatives.www.metowe.com/music.

Sing-along messages

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32 The Portico

and is now a registered dietitianin the renal clinic at LondonHealth Sciences.■ Barbara William, MA ’73,recently published A Gentle-woman in Upper Canada, a newand expanded edition of theclassic work Journals, Letters andArt of Anne Langton, which wasfirst published posthumously in1950.William’s book, publishedby the University of TorontoPress, is illustrated with worksby Langton and contextualizesher life and work in light ofcurrent scholarship.

1980■ Eleanor (Holt) and PhilAnwender, both B.Sc.(Agr.)’83, live near Sebringville, Ont.,and celebrated 25 years of mar-riage in September 2008.Theyhave a daughter, Kirsten, and ason, Robert, who is studyingagricultural business at U of G.

■ Mike Bachner, B.Sc.(Agr.)’84, is an agribusiness recruiterand managing partner in AgCallHuman Resources in St. Marys,Ont. He was formerly withBestard Agricultural Placements.■ John Bailey, B.Sc. ’80, is anenvironmental consultant withthe Golden Horn Office of Sci-ence and Technology in White-horse, Yukon. After thinkingabout it for 25 years, he wentback to school and earned aPhD in biology at the Univer-sity of Western Ontario in 2008.He was hooded at convocationby his brother, Bob, B.Sc. ’80and M.Sc. ’82, a professor atWestern. Two of their sisterswere in the academic proces-sion:Kathryn Bailey, B.Sc. ’73,and Martha, who attendedGuelph in the late 1970s beforegoing to law school. Anothersibling, Peter Bailey, BA ’76,was unable to attend. John has

three daughters: Olive,Alice andMartha. Old friends can reachhim at jbaile7@uwo.ca.■ Odette Barr, B.Sc. ’82, spent10 years in the High Arctic as ateacher, vice-principal and prin-cipal in small Inuit schools. In1999, she moved back to theMaritimes for a graduate degreeat the University of PrinceEdward Island and is now acourse developer and distancefacilitator with the NewBrunswick Department of Edu-cation. She’s also building a newhome on the coast.■ Doug Beswick, B.Sc. ’88,worked for Shur-Gain Feeds inOntario for 17 years beforejoining Tandell Research Ltd. asa research chemist working onsoap and detergent products. His16-year-old son is now consid-ering university applications, and“Guelph is definitely on hisshort list,” says Beswick.“I enjoy

The Portico very much and readabout other grads with greatinterest. I am the editor of achemical newsletter myself, andthis relates to my strengths andstudies achieved at U of G.”■ Sandra Couch, BA ’84 andMA ’87, owns and operates theCambridge Book Nook inCambridge, Ont.After 18 yearsin corporate affairs and the cor-porate planning office at ToyotaMotor Manufacturing CanadaInc., she bought the bookstoreand expanded it to include rarebooks, used books, journals, old-world pens and inks and otheritems. In 2008, the shop wasnamed best used-book store inCambridge. She also offers writ-ing and editing services throughthe store and was a writer at Uof G before joining Toyota.■ Susan (Thatcher) Dimma,B.A.Sc ’83, lives in Guelph andrecently graduated from Liaison

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Culinary School in the person-al chef program.Although shesays she has “retired” from thechildcare field, her new businesdoes include cooking camps andclasses for kids.“I am lookingforward to my exciting adven-ture in the culinary field and mynew business, Garnishes Person-al Chef Services,” she says.■ Patrick Dowds, BA ’88, hasbeen a teacher with the HaltonCatholic District School Boardfor 20 years and is currentlyteaching Grade 4 in Oakville,Ont. He was married in August2008, and he and his wife areexpecting a baby in June.■ Carol Hochu, B.A.Sc. ’81,was appointed executive direc-tor of Ontario Electronic Stew-ardship in December 2008. Herrole is to help lead implemen-tation of the Waste Electricaland Electronic Equipment Pro-gram Plan under the Waste

