george birger had an outsized impact on the history of 阿根廷vs墨西哥竞猜 athletics. he was a beloved mentor, father figure, coach, and athletics director who inspired strong loyalty.

when george passed away from covid-19 on october 10, 2020, in tucson, arizona, at the age of 91, the university mourned the death of one of our early leaders. so did former athletes like jerry hemmings who played on lakehead’s championship 1969-70 nor’westers basketball team.

“from a players’ perspective, coach birger was outstanding,” jerry says.

he knew how to motivate with intensity, humour and compassion.

“coach was very focused on the bench and if the score got close, he got nervous and started chewing on his towel,” jerry adds. 

a ferocious basketball game during the 1968-69 season. “george was a players’ coach who related very well to his players,” jerry hemmings says. “he emphasized a strong defence first and an up-tempo game to complement his player’s strengths.” photo courtesy of 阿根廷vs墨西哥竞猜 archives

fittingly, george was born in winner, south dakota, in 1929, where he excelled as athlete during his school years. during this period, he began to see sports as a way to build character and cultivate the values of good citizenship.

this insight became the catalyst for a distinguished 50-year career in athletic programs in high schools and universities throughout the united states and canada.

george’s coaching skills brought him and his wife lorine to schools in canada and the united states, including ontario, manitoba, south dakota, idaho, prince edward island, and arizona.

he began his career as an assistant basketball coach with the university of south dakota in the early 1960s and then, in 1967, 阿根廷vs墨西哥竞猜 had the good fortune to hire george as our athletics director and men’s basketball coach. 

george’s coaching skills brought him and his wife lorine to schools in canada and the united states, including ontario, manitoba, south dakota, idaho, prince edward island, and arizona. photo courtesy of jerry hemmings

in a 2015 lakehead thunderwolves podcast, george recalled those early years.

“when i came, we were a very small department. we only had four people in the department – henry akervall who was the hockey coach, bill shannon who was our coordinator, and chris siciliano and myself.”

the small size of the athletics staff didn’t limit the basketball coach’s ambitions.

“we had the new gym that could hold quite a few people,” george explained in 2015, “and i said, ‘i’m going to fill that gym’ and most people thought it was a big laugh that we’d ever fill that for basketball. maybe hockey, but not basketball. well, it didn’t take very long and that place was plumb full all the way, all the time standing room only.”

jerry hemmings has vivid memories of coach birger during basketball games. “we knew when he took off his jacket and started chewing on a towel that it was time to lace up our shoes and start playing. my teammate joe parks would always say, ‘coach. relax, we got this game.’” photo courtesy of jerry hemmings

part of coach birger’s strategy was to cast his net wide in his search for talented basketball players.

“george was relentless in his efforts to recruit student athletes. he recruited me to lakehead in 1969,” explains jerry, who is originally from north carolina. “it was the start of a 50-year friendship.”

by george’s third year of coaching, lakehead was accepted into the national association of intercollegiate athletics (naia). 

george was quoted in the argus student newspaper as saying of naia, “the main point is that our top athletes will now receive the recognition they deserve and the door is wide open for 阿根廷vs墨西哥竞猜 to build an international reputation, particularly in sports such as hockey and basketball.” 

 lakehead athletics director hank akervall, athletics activities coordinator bill shannon, and coach george birger celebrate joining the national association of intercollegiate athletics (naia). naia was an association of small and mid-sized american colleges and universities that allowed lakehead to compete for american championships in basketball, as well as many other sports. this was critical because it was too expensive to travel to southern ontario to compete against other provincial universities. photo courtesy of 阿根廷vs墨西哥竞猜 archives

success came quickly and by the 1969-70 season, lakehead’s basketball team, including jerry hemmings, had slam dunked their way to the naia district 13 championship playoffs in minneapolis.

“it was a great year,” george said in the 2015 podcast, “we kept winning and winning until we finished the season with 23 wins and one loss. we beat some very good american and canadian teams. we were the best men’s basketball team in lakehead’s history.”

the 1969-70 basketball team (photo courtesy of jerry hemmings):
front row (l-r): joe parks, robert jackson, charlie tallach, ken traynor, jerry hemmings, louis vaughn, brian nieminen
back row (l-r): coach george birger, renato savioli, dale olson, wayne chuchmuch, richard earl, shelton bellamy, brian smith

the basketball court wasn’t the only place george expected his players to shine. he always stressed the importance of a good education.

“that’s one thing i can say,” george said about the 1969-70 team, “all these guys got a degree because i pounded it into them, ‘you’ve got to study, you’ve got to be in class every day, and you’ve got to put your best efforts forward each time.’”

george’s influence continued to grow when he served as lakehead's athletic director from 1971 to1974. according to jerry, “george was instrumental in starting summer basketball camps and hosting christmas basketball tournaments along with coaching clinics for high school and rural-area coaches.”

his mentorship allowed student athletes like jerry hemmings to fulfil their potential. jerry was brandon university’s head men’s basketball coach from 1974 to 2004 as well as a physical education and recreational services instructor. george, incidentally, was brandon university’s athletics director from 1978 until 1987.

the accomplishments of george birger will always be remembered. he and the 1969-70 basketball team were honoured at lakehead’s 2015 athletics wall of fame ceremony and his legacy lives on in the hearts of our alumni.

listen to the 2015 podcast interview with george birger and former lakehead basketball players louis vaughn and jerry hemmings.

to make a gift to athletics or to learn about naming and recognition opportunities in the wolf den, lakehead's new athletics building, please contact:

kathryn davidson
philanthropy director
external relations
t: 807-343-8000 ext 8476
e: kathryn.davidson@lakeheadu.ca

outdoor recreation grad scott kress (bsc’93/hbor’93) knows what it is like to live life on the edge. 

