HSC Review 2020 by Hillfield Strathallan College

HSCReview The magazine for the Hillfield Strathallan College community

Take part in a full day of events and celebrations for all members of the HSC community, your families and guests. It’s time to reconnect and reminisce as we honour those classes ending in ‘4 and ‘9, in addition to the 2018 Athletic Hall of Fame honourees.

n Student

and Alumni Athletic and House Games Pancake Breakfast and Barbecue Lunch catered by The BBQ Gourmet n Hektor’s Home Run 1KM & 5KM Family Fun Run n HSC Community Tennis Tournament n Student Visual Arts Exhibit n Pine/Yre Student Council Charity Car Wash n Campus Store n Kids Zone Activities n Early Education Open House n Trojan Hospitality Zone n Vendor Village and Minute to Win It Tables n Campus Tours led by Admissions & Student Ambassadors n Athletic Hall of Fame Ceremony followed by Reunions Mixer n Complimentary

Photo gallery of last year’s event!

galleries.hsc.on.ca/homecoming2018

Spring2020 Spring 2019

For more information, please contact: Bianca Barton ’03, Alumni Relations Officer 905.389.1367, ext. 117 alumni@hsc.on.ca

The Game True Grit Changer

Tiger-Cats owner Bob Young had Libby Beeden ’16 rowed across’72 thehas Atlantic wild ride in business andhardships sport withaher father amid daunting

The magazine for the Hillfield The magazine for the StrathallanHillfield College community Strathallan College community Spring2020 2019 Spring

ABOUT THE GALA Join us in celebrating our vibrant HSC Arts community in the HSC Athletic Complex and Community Centre. The evening will be filled with wonderful food, entertainment and opportunities to mix and mingle with Hillfield Strathallan College’s community of friends and families. Our silent auction and live auction will provide exciting experiences and opportunities for bidding, followed by your best moves on the dance floor!

TICKETS

$350

each

★ Limited availability

of individual tickets

★ Get yours now

before they are gone!

For more information or to purchase tickets:

hsc.on.ca/gala2020

SPONSORSHIP OPPORTUNITIES DINNER SPONSOR:

Participate in this milestone event as we celebrate the conclusion of our most recent strategic plan. We are committed to upgrading our Virtue-Fitzgerald Centre for the Arts and creating a significant impact on our Arts Program. For information: hsc.on.ca/galasponsor

EVENING COCKTAIL SPONSOR:

RED CARPET SPONSORS:

Contents

Features 14 True Grit Libby Beeden ’16 rowed across the Atlantic with her father amid

Departments

daunting hardships

22 AProMan for all Seasons footballer, horse breeder, financier—Bill Graham ’51 lived a life of determination, action and fun

College Life

Top Honours

Lives Lived

Giving

Where the Grads Are

28 Turning Gold Green Miranda Werstiuk ’85 is committed to making mining more sustainable

32 Star of the Court From basketball to the law, Coulter Osborne ’50 has always excelled 36 Inside and Out Successful photographer Shelagh Howard ’89 found a way to pursue both business and fine art

The Alumni Award of Distinction The Alumni Hall of Excellence Stellar Students Great Grad Perfect Prefects HSC Lifers

New Spaces to Learn and Play: An update on HSC’s playground project initiative

SPRING 2020

FOLLOWING IN OUR PARENTS’ FOOTSTEPS

We Can’t Wait.

Grace Kemper ’20, daughter of Kelly Kemper ’87

Alessandra Zurini ’22, daughter of Justine Fedak ’89

Katelyn Nethercott ’24, daughter of

Bill Nethercott ’85

Andrew Mattatall ’31, son of

Chris Mattatall ’95

Joseph ’33 and Julian Farah ’35, sons of

Mahassen Farah ’03

To continue your family’s legacy at HSC, contact:

admissions@hsc.on.ca

905-389-1367

Never miss a moment.

@hillfieldstrathallancollege @hillstrathalumni

@HillStrath

@hillstrath

@hillfield-strathallan-college

Masthead HSC Review is published by the Advancement and Communications Office of Hillfield Strathallan College. We welcome your comments and suggestions. Please contact Zahra Valani at 905-389-1367 ext. 162, or communications@ hsc.on.ca. Visit our website at hsc.on.ca.

Editorial Director

Text and Photography

Cover

Katelyn Galer

Nick Bowring, Steven Duarte, Patricia Hluchy, Adrian Hoad-Reddick, Jaime Hogge, Shelagh Howard, Diane Jermyn, Ian Liwanag, Alessandro LoSardo, Vanessa Lupton, Corey Martin, Bruce McDougall, Mary K. Nolan, Mirza Noormohamed, Saira Peesker, Riley Stewart, William Vipond Tait, Wandering Eye Photography, Barbara Wickens, Berton Woodward, Frank Zochil

Nick Bowring

Editorial Advisor Berton Woodward

Design and Production Director of Advancement & Communications Zahra Valani

Hambly & Woolley Inc. www.hamblywoolley.com

Printing Barney Printing

Messages

Joyful and Engaged AS WE NAVIGATE THROUGH THE LAST YEAR OF OUR STRATEGIC PLAN, Towards 20/20, it is a great time to reflect upon and celebrate the changes HSC has initiated to make the student experience more meaningful and engaging—and to prepare them for a world that is increasingly complex. At the heart of our plans, and as a lens for our decision-making, we have the Joyful and Engaged Student. What much of the educational research shows is that if students feel the tasks they are embarking upon have a connection to the world around them, they will give an extra effort, persist through challenges, and have an experience that is incredibly rewarding to them. It also gives them confidence to try novel and potentially difficult work without fear of failure as they learn that setbacks are an essential part of learning and also entrepreneurship. These skills will be very important for our students and for our society. As we plan for the future, the 2019-20 school year is a critically important one. We intend to have a broad community consultation to develop a new strategic plan that will build upon the past successes at HSC. We are a school that is all about community, so as a community, we will co-construct our future plans and work together to make them a reality. We feel strongly that part of our plan will be a continued emphasis on experiential learning opportunities, balanced with a rigorous curriculum, that will continue to see our graduates find success in post-secondary and beyond. We will seek partnerships in our great community of parents, alumni and friends to provide opportunities beyond the walls of HSC for our students to apply what they have learned here in “real world” situations. Another critical part of the work this year will be a review of our facilities to ensure they continue to be purposeful. We have seen how the Michael G. DeGroote Centre for Excellence has transformed the possibilities for our Senior students. There are other parts of the campus such as our Junior and Middle Schools that will need to evolve to meet the needs of our students and their program. As part of our strategic plan process, we will conduct community consultations to develop our next Campus Master Plan, which 4

HSC REVIEW

By Marc Ayotte

Head of College

will help identify our priorities for our next campus additions. HSC is also proud to be a fully accredited member of the Canadian Accredited Independent Schools (CAIS). As we move towards renewing our CAIS accreditation in 2021, we have embarked on our Internal Evaluation report which we will craft over the course of this year. Over the coming months we will regularly communicate and share resources with the community regarding our CAIS accreditation process. For us, this is a great time to take stock of what we do and celebrate our growth as a school and community since our last accreditation in 2014. As you can see, this school year is one of incredible excitement and opportunity. For all of you who help support this amazing community with your time, talent, and treasure, we thank you!