Diversion Act.With more than20 years of experience in thenot-for-profit sector, she hasserved as president of both theOntario Stone, Sand and Grav-el Association and the Confec-tionery Manufacturers Associa-tion of Canada. In 2004, she wasappointed to a provincial taskforce that developed recom-mendations on how Ontariocould most effectively establisha permanent Golden Horseshoegreenbelt. Since June 2005, shehas served on the Ontario Bio-diversity Council. She holds anMBA from York Universityand is a certified associationexecutive.■ Janice Huntingford, DVM’84, opened the Essex AnimalHospital in Essex, Ont., inDecember 2007. She describesit as “southwestern Ontario’sfirst canine rehabilitation cen-tre complete with saltwater pool

and underwater treadmill.”■ Harry Jennings, B.Sc.(Agr.)’81, lives in Williams Lake, B.C.,where he’s a team leader inecosystem restoration for theB.C. Ministry of Forests andRange. For the last year and ahalf, he’s been working in a newfield called ecosystem restora-tion, concentrating on thedegraded and threatened nativetemperate grassland ecosystemsof the B.C. Interior.■ Barbara Johnson, B.Sc. ’86,is director of advancement forthe Sisters of St. Francis inLewiston, N.Y., where she liveswith her husband, Kevin. Shesays she has “the joy and plea-sure of living and working alongthe lower Niagara River.”■ David Kangaloo, B.Sc. ’82,earned a veterinary degree fromthe University of Liverpool in1989. He is a senior veterinaryofficer with the Ministry of

Agriculture in Trinidad andTobago. He has two daughters,Dana and Farrah.■ Todd Lefebure, BA ’82 andM.Sc. ’85, is a builder inChemainus, B.C., who says he“works to golf.” His goal is tobuild “an off-the-grid small-car-bon-footprint home.”■ Gwynneth Lloyd, B.Sc. ’97,and Gavin Bee are the proudfirst-time parents of LucasEdward Lloyd-Bee, who wasborn Nov. 27 at Guelph Gen-eral Hospital.■ Colleen Mercer Clarke,MLA ’87, recently moved toWaterloo, Ont., after living onthe east coast for 30 years. Alandscape architect and ecolo-gist, she is completing an inter-disciplinary PhD in coastal stud-ies from Dalhousie University.■ Scott McLeod, B.Comm.’86, lives in the Vancouver area,where he has started two busi-

Summer 2009 33

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519-824-4120 ext. 52323recruit@uoguelph.ca

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nesses: Fleetman Consulting Inc.(fleetmanconsulting.com) andFabulous Flower Beds (fabu-lousflowerbeds.com). He has aseven-year-old daughter, Sarah.■ Catherine Milne, BLA ’83,owns and operates FarmgateGardens north of Belleville,Ont., with her husband, JohnGibson. Now in its 21st season,the garden centre was againnominated for business of theyear in 2008.They have threechildren: Catherine,Alexandreaand Nicholas.■ Edward “Ted” Norton, BA’80, is associate director of reg-ulatory economic studies forBell Canada. He has worked forthe company since graduationand has lived in Ottawa since1992. He and his wife, Linda,have two children, Ben andLindsay. Lindsay, who just fin-ished her first year at U of G, isthe 10th family member(including uncles, aunts andcousins) to attend Guelph.■ Melanie (Hammond)Prosser, B.Sc.(Agr.) ’89, hasbeen named director of programservices for REACH (Region-al Equine and Agricultural Cen-tre of Huron), which is beingbuilt in Clinton, Ont. REACHwill work in partnership with Uof G, OAC, Equine Guelph andthe Kemptville and Ridgetowncampuses to provide equine andagricultural education in a state-of-the-art facility. Prosser waspreviously manager of programdevelopment for equine pro-