this alumnus and adventurer is the 51st canadian to summit mount everest and the 18th canadian to climb the highest peak on each of the seven continents, along with mountains in the rockies, andes, alps, and the himalayas. 

scott uses supplemental oxygen at mount everest’s camp 3, located at an altitude of 7,470 m (24,500 feet), to prevent acute mountain sickness caused by low oxygen levels – a condition that can lead to death. 

scott’s outdoor rec roots are also apparent in his work organizing and guiding expeditions for true patriot love – a charity based in toronto that seeks to help ill and injured canadian soldiers and war veterans. in addition to mountaineering, scott is a compelling storyteller, author, and team-building expert who runs summit team building.

on may 21, 2008, scott reached the summit of mount everest. in this photo, scott rests at the summit with a sherpa guide who also made the ascent.

on march 10, scott gave a talk called “achieve the outrageous” as part of 阿根廷vs墨西哥竞猜 ’s alumni speaker series. we invite all of our readers to click here to listen to scott share the story of his punishing 44-day expedition across antarctica – one of the most hostile places on the planet. 

“antarctica is teeming with life in specific areas, but it’s confined mostly to the coast. once you move inland, there is nothing,” scott says. “no animals, no humans, no plants, nothing.” 

in 2016, he and three other explorers arrived there with the mission of skiing 1,000 km – unsupported and unassisted – to the south pole. 

scott kress has led four antarctic expeditions including two to the south pole and three to mount vinson – a 4,892 metre (16,050 ft) peak that is the highest in antarctica. 

“an unsupported expedition is one in which the explorers receive no re-supplies along the way,” explains scott. “each person must pull their expedition gear and enough food for 50 days in sleds weighing over 110 kilos.”

an unassisted expedition means that the explorers will use only human power for forward movement (no machines, dogs, or kites). “an unsupported and unassisted expedition is the purest form of expedition and harkens back to the early days of polar exploration,” he says.

since the best way to train for any sport is to do that sport, scott tried to mimic pulling a heavy sled by dragging truck tires around his neighborhood for hours each day. he also had mental and polar skills developed over decades of adventuring. but even the most arduous training regimen can’t compare to the real thing.

“the first few days are always tough as your body adjusts to the physical exertion and your mind adapts to the isolation,” scott says.

the last few days are challenging too as you know you are almost done, and your body has just about had enough.

because the expedition season runs from late november to mid-february during the short antarctic summer, scott had to cope with being away from his family during the holidays. 

“emotionally, christmas was difficult. sitting in the tent thousands of kilometres from home on christmas day is a lonely experience.”

the sense of isolation was compounded by brutal weather conditions. when scott’s party arrived at the south pole, the temperature dropped dramatically because they were at an altitude of 2,835 m.

“initially, we were in the -15 c range and some of our coldest days on the polar plateau were in the -35 c range. add in the windchill, and the temperature can drop even further. on many days, the wind speed exceeded 74 kilometres per hour, making travel difficult and uncomfortable.” 

scott (far right) and fellow adventurers ryan waters, paul adams, and katrina follows arrived at the south pole after 43 days of travel. scott is one of less than 10 canadians to trek unsupported and unassisted from the coast of antarctica to the south pole.

now, scott has a new achievement to be proud of – he was recently named a fellow of the royal canadian geographical society (rcgs). the society was established in 1929 to make canada better known to canadians, and to the world.

the men and women chosen to be rcgs fellows must have directly contributed to scientific knowledge in the fields of geography, geographical exploration, or allied sciences, or through teaching, academia, community service, and the arts. scott was elected a fellow based on his expedition and adventure background in canada.

the first fellows included trailblazers like canadian scientist and nobel prize winner dr. frederick banting, who co-discovered insulin, and group of seven artist a.y. jackson as well as explorers, anthropologists, and historians. what links rcgs fellows is their common commitment to the society’s longstanding tenets: “the determination to build, courage to explore and steadfast love of country.”

lakehead congratulates scott on being honoured by the royal canadian geographical society and his death-defying adventures around the globe!

watch this short video of scott that was featured in lakehead’s 2019-20 annual report.

stephanie drost says she's caught the bug – the 27-year-old is hooked on bobsledding.

stephanie, who studied kinesiology and business at lakehead and was one of the first two women hired by thunder bay fire rescue, has taken holiday time coupled with a leave of absence from firefighting to compete for team canada bobsleigh on the europa cup and world cup circuits in europe.

stephanie (right) in innsbruck, austria, after a race with her then pilot bianca ribi.

this winter she was in altenberg, germany, practicing as a brakeman with her pilot, stephanie says she wants to compete at the beijing olympics in 2022.

"that's what i have my sights on, whether it's the next olympics in beijing or in 2026. i still feel very green in this sport. however, i'm learning a lot being around veteran athletes."

a typical week for stephanie included sliding three days per week with weight training and speed training interspersed throughout, with competitions in germany and austria typically happening on weekends.

she's been on a whirlwind tour since trying out for the team in calgary, alberta, in october. after she was chosen, stephanie trained with her new teammates for eight weeks in whistler, british columbia, which has the fastest bobsled track in the world. then, in late december, she flew to germany to participate in the europa and world cup circuit.

stephanie has competed in races in altenberg, germany, and igls, austria, where all canadian teams had top 10 finishes.

stephanie pushing the bobsled with her pilot christine debruin during a training day in königsee, germany.

with speeds up to 150 km per hour in whistler, stephanie recalls being nervous before her first time whipping down the track in a bobsled.

she was supposed to go down that day, but something was wrong with her sled, so she watched instead, standing near one of the corners on the track.

i'd seen bobsled on tv, but you don't see how fast they go and how loud they are. it sounded like a jet engine coming toward me – extremely loud and super fast.

that's when her nerves set in. "i remember thinking 'this will be me tomorrow.' i was excited. i wasn't scared, but definitely a little nervous. once you get in the back and you feel yourself being hurled down the track – it doesn't sound as loud and it doesn't feel as fast as it looks. it's a rush and as soon as i got to the bottom i couldn't wait to get back in the sled and do it all over again."

high fiving with teammate, melissa lotholz in königsee, germany, after melissa finished a monobob race.

stephanie says anyone curious about a new sport or hobby should not be afraid to try it.