Photos by William Vipond Tait

Making the student experience more meaningful

Messages

More than a School HSC is a community, and it’s magical to reconnect

RAISE YOUR HAND IF YOU’VE EVER BEEN IN AN AIRPORT OR MALL OR PUBLIC SPACE AND RUN INTO A FELLOW HSC ALUM. Keep that hand up if the exchange was so pleasant you

said to yourself afterwards, “Wow, that was if no time had passed at all.” Yeah, me too. And that is the magic of HSC. In the 35 years since I graduated, much has changed (yes, I did get lost on the way to the Carol Service) but thankfully, much has stayed the same. The relationships we forged during our formative years at HSC are very often the common thread, adding colour and texture in the tapestry of our lives. My community was there on my very best and very worst days. Forty years and counting. Our goal as Alumni Advisors is not only to facilitate the continued growth of these relationships but to enable all of the HSC community to connect with the College in new and meaningful ways. In September 2019, the Alumni Executive met to craft a new Strategic Plan for Alumni – one that amplifies our connectivity with alumni and makes it easy to participate in College events. Looking ahead, the April Gala, May Homecoming and June Golf Tournament are great opportunities to reconnect. Short on time but long on passion? Maybe becoming a mentor is for you. College events – Remembrance Day, Carol Service and musicals – create a fun platform to visit the school and take a short walk through memory lane. See you soon!

By Sue Owen ’85

President, HSC Alumni Association

“The relationships we forged during our formative years at HSC are very often the common thread, adding colour and texture in the tapestry of our lives.”

SPRING 2020

College Life

2019

Moving Well

–

HSC REVIEW

HSC is improving its approach to physical literacy for all students IN READING, STUDENTS IMPROVE AND EXPAND their literacy as they go up the grades. Now HSC educators are exploring the same thoughts about developing physical literacy – the art of moving well. “Our goal as educators has always been to instill a love of learning,” says Mark Verbeek, Physical Education K to 8 Coordinator and Assistant Director of Athletics. “Our aim here is to look at learning more holistically, providing opportunities for students to learn to love movement for their health, their wellness and high performance, whether it be on the playground or a podium. “It’s really begun to shape how we program our athletics, our physical education curriculum, recess, and even our classrooms.” HSC has created a new framework that enables students to improve their physical, social and emotional development in active environments. As students move through the four schools, their physical literacy journey becomes more connected. “We want HSC to be the catalyst in their journey by providing as many movement opportunities as possible within the school experience to give students the skills and strategies they need,” says Verbeek. “This could be in sports, recreation or leisure as these movement categories are all addressed within the HSC physical literacy framework.” Learning to love movement

Photos by Frank Zochil

College Life

2020

College Life

As with reading, the early years give students the strongest foundation when it comes to moving well. That can mean the introduction of functional fitness charts to promote exercise in a fun and positive way in Montessori, or encouraging risk, balance and coordination during recess in the Junior School. “If we look at movement skill development, the most optimal time for kids to learn these things is under the age of eight,” says Verbeek. “If they have repeated exposures, they can learn the skill quicker and develop more of a movement repertoire.” To support that goal, HSC is in the process of certifying early education teachers with an Early Years Physical Literacy Certification through Sport for Life. By incorporating these skills into early education programming, HSC prepares students for their journey into the Middle School where a heavier emphasis is placed on intramurals and exploring new ways of moving.

HSC has added a climbing wall

“We’re trying to give students opportunities in as many environments as possible, rather than just the courts and fields.” “In the Middle School we’ve added skating, snowshoeing and swim recreation experience programs,” says Verbeek. “We’re trying to give students opportunities in as many environments as possible, rather than just the courts and fields. We’ve also added a climbing wall and monkey bars. By adding diversity, students will have more of a movement repertoire to choose from when they get to Senior School where they will really build on those foundations, whether it’s through their more intentional intramural program or athletics.” From early education to Senior School, all four schools are working together to understand how meaningful physical literacy is for students 18 months to 18 years. “From classroom to athletic competition, we address all areas of physical literacy,” says Verbeek. “Our hope is that students in some way will experience all these areas as they pursue their lifelong physical literacy journey.” –Vanessa Lupton SPRING 2019 | 7

College Life

A Spanish Sister Grade 10 student Lily Pettit takes the plunge in a new exchange program

HSC REVIEW

Grade 10 student Lily Pettit come out of her shell—and she hadn’t even gone to Spain yet. Lily, whose grandmother is from Spain, signed up for the new exchange program on a whim after seeing posters around the school. As a self-described homebody who likes to go outside “sometimes”, she was already stepping outside her comfort zone by agreeing to host exchange student Carmen Moreno—but then came the canoe trip. Carmen happened to be visiting during HSC E-week, when the Grade 10 students were to be portaging through Algonquin Park. Lily, 15, says she never would have gone on the trip otherwise, but since it was a uniquely Canadian experience for her exchange student—and Carmen was excited about the opportunity—she agreed. “At the beginning, Carmen was like, ‘this will be great,’” says Lily, who was due to travel to Zaragoza, Spain, for five weeks this spring, including March break. “By the end, she was done, and I was like, ‘Oh yeah. Let’s go.’” The trip is Lily’s first time travelling somewhere that English isn’t the first language. She’ll be taking intensive Spanish lessons there but will also have to keep up with her schoolwork from HSC. She has been placed in courses with teachers who have shown an interest in online education, says Taya Cicchetti, the Senior School Principal. Carmen’s school, Colegio Británico e Aragón, is an independent school comparable to HSC, and Lily is expecting to go on trips skiing and to her host family’s summer home. The exchange is expected to be replete with new experiences for Lily, but after already getting to know Carmen, she’s aware she’ll have someone familiar to help her through. At least they’re already used to sharing quarters after their time together at Lily’s house in Ancaster, she says. “We had to share a bathroom, which was interesting,” says Lily. “We had a competition over who would wake up first to get in there. It was like having a sister.” —Saira Peesker

Photos submitted by Lily Pettit

SIGNING UP TO BE AN EXCHANGE STUDENT helped At top, Lily (left) with Carmen, and, below, showing her the sights