grams in the University’s Officeof Open Learning.■ Frank Reddon, BA ’88, hadhis first book accepted into thelibrary of the Rock and RollHall of Fame in Cleveland,Ohio. Sonic Boom:The Impact ofLed Zeppelin.Volume 1 — Break& Enter has been enjoying crit-ical acclaim around the worldand is the first in a series ofthree planned for publication.Reddon says he was inspired towrite the book by U of Gmusic professor Howard Spring.■ Elizabeth Schuyler, ADA’85, works for the Port DoverMaple Leaf, a newspaper in PortDover, Ont. She and her hus-band have two daughters, aged13 and 10. She says she alwayschecks her copy of The Porticofor news of 1984 and 1985grads and “can’t believe it’s beenso long since I was at U of G.Great memories, great friends.”■ Cathy Scissons, B.Sc. ’88,owns and operates NovaKennelDog and Cat Boarding in Par-ry Sound, Ont.“Even after 12years, I still love my job (mostdays, anyway),” she says.■ Adam Socha, M.Sc. ’86, is aresearch officer with HealthCanada in Toronto. He is onassignment with a new substancesassessment and control bureaufrom his home position with theOntario Ministry of the Envi-ronment.He is helping to estab-lish a network for researchersinvestigating pharmaceuticals andpersonal-care products in theCanadian environment.■ Kelly Summers, B.Sc. ’86,and Shannon (Seney) Mif-flin, B.Sc. ’98, run a researchand service lab together at theLawson Health Research Insti-tute in London, Ont. Summersdeveloped the Screening Lab forImmune Disorders in 2005 andhired Mifflin in 2006 as man-ager of the facility.The lab pro-vides immunological cellular

assay services and immunologyconsultation for investigators inmedical and scientific profes-sions. If you’re interested in theirwork, e-mail them at ksum-mers@uwo.ca or shannon.mif-flin@sjhc.london.on.ca.■ Kim Taylor, M.Sc. ’85, han-dles Internet sales of custom-made martial arts equipment forwww.sdksupplies.com. He sitson the board of directors of theCanadian Kendo Federationand was recently promoted toseventh-degree black belt in iai-do and fifth degree in jodo.■ Helen Yeomans, B.Sc.(Agr.)’82, is an artist and teacher atNova Scotia Community Col-lege in Halifax, where sheteaches adults returning toschool for a high school diplo-ma.“It’s the toughest work I’veever done, but the rewards areworth it,” she says.“I love con-tributing and positively affect-ing people’s lives.”

1990■ Chris Adams, B.Sc. ’97, livesin Barrie, Ont., where in 2000he co-founded an Internet start-up company called Hot BananaSoftware that provides cus-tomers with Internet marketingsolutions. In 2006, he sold thebusiness to Lyris Inc., whichoperates out of San Francisco,Calif. He now serves as directorof user experience.■ Imtiyaz Ahmed, BA ’97, isleaving Canada to advance acareer in Islamic investmentswith the largest Islamic bank inSaudi Arabia.■ Erika Almasi-Klausz,B.Sc.’ 94, is natural areas projectco-ordinator for the City ofCalgary. She completed a mas-ter’s degree in wildlife biologyin 1997 focusing on the reintro-duction of the swift fox on theCanadian prairies. She has twochildren, Izabella, 10, and Adam,7, and has lived in Calgary since

2001. She writes to say:“U of Gstill rules!”■ Scot Bolton, B.Sc.(Agr.) ’95,is a financial adviser in Tillson-burg, Ont., with Good ReddenKlosler Wealth Management.He and Bridget (Fearon),B.Sc.(H.K.) ’95, have been mar-ried for 11 years and have twodaughters: Madelyn, 7, andCharlotte, 5. “As a family, wekeep busy with golf and skiingand being involved in our com-munity,” says Scot.■ Glen Cochrane, B.Sc. ’92,graduated from Palmer Collegeof Chiropractic in Davenport,Iowa, in 1996. He has beenpractising for 12 years. He wascertified as an independentmedical examiner by the Amer-ican Board of IndependentMedical Examiners in 2004 andwas designated as a certifiedimpairment ratings specialist bythe American Academy ofExpert Medical Evaluators in2006. He was recently acceptedinto the Las Vegas MetropolitanPolice Department and enteredthe academy in March.