"definitely go for it and don't let the odds or doubts stop you, because there were definitely times when i doubted myself or thought i might be too old to get into a new sport and compete at a high level, but persistence and dedication can get you to whatever you have your sights on.

you never know what could happen. if i told myself even two years ago that this is where i would be, i would have never believed that. trust in yourself. we're all capable of some pretty amazing things.

stephanie returned home to thunder bay in the middle of february.

ten years ago, most people who knew him would have assumed that quentin evans’s life was on track.
he’d grown up in a supportive family, had an honours bachelor of arts from western university and a public relations certificate from humber college, and he’d just established a new branch office of a non-traditional marketing agency in toronto.

but things changed suddenly when quentin had a heart attack at the age of 33.

supporting others and helping them achieve their goals has always motivated quentin. he’s been a big brother and the national communications director of canada’s 2012 special olympics winter games. “if you’re ever curious as to where to find joy – make friends with these athletes,” he says. quentin currently volunteers with hospice orillia.

“although my path to living with purpose began earlier,” quentin says, “it took the contemplation of my own mortality to truly push me to become more intentional about my life choices.”

he discovered a new sense of clarity, which prompted him to enrol in a social work degree at lakehead orillia. “i always believed i would embrace a vocation serving others,” he explains.

quentin had a strong influence on campus. during his field placement with student services, he and his fellow classmate laura east tackled the problem of cyber-bullying in postsecondary institutions.

the two came up with the idea of the audacity movement (am).

we set out to shift the campus culture at lakehead orillia towards one that modeled – and rewarded – community, kindness, and social innovation

a key element of the initiative was tokens emblazoned with the initials “am” that 世界杯2022赛程表淘汰赛 and staff were able to give to anyone they witnessed performing an act of compassion or courage.

quentin has never shied away from taking a risk on endeavours he is passionate about, most notably founding the independent record label hope café records with his life partner, singer/songwriter angie nussey.

the duo experimented with innovative campaigns that set new standards in the industry. unfortunately, after five years of operation, the label had to fold due to financial difficulties. quentin, though, was unphased by this setback.

“being deeply humbled by that perceived 'failure' enabled me to differentiate between living a ‘satisfied life,’ that would be measured by us, versus the more traditional ‘successful life,’ which is so often measured by others.”

quentin is currently a community impact project liaison at georgian college’s centre for changemaking and social innovation (ccsi) in barrie, ontario. much of his time is spent helping 世界杯2022赛程表淘汰赛 engage in social innovation by connecting them with progressive community organizations. over the past three years, they’ve focused on food security, social isolation, and the united nations’ sustainable development goals.

besides his work with ccsi, quentin teaches courses at georgian and is the faculty representative for “manup” – a student-led social movement, in partnership with the ontario provincial police, dedicated to addressing gender-based violence.

the pandemic, of course, presents some challenges to his work and teaching.

“without question, i really miss being in the physical classroom,” quentin says, “but there’s something so beautifully human about hearing families in the background or watching a pet cross in front of a web cam.”

quentin recognizes how fortunate he’s been to have worked alongside so many inspiring individuals.

“i’m genuinely fascinated by people. i love to hear someone’s story and i’m always happy to share the things i’ve learned, and more importantly, un-learned during my journey.”

anyone who would like to get in touch with quentin is welcome to email him at quentinevans@gmail.com.

centre for changemaking and social innovation 世界杯2022赛程表淘汰赛 take part in a collaborative ideation session.

many people dream of someday embarking upon a bucket-list adventure – like selling everything and hitting the open sea to circumnavigate the globe. jennifer smith (hbsc’85) actually did it. 

 jennifer chronicled the 40,000-nautical-mile journey from vancouver to toronto “the long way around” that she and her husband took from 2000 to 2017 in her book, green ghost, blue ocean, which won the 2019 pottersfield prize for creative non-fiction. 

long before stepping foot on a boat, jennifer embraced change, uncharted territories, and unconventional choices. 

 green ghost is a vancouver 42 cutter-rigged sloop weighing over 17 tons. according to jennifer, knowing when to shorten sail and getting it done quickly and efficiently is the most technically difficult part of sailing. “most of your problems are caused by not anticipating conditions and not reducing sail soon enough.”

early explorations

born in oakville, ontario, jennifer became fascinated with archeology when her second grade teacher read the class a story about the discovery of king tut. she later grew to love geography, and then zeroed in on geology. 

enamoured with the idea of going “far away” to university, jennifer obtained three scholarships in 1981 and attended lakehead’s geology, energy and fuel science program.

“i loved my time at lakehead, and the camaraderie of my classmates,” jennifer says. 