College Life

Planting a Seed

5 Things You Probably Didn’t Know about HSC

Young Montessori students are learning hands-on about the environment XANTHE VALLENTIN LOVES DIGGING IN THE DIRT WITH HER STUDENTS, but what she loves even more is when they start to understand why they’re doing it—to grow their own food. Vallentin, who teaches in the Montessori program, says that when the children who planted vegetables in the spring help harvest them in the fall, she can see the lightbulb turning on in their heads. “I love when they figure out the connection between the food they eat and what they’ve done,” says Vallentin, who gardens with students aged two-anda-half to five years old. She sees gardening as an age-appropriate way to spark early environmental stewardship in young children. “They don’t have to know about the climate crisis just yet, but it’s valuable to understand you are part of a system and not the centre, and that it’s important to care for your space and your world. It starts good habits.” With the help of alumni parent Mark Stirling, the Casa classes manage two four-by-eight-foot vegetable plots, which Vallentin and Stirling weed and maintain through the summer months while the children aren’t at school. Montessori also has three grow-light tables that produce herbs and microgreens. In the fall, the school throws a harvest festival where the older students use the produce to make beet hummus, potato soup and carrot muffins. Montessori Principal Danielle Hourigan ’82 says environmental education for children can have lifelong effects. “If they don’t have opportunities to connect with nature, we can’t expect they’ll be the ones to defend it,” she says. “If a connection to nature happens in childhood, it lasts a lifetime. “In a world that’s so virtual and abstract, it’s great to be digging in the dirt.” —Saira Peesker

But now you do

The Kennedy Court, located between the Strathallan and Page Buildings, was named following the assassination of President John F. Kennedy in November 1963. The tall pine tree was planted in his honour.

The Strathallan dress code once extended to the coats students wore to school. As part of winter dress, girls had to wear a Black Watch overcoat with toggle closure (which paired well with their brown lace-up Oxford shoes) and green flannel bloomers under their kilts.

Getting dug in HSC used to have a rifle range, located where the Middle School change rooms are now.

Photo by William Vipond Tait

HSC also used to have a cricket pitch. The boys had teams from the inception of Highfield School in 1901 until the last team played in 1971-72 at recently merged Hillfield-Strathallan College.

There are still six original apple trees that remain from Beckett Orchards, estimated at over 100 years old. At one time, the entire area that now contains the campuses of HSC and Mohawk College was covered in fruit orchards owned by the Beckett family.

SPRING 2019

College Life

Their Ways with Words In the Middle School and the Junior School, HSC teachers are using breakthrough techniques to boost students’ creative writing talents

MIDDLE SCHOOL

The Inspiration Rooms ASPIRING YOUNG WRITERS OFTEN STRUGGLE WITH BEGINNINGS. What to write about? Where to start? So Middle School English teacher Sharon Neibert and the Learning Commons team created five immersive writing rooms— dubbed Inspiration Rooms—to place students in evocative sensory writing environments designed to inspire their creativity in stories and poems. “Students arrived one day for English class to find their traditional learning spaces transformed,” says Middle School Principal Adrian Hoad-Reddick. “The attention to detail was astounding, requiring contributions from across the Middle School community, all carefully curated by Mrs. Neibert and the Learning Commons team.” The Learning Commons resource room, for instance, had morphed into the interior of an interstellar spaceship, complete with starry skies, space suits, celestial sounds and writing prompts crafted to inspire. Students could take the console of the spacecraft, or seek refuge in the hold, where they were free to muse and create.

HSC REVIEW

Photos submitted by Middle School

Students arrived to find their traditional learning spaces transformed

College Life

Photo by William Vipond Tait

Each creative space—the NHL Hockey Rink, the Cozy Beachside Vista, the Deck of the Titanic and the Creepy Science Laboratory—featured a fitting audio soundtrack, videos playing on the SmartBoards, myriad props, wall and window coverings to block out the outside world and even an appeal to the sense of smell. Suitable food treats helped to fuel (and reward) the young writers, who got to experience several of the rooms. Each was animated by a costumed curator reading a script and included prompts to ignite students’ ideas. “When I can’t sleep at night, I think about those hard-to-reach kids,” says Neibert. “What can I do to make learning more fun? How can I get them to love English the way that I do? From those imaginings come ideas like the Inspiration Rooms. “The best part,” she adds, “is still being able to instil a sense of wonder in kids who have probably seen more of the world than I have. The look on their faces when they enter the room, and the incredible writing they produce, makes every bit of effort worthwhile.” The students were highly appreciative. “All the things to look at boosted my imagination,” said one. Their work was published in the Middle School hallway for all to enjoy.

“When I can’t sleep at night, I think about those hardto-reach kids. What can I do to make learning more fun? How can I get them to love English the way that I do? From those imaginings come ideas like the Inspiration Rooms.”

Annabel reads one of her stories to her teacher, Allison Wall

JUNIOR SCHOOL

An Author at 7 GRADE 2 STUDENT ANNABEL RABINOVICH KNOWS SHE IS AN AUTHOR. After reading one of her stories aloud recently, the seven-year-old beamed as she explained her narrative choices and word selection, lessons she gleaned from a new writing program in the Junior School. “We’ve been learning about stories—making people move, talk, think and use speech bubbles,” said Annabel, whose haunted-house story vividly described the sound of her shoes and her screams. “I’m working on a story right now about how I went on a waterslide. I was thinking about putting a splash on people.” According to her teachers, Annabel’s enthusiasm and confidence are increasingly par for the course since the school implemented the Units of Study writing curriculum. The personalized writing program for elementary students was designed by Columbia University’s Lucy Calkins, and six school staffers went to New York for a five-day course on the program in August. After just a few months teaching it at HSC, they say students of all skill levels have improved. “It’s so refreshing to see how open they’ve become to sharing their work and talking about writing,” says curriculum coordinator Kathleen Collins, who teaches Grade 4. “Now, when I’m writing on the board, they’ll put up their hands and ask if they can give some constructive feedback on what I’ve written.” The evidence-based program recommends 50 to 60 minutes of writing instruction and practice per day. Each day’s sessions include a 10-minute mini-lesson—on subjects such as stretching a story, creating characters with quirks or writing a strong lead—followed by writing time where students are “invited” to apply the lesson to their writing. Teachers stage interruptions partway to “show off something really great,” says Collins. Junior School Principal Shailau Spivak notes that teachers never correct the writing, which puts the focus on practice and process, treating students as authors. She says the structure works well with the Junior School’s philosophy, which balances teacher direction with student interest, and can be successfully applied at every age and writing stage. “The program reinforces itself because writing is made to feel important,” says Collins. “The kids feel empowered.” —Saira Peesker SPRING 2020

College Life

Enter the ‘Costume Ladies’