■ Janneke Dekker, B.Sc.(Eng.)’98, married Tyler Nicholls inSeptember 2008 in Sudbury,Ont. She is director of facilitiesmanagement at CambrianCollege.■ Ivy Drafor, B.Sc. ’92 andM.Sc. ’94, is a senior lecturer inagricultural economics atGhana’s Methodist UniversityCollege. She is also one of thefirst recipients of a new fellow-

34 The Portico

Scott McLeod

Janneke Dekker

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ship from the African Women inAgricultural Research andDevelopment Program,which issupported by the Bill and Melin-da Gates Foundation andUSAID. Sixty female scientistswere chosen from more than900 candidates in nine Africancountries to receive the inauguralawards.Winners were chosen onthe basis of their potential tocontribute to the lives of small-holder farmers and rural women.■ Blair Fleming, BA ’99, is anenterprise software project man-ager for Sidler Ltd. and lives inMississauga, Ont. He and Jen-nifer Legare, BA ’01, had adaughter, Addison Scarlett, in2008. Says Dad:“She already hasher RESP with hopes of beinganother U of G grad.”■ Erin Mackie, BA ’93, andher husband, Phil Jones, havebeen living in Beijing, China,since August 2007. She was partof the CBC/Radio-Canada production team for theOlympic Games and is nowmanager of logistics and volun-teers for the China BookwormInternational Literary Festival.She can be reached via Facebookor at erinmackie@yahoo.com.■ John Nickolaou, B.Comm.’99, lives in Athens, Greece,where he’s a gas station inspec-tor and manager for HellenicPetroleum.■ Sean Nilsson, B.Comm. ’98,uses his marketing degree atIMAX Corporation in Torontoand in his music career. Hereleased his debut CD, FieldRecordings From the City, underthe band moniker Sheltered inSound.The CD has been receiv-ing play on CBC Radio Twoand is available on iTunes and atwww.shelteredinsound.com.■ Glen Pyle, B.Sc.(H.K.) ’95,is an associate professor in U ofG’s Department of BiomedicalSciences. He completed a PhDat the University of Tennessee

and a post-doctoral fellowship inChicago before joining theGuelph faculty in 2003. He hasgarnered a series of researchawards from the Canadian Insti-tutes of Health Research, theHeart and Stroke Foundation ofCanada and the Canadian Car-diovascular Society, as well as aPremier’s Research ExcellenceAward and the Dr. MaureenAndrew Award for the top-ratednew investigator in Ontario.Pylehas presented his research at con-ferences in New Zealand,Aus-tralia, Italy, the United States andacross Canada, most recently atthe American Heart Association’sScientific Sessions, which is theworld’s largest cardiovascularmedicine conference.He lives inHamilton with his wife,Frances,and their son,Kepler, 5, and theirdaughter, Radley, 3.■ Ian Quist, B.Sc.(H.K.) ’95,has been practising chiropracticmedicine in Lion’s Head, Ont.,for eight years and received theFamily Practice Award of Excel-lence in both 2006 and 2007.Heand his wife,Amanda, have twochildren: Ethan, 5, and Annik, 4.■ Joy Sammy, B.Sc. ’97, isexpanding on her undergradu-ate degree in wildlife biology bydoing graduate research on theimpact of community-basedecotourism on traditional val-ue-based conservation methodsin Ghana. Her case studyinvolves the Boabeng-FiemaMonkey Sanctuary.■ Kerri Schoedel, B.Sc. ’98,was recently promoted to theposition of scientific director ofclinical pharmacology forKendle International’s early-stage unit in Toronto. She’s anauthority on psychopharmacol-ogy and the assessment of drugabuse liability. In 2004, shejoined DecisionLine, formerlyVentana Clinical Research Cor-poration and now part ofKendle, as a research scientist.

■ Heather (Coulter) Stevens,B.A.Sc. ’91 and M.Sc. ’98, is aprofessor in the School of Busi-ness at George Brown College inToronto. She recently co-authored a textbook,Understand-ing Management, First CanadianEdition, for the post-secondaryeducation market. It was pub-lished by Nelson Education. Shelives in Toronto with her children— David, 11, and Lauren, 8 —and can be reached at hstevens@georgebrown.ca.■ Joleen Thomas, BA ’99, and

Stuart Humphries, R.Dip.’96, welcomed another daugh-ter,Violet Belle, to their familyon April 8, 2008.■ Stephen and Lee-Ann(Thorne) Turley, both ADA’92, will celebrate their 13thwedding anniversary in Octo-ber.They have three children:Eric, 10, Joshua, 8, and Grace, 1.Stephen works for the City ofKitchener, Ont., in the ceme-teries division and is a volunteerfirefighter with the Drayton FireDepartment.They’d like to hear

Summer 2009 35

M ark Phillips BA ’90, is a professional logistician who spenthalf of last year working for the United Nations Peace-

keeping Mission (UNMIS) in Sudan. Hired under a civilian con-tract as chief of the general supply unit, he managed warehouseand distribution operations for the entire mission and provideddirection to hundreds of staff at the logistics base in El Obeid, aswell as staff located at six UNMIS regional distribution points.