“although we were the largest class the geology department had ever seen, there were still only 25 of us. it’s wonderful that those relationships just go on and on throughout your life if you make the effort to stay in touch.”

 jennifer says that it was thrilling to round the cape of good hope in their sailboat because it was long believed to be the southernmost tip of africa and the dividing point between the atlantic and indian oceans (cape agulhas actually holds this distinction).

while a student, jennifer’s summer jobs helped her gain valuable industry, government, and academic experience. she was a field assistant on a uranium exploration crew camped about 100 miles from the arctic circle, a research assistant for geology professors graham borradaile and john mothersill, and a worker at the federal department of northern affairs’ geology department in whitehorse, yukon. upon graduation in 1985 with first class standing, jennifer was awarded the department of geology prize.

to feed her wanderlust, jennifer took a year off to travel in southeast asia before pursuing a master of geology degree at the university of alberta.

jennifer during her lakehead undergrad years.

“i love seeing new things and being in motion – the physical process of moving through space toward a goal,” jennifer says. “because i really love physical geography, the way the land looks, and the processes of nature, i enjoy seeing as much of planet earth as i can.”

a kindred spirit leads to new directions

during a 1987 summer job on a gold exploration crew, jennifer met a fellow geology graduate from the university of toronto who would later became her husband. alex ‘nik’ nikolajevich – jennifer calls him “the captain of my heart” – also loved to travel, and the couple spent 1989 backpacking through australia, stopping to work for six months at a gold mine in western australia.

nik caught many fish on their sailing voyage – dorado (mahi mahi), tuna (yellowfin, dogtooth, albacore), wahoo, barracuda, cobia (black kingfish), and spanish mackerel. here, nik holds up a huge dorado catch, near long island, bahamas.

after getting married in 1990 and moving to vancouver, british columbia, jennifer spent a decade working as an exploration geologist in british columbia and yukon for various companies. 

“although i had wonderful experiences working as an exploration geologist – i really enjoyed being out in the mountains, on a traverse, mapping rocks – i didn't have any mentors, so i didn't really know where it would lead me,” she recalls. 

when economic forces driving the mining sector made finding work challenging, jennifer and nik found being far from home, and each other, increasingly difficult. to make themselves more employable, they each retrained, and jennifer became a chartered public accountant in 1996. leveraging her background in geology, she took on roles in finance, accounting, and later, corporate development in the mining sector.

“looking back, i'm glad i was flexible, i was okay with letting geology go to take a different route,” she says.

veering off course towards a new dream

on the bow of green ghost, surrounded by the crystal-clear waters of mayaguana, the easternmost island in the bahamas. during their travels, jennifer and nik witnessed many spectacular sights, including dolphins swimming through bioluminescent water at night. “it was as though the dolphins themselves were glowing,” jennifer says. 

settled in successful careers, jennifer and nik began envisioning a different life, one that would offer time for self-discovery. jennifer captured their thoughts in her book: “you can always make another dollar, but you can’t make another minute.” 

they had started taking sailing lessons, and being on the water fed their souls in a way nothing else had. the couple became obsessed with the idea of sailing from vancouver to australia, and did not want to wait 30 years until retirement to do so. they sold their home, bought a 42-foot offshore boat called green ghost, and sailed away in september 2000 across the pacific ocean towards brisbane, australia. 

“it's so interesting how people grow up in the same house with the same parents and then have such different journeys,” says jennifer’s sister, carolyn solby. “she was always adventurous.

"nik is a true adventurer as well, but he’s more the dreamer and long-term thinker. my sister is so organized and thoughtful. she’ll set a high goal for herself, and then take care to understand everything that needs to be done to achieve that goal.”

getting their sea legs

as jennifer and nik adjusted to life at sea, they quickly learned that cruising required determination, flexibility, patience, and especially mental and physical endurance. nik was plagued with relentless seasickness, and when the weather didn’t cooperate, there were some harrowing moments, as one of the first lines in jennifer’s book notes.

“just three days in and our dream felt more like a nightmare,” she wrote. nik observed that cruising on a sailboat is a lot like camping on a roller coaster. there was always something to repaint, repair or replace, which surprised the couple.

“we’d put so much work into the boat before we left, and i think i was a bit naïve in thinking that you could spend a lot of time getting ready, and then you’d arrive at and remain in a state of readiness. after a while, i realized that cruising is about perpetually getting ready. there’s no end to it,” she says. 

on one occasion, the transmission got flooded with sea water, but captain mallet – the port captain of rodrigues – saved the day when he and his small group of volunteer coast guards towed green ghost in to port through the reefs. another time, their autopilot system failed. jennifer says finding out that other cruisers experience the same challenges eased the burden somewhat.  

“one young couple we met from seattle had bought themselves a brand-new boat, and they were still having to fix things, and i remember them saying, ‘we thought this would be more of a cocktail cruise; we didn't realize it was going to be like this.’ parts of that trip were really hard. sometimes i’d ask myself, ‘why are we doing this again?’ but, in the difficult moments, i fell back on my mantra: this won’t last.”

frustrations also became opportunities to connect. “so many other people did us a favour or offered us a smile when we needed one…nobody cruises alone!”  

weathering the storms

jennifer describes offshore sailing as 98 per cent boredom and two per cent sheer terror, and indeed, the couple had several close calls in open water. 

jennifer climbs into the dinghy to take a closer look at a nurse shark near warderick wells, bahamas. nurse sharks are exceptionally sedentary, posing a threat to humans only if provoked. other marine life they observed included pilot whales, humpback whales, green sea turtles, dolphins, manatees, stingrays, eagle rays, manta rays, reef sharks, and bull sharks. 

“there were moments where i felt like, ‘this is a really bad situation; i'm afraid one of us is going to get hurt here,’ but i never felt that we were in imminent danger of a fatal incident,” jennifer says, noting that her worst moment came when she woke up one afternoon while nik was keeping watch on deck and couldn’t find him anywhere. 

“i thought he'd fallen overboard, but of course, nothing had happened,” she says. nik had climbed eight feet up the ratlines (a rope ladder near the mast) because he thought he’d spotted a whale.