Dressing characters from head to toe

Behind the scenes of every HSC stage production is a group of unsung heroines

rarely stumble upon. One of the most colourful and whimsical has to be the home of the “Costume Ladies”. In the Virtue-Fitzgerald Centre for the Arts, tucked away beneath the stairs of the balcony, are hundreds of costumes just waiting to help fulfill an artistic vision. This is the domain of the Costume Ladies, as they are affectionately referred to. The group, spearheaded by Parent of Alumni Gail Vedelago, consists of parents of alumni, retired staff and current parents, and has a longstanding history of dressing HSC’s performers. “Twenty-eight years ago, a friend of mine, Magda Doris, and I were asked by the Middle School to help organize the costumes for the play,” says Gail. “I didn’t have much experience with it other than the fact that my son was involved in the arts, but I jumped right in.” In the early days, the costume department consisted of one small rack of items, but over the years it has grown to a collection of epic proportions. In addition to what can be seen in the costume room, the Costume Ladies have given their garments a residence under the stairs of the balcony in the Artsplex, where rack upon rack of costumes live. To better utilize the space, the group also had 12 eight-by-six carts created for optimal storage, each cart and rack corresponding to information in a log book that tracks every costume prop, piece of clothing and accessory—all of which are part of a detailed labelling system. The group meets Monday and Wednesday afternoons throughout the school year, adding in three weekends before a production debuts. As productions are planned and cast, the group begins assessing the collection of items to determine what can be used and altered, and what will need to be sourced. Complete measurements are taken for each actor and actress before the group can get to work, with each member bringing a special skillset to the table. 12

HSC REVIEW

“Everyone here has their strengths,” says Gail. “Marta, Eeva, Nancy and Jaynne are our major sewers, and each costume is created or altered and sewn to fit the actors. Toni is our quick-change artist—she can get them in and out of costumes faster than anybody. Marta is also great with costumes that require a bit more structural design—she made the camel costume in Aladdin and it all started with a coat hanger. Nancy loves doing alterations, Bonnie likes decorating hats, Susan always makes sure that everything is tidy and organized, Angela, Elena and Karen are constantly running back and forth helping pull items from our supplies, Earla and Joyce take on any job required, and everyone helps with hair and makeup.”

Photos by Corey Martin

IN A SCHOOL THE SIZE OF HSC, there are bound to be a few corners that outsiders

College Life

Supplying the creativity

“We do it for fun, for each other, but first and foremost, it’s for the kids.” Gail adds: “Before every production, parents of the cast and crew are invited to volunteer to help this group. For those who come out, it is a fun and enlightening experience and many return year after year.” While the Ladies love putting their skills and creativity to use, it’s the impact on the students that means the most to them. “We do it for fun, for each other, but first and foremost, it’s for the kids,” says Toni Simpson. Nancy Wands, a retired staff member and proud Costume Lady, says it’s incredible to watch the transformation that takes place in the students. “We have some kids who have struggled in the classroom, and you would think that they would be the last to come out for a drama production. But they come out, and they get on stage in their costume and they completely come out of their shell. It’s so amazing to see.” Though their best work occurs in the shadows behind the curtain, it’s the Costume Ladies who steal the spotlight. —Vanessa Lupton

Back Row (Left to right) Marta Nespoli, Eeva KastikainenJones, Karen Taylor, Elena Corrado, Nancy Wands, Gail Vedelago, Earla Kwok

Front Row (Left to right) Joyce Wilton, Toni Simpson

A wig for everyone SPRING 2019

TRUE GRIT Libby Beeden â&#x20AC;&#x2122;16 rowed across the Atlantic with her father amid daunting hardships Portraits by Nick Bowring

Photo by

By Patricia Hluchy

HSC REVIEW

Photo by

E SPRING 2020

ine days into Libby Beeden’s epic three-month row across the Atlantic with her father, their boat

nearly capsized. “It was our first bad weather day and nothing dramatic had happened so far, so I thought, ‘It’s not so bad,’” recalls Libby ’16. “The waves were 15 or 20 feet high but nothing had killed us so far.

HSC REVIEW

“WE’RE TIRED, WE’RE CHATTING, WE’RE NOT PAYING ATTENTION. All of a sudden, I hear Dad go, ‘Hold on!’ I look to the right and this wave just breaks on top of us. It was like we went under a waterfall for a minute. The boat went at least 70 degrees, maybe 90; we were hanging on by a thread. We locked eyes for a solid five seconds but it honestly felt like 10 minutes.” They moved to one side of the boat to stop it from capsizing. Libby and her father, John, started the process of bailing out the boat. “Somehow we got through it,” she says, “but it was frightening as heck.” They had started their crossing in the southern Portuguese coastal town of Portimão on Nov. 30, 2018. The pair had planned to row all the way to Miami, but due to unusually difficult weather and currents, they ran low on supplies and chose to make land in the Caribbean. It was the third oceanic row for John, 58, who had soloed across the Atlantic in 2011 and the Pacific in 2015, but the first such expedition for Libby, now 21.

And while she contends that the idea for the trip was mutual, John insists it was Libby’s. “I wasn’t interested in going anywhere near a boat after the Pacific row,” says John, a long-time runner who, with his wife Cheryl, spent 26 years managing a consumer exhibition connected to the London Marathon. “And after I’d actually sold the boat, Libby said something about a pairs crossing of the Atlantic.” John ended up buying back the boat and refitting it so that it could accommodate two people. As a teenager, Libby had already revealed the grit beneath her pixieish, five-foot-two SPRING 2020

“If I’m committed to something, I’m not going to give it anything less than 100 per cent.”

HSC REVIEW

exterior. When she was around 14 and on the HSC rowing team—she pursued the sport in Grades 9 through 11—she went out for dinner with her family one Sunday evening. At 2 a.m. she woke up with terrible food poisoning. But Libby was adamant that her mother drive her to rowing practice at 4.30 a.m., and then was sick in the car on the way. “I honestly never missed a single day,” says Libby, who would get herself up at that time for the three practices a week during the fall/winter season and five days a week from March until the end of the school year. “That’s me: if I’m committed to something, I’m not going to give it anything less than 100 per cent.” Her U.K.-born father, who now lives in Town of the Blue Mountains, Ont., says Libby comes by her self-discipline “organically. Our family [which also includes elder daughter Georgina ’15] has always been involved in athletics, and I guess Libby inherited the kind of work ethic that you need to succeed.” Libby is now giving her all as a first-year mathematics student at the University of Sussex in England, despite having lacked a passion for math in high school. A music lover who plays piano and guitar, she made two earlier stabs at postsecondary education, enrolling in music-business programs in London and withdrawing because they weren’t demanding enough. She says she’s found the challenge she was looking for at Sussex. “I’m in the library studying from, say,