The largest project he co-ordinated was a complete physicalinventory at the UNMIS logistics base.“We located, counted andverified 90 per cent of the asset and expendable items from thefour commodity warehouse units,” which included more than1,200 sea containers used for storage.“Some of these items hadnever been inventoried before,” he says.

“Two highlights of my tour were: having the opportunity towork and share ideas with local Sudanese and international stafffrom all over the world as we helped restore peace in one of theworld’s poorest and currently most war-torn countries; and hav-ing small, often barefoot, Sudanese children wave to me as I trav-elled to and from work in my UN vehicle.This always broughta smile to my face and made me proud to be a Canadian with aunique opportunity to make a difference.”

Helping the UN find its way

PH

OTO

CO

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TES

Y M

AR

K P

HILLIP

S

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36 The Portico

from old friends at stephenrtur-ley@hotmail.com.■ Aaron Vanderwal, BA ’99,and Dawn Bowdish, B.Sc. ’00,recently returned to Canadaafter three years in England.Both held positions at the Uni-versity of Oxford. Vanderwaldesigned information systemsfor a malaria genetics programfunded by the Bill and MelindaGates Foundation and the Well-come Trust. Bowdish complet-ed post-doctoral training inpathology and held a fellowshipat Linacre College. She has nowjoined McMaster University asan assistant professor of pathol-ogy and molecular medicine,cross-appointed to the Institutefor Infectious Disease Research.■ Carol Walberg, BA ’96,wrote to tell us that she isretired and living in Port Elgin,Ont., and that her brother,James Walberg, DVM ’73, is apathologist at the Animal Med-ical Center in New York.

2000■ Schammim Arthur, M.Sc.’02, completed his master’sdegree in animal science “underthe supervision of the fantasticDr. Jim Atkinson,” then begandoing medical microbiology andimmunology research at theUnited Arab Emirates Univer-sity in Al Ain. He returned toCanada in 2005 to begin a PhDin immunology at Queen’sUniversity and recently defend-ed his thesis. He’s now headedfor a post-doctoral fellowship incardiovascular immunology inBoston.“I can’t wait to find outwhat comes next,” he says.■ Andrea Bennett, BA ’07, isa communications specialistwith the Ontario Universities’Application Centre in Guelph.■ Elaine (Cullen) Binns,B.Sc.(Agr.) ’03, is a lab techni-cian with Chapman’s Ice Creamin Markdale, Ont. She and her

husband, David, were marriedin 2006 and have two daugh-ters: Caitlyn Grace, born inApril 2007, and Lexis Faith,born in November 2008.■ Rachel Bryans, B.Sc. ’00, isa beekeeper in Alvinston, Ont.■ Yuhiro Chavez, B.Comp.’07, lives in Mississauga, Ont.,and is a software consultant atIndellient Inc.■ Kylee Childs, BA ’08, is cur-rently working for Bell Aliantin Thunder Bay, Ont., but willbe heading to graduate schoolin September. She plans to studyinternational business and trade.■ Jessica DeVries, BA ’07,can’t seem to pry herself out ofTanzania. She made her first tripto the East African country inFebruary 2008. She wanted toclimb Mount Kilimanjaro, takea safari and visit Zanzibar. Shealso signed on to volunteer forthree weeks, but ended up stay-ing two months. She came backto Guelph for a summer job, butheaded right back to Tanzanialast September.