“something that non-sailors don’t think about is that the biggest danger is falling off the boat. if you do, the chances of being retrieved are so small. in my mind, i felt that as long as we remained on the boat, we could get through anything.” 

towards a new horizon

jennifer and nik’s original goal was to cross the pacific and get to australia, but a year into their voyage, the couple’s expedition started feeling like a lifestyle. 

“we felt we’d discovered a secret world, a magical life that was there for the taking. we knew two things for sure: the cruising life was fantastic, and we weren’t ready for an ending,” jennifer wrote in her book.

on a river cruise through tanjung puting national park, jennifer visited the orangutan rehabilitation centre at camp leakey, near kumai, kalimantan (indonesian borneo). this alpha male was known as “tom.”

to extend their time at sea, the couple took breaks to pick up contract work and shore up their bank accounts.  

from enjoying potluck dinners on the beach with other ‘yachties’ to exploring a live volcano to swimming with manta rays, jennifer wanted to forever capture the feelings of wonder she was experiencing. sending detailed dispatches to friends and family not only preserved these memories, but also made jennifer and nik mascots for the loved ones living vicariously through them.

“jennifer is a wonderful communicator, and from the beginning, she wrote long summaries of various legs of their journey, and i always really looked forward to receiving the next dispatch,” says brenda sawatzky-girling, a longtime friend.

jennifer and nik welcomed guests on the green ghost, and brenda and her husband scott joined the couple onboard in 2003, sailing around fiji for two weeks. carolyn and her family visited with them in new zealand, australia, and st. lucia. 

“one of the things i really admire about jennifer is her integrity and willingness to do things that feel right to her, even though it’s not a prescribed path for other people,” says brenda.

throughout their sailing expedition, the couple visited many destinations, including indonesia, singapore, madagascar, south africa, french guyana, and the caribbean. jennifer particularly loved mooloolaba in queensland, australia, as well as penang, malaysia, and madagascar.

“oh, there were so many great places!” jennifer says. “malaysia – we enjoyed very much, it’s a wonderful crossroads in asia, multi-ethnic and multicultural, and yet english is widely spoken which makes it a very easy place to travel for english-speaking people. i recall a time when we sat in a malaysian open-air bar eating pulled pork sandwiches, drinking kilkenny draft, and watching world cup soccer as we listened to the muezzin call muslims to noon prayer from the nearby minaret. only in malaysia!”

the next chapter

by 2017, jennifer and nik were ready to set up home base in burlington, ontario. green ghost now lives in a penetanguishene marina, and the couple has since sailed seasonally on georgian bay.

“we definitely have no regrets about having gone on that trip,” jennifer says. she plans to continue writing, and recently completed a biography of her mother.

above all, jennifer is happy she embraced an imperfect plan, as she wrote: 

“i sensed that i’d set myself free. how constraining it is to be defined by others. how liberating to decide who you’ll be.”

jennifer also wants to let young people know that they don’t need to have all the answers laid out in advance. 

the most challenging places to navigate were coral reef passes and the interiors of coral lagoons. “all navigation must be done by eye and that can be tricky.” the reefs, though, were beautiful and while snorkelling jennifer and nik saw many tropical fish and sea creatures – sea cucumbers, moray eels, jellyfish, cuttlefish, sea urchins, giant clams, and conches.

“an undergraduate education is so much more than a fixed track toward a degree and a career,” she wrote. 

“hopefully, it’s an experience that will set a student on a course to be ready to learn, ready to retrain, ready to pivot. mental agility is what allows you to take advantage of the unexpected options that will come your way.” 

when you figure things out as you go along, jennifer believes there’s no telling how far you can travel.

in 2019, the walker wood foundation generously donated $32,000 to establish walker wood foundation awards to help 阿根廷vs墨西哥竞猜 世界杯2022赛程表淘汰赛 .

 "previous generations could leave high school thinking, 'i'm going to set the world on fire,' but things are different now," susan wood says.

the foundation was established by susan and her husband neil wood in 2006 and is run by them along with their daughter, halifax physician dr. kate wood.

it was the life of another physician – neil's father dr. james wood – that inspired neil and susan to support postsecondary education. dr. wood was able to become a physician after receiving a prestigious carnegie scholarship to attend medical school. when he graduated, dr. wood repaid this kindness by spending his career as a family doctor in an economically depressed region of yorkshire, england.

the couple's dedication to postsecondary education was also influenced by their experience as immigrants. both of them are originally from the united kingdom and both of them chose to take a risk and start new lives overseas.

in a country like canada, with so many newcomers, we believe education is paramount

that's why the walker wood foundation has been supporting 世界杯2022赛程表淘汰赛 with high academic standing and leadership qualities who might otherwise find it difficult to afford postsecondary education. to reach the greatest number of people, the foundation gives to colleges and universities across canada.

"we also have a small allocation of our funds that go to general donations including health, community programs, theatre and music, and disaster relief," susan says.

in fact, in 2020, lakehead was fortunate to receive a $5,000 donation to the 阿根廷vs墨西哥竞猜 covid-19 student relief fund from the walker wood foundation to assist 世界杯2022赛程表淘汰赛 who are struggling during the pandemic.

during this same academic year, lakehead 世界杯2022赛程表淘汰赛 connor mckinnon and emily kaun were thrilled to receive walker wood foundation awards. emily is a second-year student from fort frances, a northwestern ontario town of about 8,000 far from any university or college, making a postsecondary education an expensive proposition.

"thank you for opening so many doors for me," emily says. "your generous bursary has allowed me to pursue my dream of becoming a registered nurse. i am honoured that you chose me, but most importantly, i wanted to let your organization know that by helping me, i am going to be able to help others."

connor is also a second-year nursing student. he grew up in thunder bay, however he spent much of his childhood travelling to and from toronto for medical treatments after being diagnosed at the age of six with a rare form of cancer.