NORTH AMERICA

EUROPE

Portimão, Portugal

ATLANTIC OCEAN

St John’s, Antigua and Barbuda

AFRICA

SOUTH AMERICA

Completed route totalled 6,458 km (3,487 nautical miles)

7 in the morning until 7 at night. The only breaks I have are lectures and lessons, or when I go to the gym. I study all weekend. I’m not putting anything less than my full effort in it. That way I know that if I get a bad result, at least I tried my best.” Libby brought that fierce commitment to the Atlantic trip. Her close friend Laura Kain ’16, whom she met at HSC, recalls visiting Libby in London the summer before the row. “She got up hours before I did every day,” Kain says, “just so she could go to the gym twice a day every day to build up her strength for the row. I’ve never seen someone at our age have so much commitment and courage.” The boat Libby and her father used, Socks II, is a specially designed, sixmetre ocean rowing vessel. It contains six deck lockers, used mainly for food— their diet consisted largely of dehydrated food, dried fruit, nuts and cookies. It has a forward stowage compartment and a six-foot-long rear cabin for sleeping or taking shelter from the elements—it was a very tight fit for two—as well as for storage of navigation and communication equipment. The boat was fitted with three solar panels to power all their electronic equipment, plus a desalinator for drinking water. And among other things it carried “spare parts, an extensive first aid kit, tools, basic entertainment, six oars, spare clothing, gas for boiling water to cook, 25 bottles of sun screen,

54 rolls of toilet paper, washing and cleaning supplies, and even a few small Christmas presents,” says John. “Basically we were sleeping with food rattling around the cabin for the first month.” A bucket served as a toilet; usually when one person was using it, the other went into the cabin. “We had to row with our eyes closed while the other washed each night,” John chuckles. The trip started inauspiciously. “In the first 12 hours we were out there, I threw up 11 times,” Libby recalls. “I didn’t think I’d get through those five days—I couldn’t eat anything but still had to row 12 hours each day. Seasickness is bad enough if you get to go home at the end of the day, but if you don’t get to go home, it’s horrendous. Eventually, on Day 5, I ate half a ginger biscuit.” SPRING 2020

Soon after her recovery, the near-capsizing occurred. Then more hardship followed. The current was against them as they approached the Canary Islands. “Honestly, every single day felt like we were rowing into cement,” Libby says. They expected that once they got through the islands they would be buffeted by the Trade Winds and a reversal in the current. Neither happened. “The current was either not there or it was going back towards Africa,” says Libby, “and then the wind would go around in circles all the time. It was utterly insane.” Despite all that, John says proudly, Libby did her equal share of the rowing, for which they took turns. Because Libby found it frightening to row in the dark when the waves were big and she couldn’t see them, she skipped some of her night shifts, making up the time in the daylight and before and after dawn and sunset.

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“I swear the waves were 20 feet and coming from every direction. A wave would land on your lap and you’d get soaked in the dark. It’s cold, you’re tired, it’s scary.”

However, because of the strong prevailing current near the end of the trip, Libby had no choice but to row in the dark. “I swear the waves were 20 feet and coming from every direction,” she remembers. “A wave would land on your lap and you’d get soaked in the dark. It’s cold, you’re tired, it’s scary.” But she did experience moments of grace on the crossing. There was the wildlife, including many dolphins and a pair of whales that seemed to accompany them for days. And there were nights of blissful rowing in relatively calm waters. “It’s so exciting because the stars are crazy; you see a shooting star every 30 seconds.” After 91 days and 6,458 kilometres, they reached Antigua in the eastern Caribbean on March 1, 2019. Libby became, her father says, the youngest person ever to row the Atlantic as part of a pair, and the second youngest woman to row the ocean in any configuration. But she balks at the notion that the trip was an extraordinary achievement for her. “Don’t get me wrong—it was hard,” she says. “But if I could do it as a 20-year-old girl, anyone can do it.” And now, a year after they finished, Libby is still mulling over how the trip changed her. She already had a lot of self-discipline, she says; being on the rowing team at HSC—her favourite part of high school—“cemented that in me.” Still, she allows that the row is probably helping her stay the course through a very challenging academic program.

SOCKS II 6.1m long Built from close cell foam with a kevlar outer shell and fiberglass inner shell. Six deck lockers, mainly for food storage. Central wet lockers for the para anchor, ropes and drogues. Also for balast in bad weather. A forward cabin for stowage. An aft cabin for sleeping and all the electrical equipment.

And since she returned to university, a big ambition has taken shape. Like her father, Libby is passionate about Formula One racing, to the point where she recently contacted Claire Williams, the deputy principal of the U.K.’s Williams Formula One racing team. Libby hoped to meet her and perhaps angle for an internship. “She’s inspirational to me,” says Libby, whose “dream job” is motor sports strategist. “It’s a very strategic sport: you obviously win if you have the best car, but you can make up places in the strategy. It’s the same reason why I like American football rather than soccer—it’s more strategic. F1 is more than sport; it’s a bit of a mental game.” Libby is clearly ready for it—she has already mastered the mental game of sticking with something you’re committed to despite daunting obstacles.

The two cabins also form the main elements of the selfrighting design.

SPRING 2020

Pro footballer, horse breeder, financier—Bill Graham ’51 lived a life of determination, action and fun By Diane Jermyn Photos submitted by Graham Family

SPRING 2020 | 23

arly last fall, HSC Review

commissioned a story on an alumnus we felt would be interesting and inspiring to the HSC communityâ&#x20AC;&#x201D;financier Bill Graham â&#x20AC;&#x2122;51. As our process developed, Bill was suddenly diagnosed with cancer. A few weeks after our final interview and just days after the story was complete, Bill died on Jan. 2, 2020. What follows is a lightly adapted version of our planned feature profile. 24

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IF BILL GRAHAM HAD A SPIRIT ANIMAL, IT WOULD HAVE BEEN THE CANADIAN HORSE. Hardy and well-