Now living in Moshi,DeVries is working with awomen’s organization called theMlodi Widows’ Group. It pro-vides a platform for empower-ing women, she says, and thegroup’s commitment rests withhelping widows support them-selves and their children. She ishelping to launch small-scalepiggeries to allow women toearn money to pay for theirchildren’s school fees, gain accessto health care, buy nutritiousfood, and make much-neededrepairs and improvements totheir homes.■ Alexander Kalimbira, PhD’08, was a lecturer in humannutrition at the University ofMalawi when he received aCommonwealth Scholarship andcame to Guelph to complete adoctorate in applied humannutrition.He has returned to the

University of Malawi and con-tinues his research interests inchild and micronutrient nutri-tion, an area he has pursued sincehis undergraduate training.Kalimbira participated previous-ly in national nutrition studiesand micronutrient surveillancein Malawi, in addition to hisactive involvement in the devel-opment and implementation ofnutrition policies for the coun-try. He has also consulted wide-ly for international organizationsinvolved in nutrition work inMalawi, including World Vision,Save the Children (U.K.), EveryChild,Concern Universal,Con-cern World Wide and the Chris-tian Reformed World ReliefCommittee.

■ Andrew Kaszowski, BAA’06, is communications co-ordi-nator for the United Way ofLondon and Middlesex. Hestarted that job after workingfrom January to May 2008 aseditor of guest publications onCrystal Cruises’ 2008 worldcruise. He visited 22 countrieson the trip, and this photo was

taken sailing through the SuezCanal.After the cruise, he back-packed through four Europeancountries before returning home.■ Christopher Knee, B.Sc.(H.K.) ’07 and M.Sc. ’08, is clin-ical research co-ordinator forhypertension research at theUniversity of Ottawa HeartInstitute. He writes: “Guelphtaught me everything I need toknow to be successful in my newpost-grad career! But an iPodTouch would definitely help!”■ Christopher Logel, BAH’03, works for the Ministry ofCommunity Safety and Cor-rectional Services in Toronto. In2007, he married RebeccaGray, BA ’04.■ Sonja Missio, BA ’08, isenrolled in a master’s programat Brock University and sayseven recent grads want to seewhat their peers are up to.■ Kathleen (Boyd) Pent-land, B.Comm. ’05, works forthe Ontario Soil and CropImprovement Association andlives in Cambridge.■ Kristen Roe, BA ’03, com-pleted a double crossing of theNorthumberland Strait betweenPrince Edward Island and NewBrunswick in July 2008. It washer second fundraising swim toraise money for the StephenLewis Foundation and help alle-viate the HIV/AIDS pandem-ic in Africa.

■ Greg Sabatine, B.Comp.’04, and Susanne Holtrop, BA’04, met during their second

Alexander Kalimbira

Andrew Kaszowski

Greg Sabatine & Susanne Holtrop

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Summer 2009 37

Frederick Abraham, BSA ’51,Nov. 14, 2008

Craig Alexander, BSA ’49 andM.Sc. ’51, March 23, 2009

Walter Alexander, BSA ’53,Sept. 29, 2008

Ross Alloway, BSA ’49,March 3, 2009

Allan Bailey, BSA ’45, Jan. 31, 2008Archie Bishop, DVM ’48, Feb. 9, 2009Thomas Borecky, BA ’72,

July 27, 2008Edwin Brent, BSA ’48, Dec. 5, 2008Brian Brocklebank,ADA ’68,

Dec. 27, 2008Kathleen (Wing) Campbell,

DHE ’32, Aug. 1, 2008Brian Cardy, B.Sc. ’77, Jan. 18, 2009Eleanor (Smith) Civalier, DHE ’32,