"i was not supposed to survive," connor says, "but my parents refused to take me home unless they had tried everything possible." he adds, "i have seen how nurses and doctors can change your life and it has been my dream since to be a nurse, then hopefully a doctor, so that i can give back to someone else's family."

emily and connor's commitment to supporting the vulnerable is one that susan wood applauds. "i always say work hard, do your best, and be kind and thoughtful to your fellow human beings."

if you would like to support a student, please contact external relations philanthropy director kathryn davidson at 807-343-8010 ext. 8476 or by email at kathryn.davidson@lakeheadu.ca for more information. 

city of orillia mayor steve clarke, former lakehead orillia principal dr. kim fedderson, former orillia mayor ron stevens, and lakehead orillia principal dr. dean jobin-bevans were among those who took part in a special dedication ceremony.

tree-planting ceremony

two orillia campus pioneers – dr. fred gilbert and dr. kim fedderson – were celebrated at a ceremony in october 2020. a tree was planted in honour of each man for their roles in developing the lakehead orillia campus. dr. gilbert, lakehead’s sixth president and vice-chancellor, was instrumental in establishing the campus during his tenure. dr. gilbert, who passed away in november 2020, said at the time, “i’m deeply honoured by the planting of this commemorative tree, especially since my scientific background is ecology.” dr. fedderson became the lakehead orillia founding dean and vice-provost in 2007 before being appointed the first principal of the campus in 2015. “it’s unprecedented for a community to come together to build a university for its children and its future,” he added.

cancer-imaging tools

a 阿根廷vs墨西哥竞猜 and thunder bay regional health research institute (tbrhri) team are using a $98,655 grant from the canada foundation for innovation (cfi) to develop new drugs to fight cancer – the leading cause of death in canada. “our research aims to design and prepare novel diagnostic imaging agents that could potentially improve the prevention, early diagnosis, and management of cancer,” said dr. jinqiang hou. dr. hou is a 阿根廷vs墨西哥竞猜 chemistry professor and a tbrhri research chair. he is working with fellow lakehead chemistry professor and tbrhri research chair dr. michael campbell as well as lakehead chemistry professor dr. justin jiang. currently, a biopsy is the only way to diagnose most types of cancer with any level of certainty. biopsies, however, are invasive so dr. hou and his team are exploring a non-invasive detection method known as positron emission tomography (pet) imaging to improve quality of life and reduce health care costs.

investing in mining

the government of ontario's northern ontario heritage fund corporation is providing more than $690,000 to help support a new industrial research chair at lakehead and create nine new jobs in thunder bay. lakehead geology chair dr. peter hollings will be the industrial research chair in mineral exploration. he and his team will work with impala canada, which owns the lac des iles palladium mine in northwestern ontario, to analyze nickel, copper, and platinum group elements near the mine. the results will lead to new analytical models to accelerate mineral exploration, potentially reducing the development time of new mine sites. “finding new, economically viable mineral deposits opens the door to generations of jobs, investment and community development opportunities,” said impala canada ceo tim hill.

newcomer recognition award

in november 2020, the county of simcoe gave orillia student rudy grewal a newcomer recognition award for service excellence. “simcoe county is home to more than 62,000 immigrants and growing, who bring diversity in their skill, knowledge and experience, helping to enhance our economy and communities,” explained simcoe county warden george cornell. rudy graduated with an honour bachelor of arts and science degree from lakehead in 2020 and is currently completing lakehead’s one-year honours bachelor of social work program. he’s active in diversity and human rights initiatives, including promoting the international day for the elimination of racial discrimination and serving as a community champion for the county of simcoe’s annual #itstarts campaign – a dialogue on systemic racism. rudy also regularly donates to, and volunteers with, local shelters such as the women & children’s shelter of barrie.

covid-19 grants

two 阿根廷vs墨西哥竞猜 researchers – dr. olakunle akingbola (business administration) and dr. natalya timoshkina (social work) – recently received partnership engage grants of approximately $25,000 each for research connected with covid-19. these grants for small-scale, stakeholder-driven partnerships were awarded by the social sciences and humanities research council. dr. akingbola’s grant is aimed at understanding how, why, and under what circumstances the caribbean african canadian social services adopted remote work during and after covid-19 and the consequences for employee and community well-being. dr. timoshkina’s project will engage lakehead orillia in an action-research partnership with north simcoe victim services to determine, and address, how the covid-19 crisis affected the capacity of ontario’s victim services agencies to help trafficked persons.

wellness strategy

阿根廷vs墨西哥竞猜 unveiled its first wellness strategy in january 2021. the plan’s mission is to embed systemic health and wellness practices and services into the university to foster the well-being of communities where faculty, staff, and 世界杯2022赛程表淘汰赛 work, live, and study. “the launch of our wellness strategy represents a seminal moment for our lakehead community in striving toward our vision of an inclusive university,” said adam shaen, the associate vice-president of human resources. the strategy will focus on the social, physical, occupational, intellectual, financial, environmental, emotional, cultural, and spiritual dimensions of wellness. read the wellness strategy at www.hsbcwebinars.com/trailtowellness to find out more.

engineering innovator

dr. uddin is a pioneer in the development and application of fuzzy logic controllers for induction motor and interior permanent magnet synchronous motor drives in real time.