muscled, it’s an intelligent all-rounder, small in stature but full of personality. It’s known as “the little iron horse” for its amazing stamina and endurance. According to Canadian horse breeders, the Canadian Horse generates more power per hundred pounds of body weight than any other horse breed. Nicknamed “Billy the Kid” by his teammates, Bill was 18, five-foot-seven and 165 pounds when he played halfback in his first of four Grey Cups with the Hamilton Tiger-Cats in 1953. While he was rather small for a footballer, Tiger-Cats head coach Bill Trimble called him “pound for pound, the toughest man in Canadian Football” at the time. With so much in common, it seems inevitable that Bill Graham and the Canadian Horse would come together. After a successful career in investment management, including founding University Scholarships of Canada (USC), a non-profit organization specializing in registered education savings plans where he was president and majority owner, Bill wanted a change. He bought a 400-acre farm on the Bruce Peninsula and added a few riding horses. But after reading about the Canadian Horse in Canadian Geographic, he was smitten. “I share a lot of the characteristics of the Canadian Horse so I identify with it easily,” Bill told me last November. “They’re noted for their strong character and their determination to go through the snow in Canada and never give up. That’s me.” Bill decided he’d like to breed and show them. Then, after watching a horse driving competition near Orangeville, Ont., he wanted to do that too. Bill knew how to ride from camp as a kid, but combined driving is a challenging equestrian sport involving lightweight, manoeuvrable carriages in three events: dressage, obstacles and a crosscountry marathon. Spills are common. “The Canadian Horse is more of a driving horse, so I thought it’d be pretty neat to drive them myself,” Bill said. “I have a knack of wanting to be the boss when I get involved in things. So I tracked down Dr. George Raymond Cormack, the top person in the driving industry, and went to visit him at Tralee in Caledon.” When Bill announced he wanted to learn to drive horses, Cormack took him out to the barn where top driver Jack Braithwaite was looking after the horses. SPRING 2020

“So Dr. Cormack says, ‘Jack, I’d like you to meet Bill Graham. I said you’d train him to learn how to drive,’” Bill recalled. “Well, the guy almost fell down a stall. Five days later I was out in his field learning to drive. It was that determination coming in.” Bill ended up as a Canadian driving champion in the year 2000 at age 64, representing Canada at a world equestrian event, as well as becoming president of the Canadian Driving Society. At every stage, determination was the defining characteristic of Bill’s life. It helped him through some difficult early years in Hamilton, where he was born and raised. His mother was busy as a successful florist and his ex-footballer dad was in the navy and often away, so Bill, an only child, stayed mostly with his grandparents or at boarding school. An outspoken, scrappy kid, he was grateful his parents put him into independent schools. He credited Hillfield School (the boys’ forerunner of HSC) and St. Andrew’s College (where he was later a board member) for saving him by giving him the skills to navigate life and by developing his prodigious athletic gifts. A favourite memory was legendary Hillfield headmaster Arthur F. Killip teaching him how to play chess when he was kept in after school. And Bill treasured a photo where he’s surrounded by medals, cups and pennants won in 1951 at Hillfield, when he captained the undefeated football team and co-captained the hockey team. “I was very lucky to have a private-school education,” Bill said. “They offered a lot of athletics that a public school couldn’t have done. Sports taught me how to get along because they’re all about teams and supporting your teammates. It was the key to my life.” Bill was 17 and home from school for the summer when he heard about a training camp that the Hamilton Tiger-Cats old boys association put on for students, so he hopped on his bike and went. Before he knew it, he was in their preseason and regular games, stretching into 1953. “All the guys were quite a bit older, but the core values I learned at school made it easier to navigate the hazards,” said Bill. “I wasn’t a drinker. I knew how to get along, be polite and 26

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speak well. I’d had a difficult upbringing, but I could tie a tie and wear a jacket. In private school, those things are well grounded into your being. I was in the Grey Cup that year, winning 12-6 over the Winnipeg Blue Bombers. I was flying.” By then Bill had graduated and he went on to play in three more Grey Cups, winning again in 1957 and losing twice, in 1958 and 1959, all against the Winnipeg Blue Bombers. During those years, he also played junior hockey, going on to play in the 1960 World Hockey Championship. In 2017, Bill was inducted into the HSC Athletic Hall of Fame and won the Heritage Award. Football remained his first love. “It’s such a physical game,” Bill said. “We used to line up against each other in practice and try various punches. I’d go for the biggest guy on our team to see what I could do. It turned out to be very good strategy. I had some extra bruises but it was fine. I think that’s one of the things that made my life a success, being able to take on the tough side and make it go.” After leaving pro football in 1960, Bill made a career in the investment industry, starting out by playing the stock market. He found it fun, so he got a job marking the chalk board in a stock office in Guelph, like you see in old movies.

“I enjoyed the action, because up until then my life was sports, which was action,” Bill said. “From there I joined an investment firm, James Richardson, and before I knew it, I was selling. I’ve always had a knack for selling.” Bill moved to Toronto, rising into senior management and working for several companies before running his own investment firm. Founding University Scholarships of Canada was next. “It just exploded with 16 offices right across Canada,” said Bill. “It was very successful and we were looking at expanding into the U.S. when I decided I wanted to do something different.” Bill stayed in the financial business but focused on investing USC money through The International Scholarship Foundation, a not-for-profit Canadian corporation that assists Canadian families and supports higher education. He

Bill ended up as a Canadian driving champion in the year 2000 at age 64, representing Canada at a world equestrian event. At every stage,

was also spending summers camping with his wife Patricia and six daughters on the Bruce Peninsula, a natural outdoor paradise. “We wanted to have a permanent place up there and were inclined towards farming,” said Bill. “Before I knew it, I had Graham Farms and 34 horses. It’s totally different from football or the professional financial industry. Holy mackerel! It was a good way to de-invest my money.” Bill became involved with the Bruce Trail and at his death was still on its board as chairman of the Sources of Knowledge Forum of the Bruce Peninsula. He continued to breed the Canadian Horse until 2017, when he sold the farm. While he lived in Clarkson, Ont., he and family members maintained cottages near Little Pike Bay on his beloved Bruce Peninsula. Patricia died in April 2019. Looking back at 84, he felt that family and friends were what mattered to him most. “I’ve always had great friends,” Bill told me, by then engaged in his battle with cancer. “I get calls daily from old friends, school friends who go right back to when I was young. My friends are a lifelong passion too. Isn’t it great?”

determination was the defining characteristic of Bill’s life.

SPRING 2020

Turning Gold Green Miranda Werstiuk â&#x20AC;&#x2122;85 is committed to making mining more sustainable By Barbara Wickens

Portraits by Riley Stewart SPRING 2020

FOR SOME PEOPLE, THE PHRASE “SUSTAINABLE MINING” MAY SEEM LIKE AN OXYMORON. Not for Miranda Werstiuk ’85. Outgoing and personable, Miranda is a corporate finance and investment banking professional specializing in the resource sector. And she is fervent in her belief that the mining industry can become more environmentally sustainable and socially responsible. That’s why one trip to South America left her with a particularly vivid memory. For over 25 years, Miranda has travelled the globe seeing first-hand how mining companies of all sizes run their operations, from greenfield exploration to development through to production. In 2009, while visiting a gold exploration project in the jungles of Colombia that needed new funding, she observed artisanal and small-scale goldmining (ASGM) practices. “I saw a man using his bare hands to scoop a mixture of mercury and ore out of a vat,” Miranda recalls. “He was using the elemental mercury to extract gold from the surrounding material. Even if these local miners knew about the dangers to themselves, their families and the entire ecosystem, their focus was on day-today existence.” 30