Jan. 5, 2009Margaret (Lamont) Clemens, DHE

’38, July 24, 2008William Clutton, BSA ’49,

Nov. 15, 2008George Cope, BSA ’40, Oct. 15, 2008Donald Cummins, DVM ’50,

July 25, 2008Douglas Dale, DVM ’50,

Feb. 21, 2009Joan (Norris) Dixon-Muzzell,

B.H.Sc. ’55, Jan. 25, 2009Murray Gaunt,ADA ’56,

March 31, 2009Alexander Graham, DVM ’52,

Dec. 15, 2008

John Graham, DVM ’68, Feb. 8, 2009Jim Henderson, DVM ’36,

Dec. 16, 2008Howard Henry, BSA ’52,

Dec. 4, 2008Daniel Hill, B.Comm. ’74,

October 2008Gordon Hooper,ADA ’53, in 2008Elizabeth (Goddard) Jamieson,

B.H.Sc. ’64, March 23, 2009Henry Janzen, BSA ’39,

Dec. 29, 2007Grant Jermey, BSA ’43, Jan. 23, 2009Michael Kamenar, BA ’75,

Feb. 28, 2009James Kenney, BSA ’44,

Oct. 25, 2008Lorne King, BSA ’46, Jan. 4, 2009Allen Knight, BSA ’39,

March 20, 2009Woodburn Lambe, BSA ’61,

Jan. 30, 2009John Leeson, DVM ’36, Jan. 28, 2009Nora Lewis, DVM ’94, Dec. 29, 2008Gerald Loveless,ADA ’55,

Dec. 1, 2008Peter Marcus, BA ’80, Jan. 11, 2008Islay McClure, DHE ’52,

Nov. 10, 2008Ruth (Davis) McDaniel, DHE ’36,

Dec. 11, 2008Maryanne (Hulshof) McDougall,

B.A.Sc. ’81, Nov. 30, 2008Peter McGovern, BSA ’63,

June 28, 2008

Duncan McGugan,ADA ’47,May 20, 2007

Wallace McMillan, BSA ’33,Feb. 10, 2009

William Mitchell, DVM ’49,Jan. 11, 2009

Scott Murray, BA ’77, Aug. 24, 2008James Neil, DVM ’51, Jan. 11, 2009John Neilands, BSA ’44, Oct. 23,

2008Eric Olson,ADA ’94,

November 2008Patrick Parry, B.Sc.(Agr.) ’72,

April 3, 2008James Pate,ADA ’49, Nov. 12, 2008Carol (Prohet) Powe, B.A.Sc. ’83,

June 4, 2007Larry Robinson, B.Sc.(Agr.) ’73,

Dec. 27, 2007Donald Sanderson, BSA ’49,

Feb. 13, 2009Leon Saunders, DVM ’43,

March 4, 2009Elmer Shepherd, BSA ’36,

Jan. 9, 2009Jack Smylie, DVM ’49,

Nov. 18, 2008Charles Spence, DVM ’51,

Feb. 27, 2009Harry Stover, BSA ’47, Feb. 23, 2009Gabriel Tsampalieros, H.D.La. ’07,

March 11, 2009Dawn Watkin, BA ’94, Aug. 1, 2008Paul Wyczynski, H.D.Let. ’89,

Nov. 27, 2008

PASSAGES

year at Guelph and were mar-ried July 28, 2007, at the Arbore-tum. He works in softwaredevelopment for U of G’s Officeof Open Learning, and sheteaches English at Westside Sec-ondary School in Orangeville.■ Adam Scott, BA ’07, andJennie McDowell, B.Sc. ’07,participated in the UnitedNations Climate Change Con-ference in Poland in December.They joined 24 other youthdelegates from Canada to buildon the momentum gained in

Bali in 2007. McDowell is pol-icy co-ordinator for the Cana-dian Youth Delegation.■ Nicole Tuyten, B.Sc. ’01,works with the Ontario Min-istry of Natural Resources as aresource manager in Minden.Part of her job involves advis-ing and educating landownerson how to be responsible stew-ards of the natural resources ontheir property.■ Joe Varamo, BA ’00, isevents co-ordinator in U of G’sDepartment of Athletics.

■ Jason Wilson, MA ’03, wasnominated for a 2009 JunoAward in the category of Reg-

gae Recording of the Year for hisfirst solo album, The Peacemak-er’s Chauffeur. It was his secondnomination; the first in 2002 wasshared with his band,Tabarruk,for the album Jonah. Wilson,who is pursuing a PhD in his-tory at U of G, has been per-forming as a musician for morethan 15 years. He has collabo-rated with some of Canada’sbiggest reggae acts and artistsoutside the genre, including Ala-nis Morissette, who played onhis first album in 1994.

Jason Wilson

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