dr. mohammad nasir uddin was named a fellow of the institute of electrical and electronics engineers (ieee) for his outstanding contributions to control techniques for alternating current (ac) motor drives, making him 阿根廷vs墨西哥竞猜 ’s first ieee fellow. dr. uddin is an electrical engineering professor and the lakehead-georgian partnership electrical engineering program coordinator. he’s also the director of the renewable energy, power systems and drive research lab in barrie, ontario. “out of all the awards and honours that have been bestowed upon me, this one is the most rewarding and gratifying, especially since it was supported by my peers,” dr. uddin said. the ieee is the world’s leading professional association for advancing technology for humanity, including in the fields of aerospace systems, biomedical engineering, and consumer electronics.

teaching scholarship

education student melana hope has received an ontario college of teachers scholarship (primary/junior division). melana, who has an art history phd and experience as a university and college lecturer in england, began working as an unqualified supply teacher at an ontario elementary school board after taking time off to raise her children. this career change sparked the realization that educating young children was her calling in life. since then, melana has maintained dean’s list status at lakehead orillia and volunteered in the community teaching children’s art lessons and helping with initiatives at her local parents’ council. ontario college of teachers scholarships are awarded to education 世界杯2022赛程表淘汰赛 who “demonstrate a high level of preparedness for teacher education through examples of community involvement, background, and life experiences.”

3mt competition winner

jessica allingham’s brain injuries presentation received a provincial award.

chemistry phd student jessica allingham won second place in the 2020 provincial 3mt (three minute thesis) competition for her thesis presentation, “brightening up brain injuries.” 3mt is a communications exercise that challenges graduate 世界杯2022赛程表淘汰赛 to share their scholarly research in an engaging manner in just three minutes. the research must be understood by an audience with no background in the research area. this year’s competition, hosted by the university of windsor, was held virtually due to the pandemic. “i could not believe that from all the amazing presentations put forward, mine was selected as one of the best,” jessica said. click here to watch jessica's presentation

circumpolar education institute

lakehead – along with other universities in canada, russia, and norway – is a founding partner of the university of the arctic’s læra institute for circumpolar education. the word læra means ‘learn’ or ‘study’ in icelandic, and the institute will promote best-practice teaching and learning about the circumpolar north. “阿根廷vs墨西哥竞猜 has committed to continue to develop regional nodes for professional program delivery with a focus on increasing access to education in northern communities through remote program delivery,” said dr. michel beaulieu, lakehead's associate vice-provost (academic) - special projects. the university of the arctic is a cooperative network of universities, colleges, research institutes, and other organizations concerned with education and research in and about the north. lakehead is also a founding member of the university of the arctic.

welcome to the second all-digital version of journey! when we first relaunched 阿根廷vs墨西哥竞猜 's alumni and friends magazine in 2016 as journey, little did we know how aptly named it would be. as we prepare to enter the second year of the covid-19 pandemic, we are sure you will all agree that these last 12 months have been quite a journey.

throughout the fall, and into the winter, there have been many virtual "firsts" for lakehead. some are captured on these pages, and a few deserve a special shout-out.

virtual agm

the first virtual agm of the alumni association of 阿根廷vs墨西哥竞猜 was held on monday september 21 at 6 pm (est). the event was attended by 50 alumni and friends, and featured greetings by lakehead's president and vice-chancellor dr. moira mcpherson, a year-in-review by alumni association executive director mark tilbury, and a special question and answer session with lakehead alumna and canada's minister of health, the hon. patty hajdu.

during the formal business portion of the meeting, the board bid farewell and offered thanks to retiring board members michel beaulieu, chris vaillant, chris dasilva, peter lau, and nancy angus, who between them, have over 35 years of service to the alumni association. also, during the business portion, we welcomed five new board members: annette butikofer, jamie dennison, dr. jouni kraft, nathan lawrence, and carmen pekkarinen (from finland).

virtual homecoming and alumni honours

homecoming was another first this year, with all events taking place virtually. the signature event was lakehead celebrates on friday evening where we honoured our award recipients (featured in this issue) and highlighted our distinguished student athletes. during the event we also featured two of our talented student musicians and were treated to a special performance by award recipient matt sellick. throughout the three days there were several alumni speakers series events, all of which were well attended. in addition, the gta chapter and the simcoe county chapter hosted trivia events, music bingo, beer tasting, and other events that were open to all alumni, anywhere in the world. plans are underway to incorporate "virtual" activities into future homecoming weekends, even when in-person events are resumed.

10,000 coffees – lakehead connect

we are halfway through the second year of our alumni/student mentoring platform – lakehead connect, powered by 10,000 coffees, and funded by rbc futurelaunch. at the yearly program review, our 10,000 coffees account manager shared some extraordinary news – lakehead ranks first among postsecondary institutions across the country in every metric they use. in the introductions made category, the 12-month average is 3,000 introductions; lakehead's number is 10,289. in the messages sent category, the average is 1,500-2,000; lakehead has hit 3,645, and in the reported they met category, we doubled the platform average.

as we enter the second year of these unusual times, we see some light on the horizon. we are looking forward to the resumption of in-person alumni engagement events, while continuing to develop a variety of virtual events for you to participate in, regardless of your location. watch for details about our alumni speakers series, starting in march, a homecoming announcement later in the year, and many other exciting events to come.

mark tilbury, hbcom'94                                                                                                        
executive director, alumni association of 阿根廷vs墨西哥竞猜                                            

karen boz, badmin'92
president, alumni association

the alumni association is offering to match all donations to the student relief fund up to $25,000, if made before april 30, 2021.

 “the alumni association board of directors recognized that in addition to the usual challenges that every postsecondary student faces, many have been coping with the loss of employment in our service and retail sectors this year,” says karen boz (badmin’92), the current aalu president. 

 “we’ve heard that this loss of income has meant increased hardship, and caused some 世界杯2022赛程表淘汰赛 to choose between buying groceries, or purchasing required resources for their courses.”

 through offering the matching gift opportunity, the aalu board is hoping to inspire fellow alumni as well as friends of 阿根廷vs墨西哥竞猜 to make a donation and support 世界杯2022赛程表淘汰赛 .