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Large-scale gold mining companies do not use mercury, but instead rely on cyanidation, a chemical process using a weak cyanide solution, and subsequent separation of the materials. The use of mercury persists, however, in over 70 countries where unregulated and illegal ASGM operations can lead to potentially fatal mercury poisoning. Despite a schedule already seemingly full to capacity, Miranda’s commitment to making the industry more sustainable motivated her to become an external advisor to the planetGOLD Program. With the support of the UN and other partners, it is helping countries meet their obligations under the Minamata Convention on Mercury. The 2013 treaty—named after the Japanese city where severe mercury poisoning was first identified in the 1950s—aims to significantly reduce or eliminate global mercury use. Focusing on the ASGM sector, the planetGOLD initiative is helping miners adopt cleaner techniques, improving their access to financing and supporting efforts to integrate them into the formal economy and regulatory systems. There are other signs that mining is changing. Miranda says refineries, where precious metals are extracted and separated, are increasingly demanding that the minerals they process are ethically sourced. That is leading to new technologies and protocols for traceability and transparency from mine to manufactured goods. Mining companies are now also taking responsibility for the entire life cycle of their projects, Miranda adds. This begins with meeting the people living near a potential mine to determine their wants and needs well before work ever begins on the site. “There is a whole social, environmental and economic ecosystem already in place in these locations,” she says. “We have to engage with all the stakeholders from the very start to be successful in building sustainable mines.” While she now proudly calls herself a “mining chick,” that was never her original intent. After graduating from HSC, she attended Queen’s University in Kingston where she studied biology and, as she had done at HSC, made a large circle of friends. Through them she met her future husband, Colin Climie, who was studying electrical engineering at Queen’s. The couple are long-time residents of the Beach, an old Toronto neighbourhood with houses that started life as cottages, where they’re raising two daughters. Neve, 18, is studying engineering at Queen’s while Sloane, 13, looks poised to break with family tradition and pursue a future in the arts. Colin has used his education as a patent agent and as a part-time professor at York University. Miranda, however, says that by the time she’d earned her BSc, she’d lost interest in a career in biology. With that, she returned home to attend McMaster University where both her parents were professors, one in the chemistry department and the other in the biochemistry, biology and pharmacology departments. Both had grown up in families from Eastern Bloc countries. Miranda recalls her mother, Eva, describing how her family had cut through a barbed wire fence to make their getaway from Hungary during the revolution in 1956. Her father was born in Alberta, where his parents were homesteading after leaving Ukraine in the early 1920s. The two eventually met and married in Baltimore, Maryland, moving first to London, England, where they had Miranda, and then to Hamilton, where her brother Nick was born.

“We were told that we didn’t have to be the best at something. We just had to show up and have fun.”

With older daughter Neve

At McMaster, Miranda studied anthropology, earning a four-year BA in just two years. She was now armed with two undergrad degrees, but still no clear vocational purpose. Then, as these things sometimes happen, her experiences in a series of mostly forgettable jobs led to a contract position with Toronto-based IBK Capital Corp.—where she stayed for the next 25 years. IBK Capital is an independent Canadian investment banking firm with clients in mining, renewable energy and technology. Miranda rounded out her formal education with a variety of business courses from the Ted Rogers School of Management at Ryerson University and finance industry-specific courses.

This past February, Miranda—always keen on a new challenge—joined OCIM Precious Metals, a division of Paris-based OCIM Finance. While still living in Toronto, she is assisting the privately held company in building its resource company investment portfolio. As well as being business savvy, Miranda is a consummate networker highly regarded in resource finance circles for her ability to bring together the best people for any given project. It’s something she enjoys doing. “I’m a good people person,” she says simply. In fact, making and maintaining connections through volunteering, mentoring and public speaking at conferences worldwide is something to which she devotes considerable time and effort. She is co-vice chair of the Toronto branch of Women in Mining (WIM) and is a member of both WIM UK and iWIM, all dedicated to making mining more inclusive. Having had type 1 diabetes for nearly 50 years, she has volunteered for the Canadian Diabetes Association, Women’s College Hospital and Toronto General Hospital, supporting those living with diabetes. Miranda traces being active on so many fronts to the value system at HSC that encourages students to participate in a range of extracurricular activities. “We were told that we didn’t have to be the best at something,” she says. “We just had to show up and have fun.” (The halls of HSC are lined with sports trophies attesting to the fact she did more than show up.) Her parents, who put a premium on education, ensured that she and her brother attended both elementary and secondary school at HSC. Miranda began honing her interpersonal skills in kindergarten, usually referred to in fiveyear-olds as making friends. She remains friends with many of them to this day, particularly with one tight-knit group. They talk frequently and get together whenever possible, even though five of them are spread across the GTA and the sixth lives in Vancouver. Whether she’s talking about a disadvantaged Colombian miner, her family or her wide circle of friends, it’s clear Miranda cares deeply. You could even say she’s a miner with a heart of gold. SPRING 2020

Star of the Court From basketball to the law, Coulter Osborne ’50 has always excelled By Bruce McDougall Portraits by Jaime Hogge 32 | HSC REVIEW

SPRING 2020 | 33

C COULTER OSBORNE ’50 HAS HELD SOME INFLUENTIAL POSITIONS OF AUTHORITY IN HIS LIFETIME, but he

has never been interviewed for a job. He has been appointed to the bench, elevated to the province’s appeal court, overseen the lower court system as associate chief justice and evaluated the behaviour of politicians and public servants as the province’s integrity commissioner. At Hillfield School in the 1940s, he excelled at cricket and won the headmaster’s reading prize. He played basketball at university on three intercollegiate championship teams and for Canada at the Melbourne Olympics. In recognition of these contributions and achievements, he has received honours, awards and accolades, but unless you asked, he’d never tell you about them. “I’ve never heard him brag once,” says Harry Greening ’49, a contemporary of Coulter’s at Hillfield and his friend for 82 years. “No matter what he achieves, it never goes to his head.” The achievements began more than 75 years ago, shortly after he entered the school as an eight-year-old. Not only did he pass with a solid academic record through eight consecutive grades, he also excelled at hockey, track, basketball, cricket and preparation for exams. “Classes at Hillfield were really small,” says Coulter. “There was an intimacy between students and teachers. We were required to participate in everything, including drama and public speaking. In the winter, I used to get up early in the morning and head to the outdoor, natural ice rink at school. I’d put my skates on and shoot the puck around till classes started.” For two winters, between 1946 and 1948, the temperature rarely fell below freezing. “The skating was bleak,” he says, “so I headed to the gym and played basketball.” “Coulter could play all sports,” adds Harry. “He was a superb cricketer. On the basketball court, I’d just feed him the ball.” 34

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“Classes at Hillfield were really small. There was an intimacy between students and teachers. We were required to participate in everything, including drama and public speaking.”