 “by helping to build the student relief fund you will be assisting 世界杯2022赛程表淘汰赛 with their basic unmet needs such as housing relief, food security, and other unforeseen challenges,” karen says. “we hope that everyone will come together to help our 世界杯2022赛程表淘汰赛 complete their lakehead for life journey.”

 to learn more about karen, and the other aalu board members, visit our website here.

1980s

dr. michael (mike) walton (hbor’83) was appointed to the yukon environmental and socio-economic assessment board (yesab), which helps protect the environmental and social integrity of the yukon, in october 2020. mike has over 35 years of experience in land use and conservation issues. he’s worked for the forest industry in ontario and alberta, as well as for the federal government and provincial, municipal, and first nation governments in ontario, british columbia, and yukon, addressing development, conservation, and indigenous relations. mike is also an independent consultant based in whitehorse, yukon, and an adjunct 阿根廷vs墨西哥竞猜 professor.

1990s

kate boyd (ba/hbor’95) became the first woman to take the reins of nordiq canada’s high-performance program in september 2020. kate is focusing on getting canadian cross-country skiers back on the olympic podium and continuing the tradition of medal-winning performances in the national para-nordic program. since 2015, she’s been nordiq canada’s nextgen coach and program coordinator, and in 2018, she began sharing high-performance manager duties with joel jaques. kate is a registered professional coach and a member of canada’s covid-19 return to sport task force. she currently lives in canmore, alberta.

dr. rhonda crocker ellacott (hbscn’91) became the president & ceo of the thunder bay regional health sciences centre and ceo of the thunder bay regional health research institute in november 2020. rhonda is a health care leader and a champion of patients and families. during her over 30-year career, she’s served as ceo of the north west local health integration network (lhin), ceo of the north east lhin, transitional regional lead for ontario health in the north region, and ceo of the nipigon district memorial hospital. in her new role, rhonda will develop a strategic plan and lead health system transformation.

chantal moore (ba/bed'94), a school principal in ignace, ontario, was named the keewatin-patricia district school board’s interim superintendent of education in november 2020. chantal will hold this position for the rest of the 2020-2021 school year. she is a guidance and special education specialist who has a bachelor of education from 阿根廷vs墨西哥竞猜 and a master’s degree from the university of toronto. chantal began her teaching career in pickle lake, ontario, in 1994 and she has 19 years of experience at the board’s wabigoon, ignace, and upsala schools, including in professional development, elearning and connected.

yolanda wanakamik (hba’98/med’20) was appointed director of indigenous affairs at the northern ontario school of medicine (nosm) in october 2020. yolanda has an hba in political science and an ma in education and is a member of the whitesand first nation. she’s held several positions at 阿根廷vs墨西哥竞猜 ’s aboriginal initiatives office and served as a band councillor for her first nation. most recently, she was an integrated policy officer at dilico anishinabek family care in thunder bay where she acquired expertise in policies and programs affecting the health and welfare of aboriginal children, families, and elders.

2000s

david blanchard (hba’09/ma’11) has expertise in the insurance and resource recovery industries including roles at one of canada’s largest insurance intermediaries, toronto-based totten insurance group, where he worked from 2015 to 2021. at totten, david progressed from technical assistant to business analyst to part-time business consulting, and finally, to head of compliance and strategic projects. from september 2017 to may 2019, david was the coordinator of strategic initiatives with emterra group – a national recycling association of companies. in february 2021, david became the compliance and underwriting operations vp with apollo insurance solutions.

greg chomut (ba/bed’08) was recognized with a certificate of achievement from the prime minister’s awards for teaching excellence program. award recipients are honoured for remarkable achievements in education and for their commitment to preparing their 世界杯2022赛程表淘汰赛 for a digital and innovation-based economy. greg teaches art, history, and media to 世界杯2022赛程表淘汰赛 at thunder bay’s dennis franklin cromarty high school. the award citation describes greg as a compassionate educator who builds multiple bridges between his indigenous 世界杯2022赛程表淘汰赛 and the wider community, and who helps those 世界杯2022赛程表淘汰赛 find their voices. 

matthew gollat (hbcom'04) was announced as a member of premier gold mines limited’s anticipated management team for i-80 gold corp in february 2021. matthew has more than 12 years of experience in many aspects of the mine development cycle, has participated in multiple corporate and strategic development projects, and is currently premier gold mines’ vice-president of business development. in addition to holding an honours bachelor of commerce degree from 阿根廷vs墨西哥竞猜 , he has a certificate of mining studies from the university of british columbia. matthew is also an independent director of nomad royalty company ltd.

sean speer (hba’05) made the power list released by maclean’s magazine in january 2021. maclean’s canvassed canadians about the qualities they think represent power in a time of transformative change and came up with a list of 50 canadians they believe are shaping how we think and live. sean is an assistant public policy professor at the university of toronto’s munk school of global affairs and public policy. he is also the co-director of the ontario 360 research project at the munk school, a prime minister of canada fellow at the public policy forum, and a past senior economic adviser to former prime minister stephen harper.

david bruno (hba‘98), the founder and ceo of a global cyber security firm that specializes in anti-fraud and anti-corporate espionage systems, has recently written a white paper on canada’s new digital charter bill c-11 that is slated to pass into law soon. for 20 years, david has provided security protections to the general public and he is a contributor and member of the electronic frontier foundation, which advocates for digital civil liberties. in addition, he’s a tech policy analyst for the washington, dc-based global foundation for cyber studies & research. you can access david’s the digital charter bill c-11 white paper here.