As a teenager, Coulter displayed another talent. “I became known for being able to determine in advance the questions that would be asked on an exam,” he says. “That asset was portable. Even at university, people would call me out of the blue.” When he wasn’t answering phone calls at the University of Western Ontario (now Western University), he ran on the track team, played football and was a member of Western’s basketball team that won three consecutive intercollegiate championships. “A driving force,” said the selectors who inducted him into Western’s Hall of Fame. Characteristically, he gives credit to his high-school coaches for his accomplishments on the court. “They advised me to stand out from the crowd,” he says. “One way to do that was to be able to jump. By the time I got to university, I was strong enough to dunk the ball.” That was no mean feat for a lanky sixfoot-two guard. As a first-year student at Osgoode Hall Law School in Toronto, Coulter continued to play senior basketball, winning a league championship and participating in a few post-season exhibition games in front of Canada’s Olympic scouts. That summer, he went to work at the American Can Company, near Victoria Avenue and Birge Street, where his father was assistant sales manager. “One day I finished loading empty cans onto a freight car,” he says, “and when I went home I found this letter from the Canadian Olympic Association. It said, ‘Be in Vancouver the day after Labour Day.’ My father was befuddled. He said, ‘What happens to law school?’” Coulter went to the dean of Osgoode Hall to ask for advice. “I said, ‘I’d like to go, but if I do, I won’t be at any classes in the first term.” The dean looked down at the papers on his desk and said, “We don’t take attendance.”

Coulter and his teammates made the 16,000-kilometre trip to Melbourne in two days. “Unfortunately, we then played the Russians and the French,” he says, “and lost both games.” Those early losses relegated Canada to the B pool and ended Canada’s medal hopes. Back in Canada, completing his law studies, he returned occasionally to Western, where he met a smart, personable senior named Barbara Mollison one afternoon after a football game. “I didn’t know her at the time,” he says. “But I knew you,” says Barbara. After they were married, Coulter moved with Barbara to Kitchener in 1959 and practised for the next 20 years with such distinction that the Waterloo Bar Association now recognizes lawyers in the region with the Coulter A. Osborne Award for combining impeccable professional standards with civility and consideration for those with whom they work. He also earned an appointment to the Supreme Court of Ontario, the province’s senior trial court. Within months, Coulter heard his first murder trial, involving eight members of a motorcycle gang accused of murdering a rival from another gang. “There was still an athletic mien to Coulter Osborne,” writes Mick Lowe in Conspiracy of Brothers: A True Story of Bikers, Murder and the Law, “a slender, easy grace that women found attractive and that put men at their ease. Here was no fussy, three-piece-suit and pinstripes man. His style was preppy, a legacy perhaps of his years at Hamilton’s Hillfield School and St. Andrew’s College, outside Toronto.” For four months, he filled his bench book with notations: his thoughts in the left column of the page, evidence in the right. When the trial ended, the jury

convicted six of the eight accused persons of murder. The case remains controversial to this day, the subject not only of Lowe’s award-winning book but of a song by country star Steve Earle. In 12 years on the bench, Coulter heard cases involving murder, manslaughter, drug trafficking, personal injury, bankruptcy, insolvency, wills and estates, divorce and the division of property in courtrooms around southern Ontario. “When he came through Hamilton,” says Harry Greening, “we’d go to Al’s Place in the train station for a corned beef on rye.” Coulter’s days on the trial circuit ended in 1990, when he was appointed to the Court of Appeal for Ontario, hearing appeals of decisions by the lower courts, including a successful one by a woman in Guelph named Gwen Jacobs against her conviction for committing an indecent act by walking home topless on a hot summer day. “No one who was offended was forced to continue looking at her,” he wrote. Coulter was on the golf course in 1999 when he received the call confirming his appointment as the province’s Associate Chief Justice. He did that job for two years, but even after he retired in 2001, the appointments kept coming: Ontario’s Integrity Commissioner; the province’s Lobbyist Registrar; the head of a review of public/private partnership proposals involving Toronto’s Union Station; examining the Ontario Securities Commission; special officer to the court in the restructuring of Stelco Inc.; head of an inquiry into the province’s civil justice system. To this day, his phone keeps ringing as he accepts appointments as an arbitrator and fairness advisor on issues such as student transportation and the revitalization of Regent Park in Toronto’s downtown core. “I just have a hard time retiring,” he says. The accolades continue, as well: an Honorary Doctor of Laws degree, the Order of Ontario and, at HSC, the Athletic Hall of Fame Heritage Award in 2014, the Alumni Award of Distinction in 2013 and the Alumni Hall of Excellence in 2006. More important, his three daughters have presented Barbara and Coulter with four grandchildren. And last August, Coulter and Barbara celebrated their 61st wedding anniversary. After all this, Coulter Osborne still doesn’t talk about his achievements. Perhaps he might blow his own horn if he’d ever been interviewed for a job. But he’s still waiting. SPRING 2020

INSIDE

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AND OUT

Successful photographer Shelagh Howard â&#x20AC;&#x2122;89 found a way to pursue both business and fine art By Mary K. Nolan

Photography by Shelagh Howard SPRING 2020

IT WAS IN THE DARKROOM, oddly, that Shelagh Howard (née Young) ’89 first saw the light. There, in the dim red glow of the blackened room, she was struck with a brilliant clarity that she was supposed to be a photographer. Shelagh hadn’t expected such an epiphany when she signed up for an introductory photography course at Ryerson University in the summer of 2001. She simply wanted to improve the quality of her snapshots. She had been chronicling her pre-schooler’s life on film since the little girl was born, using a point-and-shoot camera to take “tons of pictures—some good, some not.” “I thought I’d hate the course, but I wanted to do it so I could take better pictures of her,” says Shelagh (pronounced Shay-la). “It was in the darkroom that I realized this is what I was meant to do. There was something about taking a white piece of paper, tilting it a certain way and watching an image appear.” Within three years of taking that brief but intensive course, she had registered her Toronto-based business, Shelagh Howard Photography, and has since built an impressive portfolio that includes everyone from powerful corporate executives to sinewy sculpted nudes. “Every time I pick up my camera, I’m doing something I love,” she says. 38

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“I photograph people in suits, I photograph people in nothing.”

Given her passion for the arts, including literature, opera and oil painting, it’s no surprise Shelagh ended up in a creative field. But getting there was a bit of a circuitous journey. Now 48, Shelagh first “attended” HSC when she lived on West 19th Street and played with the neighbourhood kids on the College’s vast sports fields nearby. Yet it wasn’t until Grade 8, several years after the family had moved to Dundas, that she actually donned the black watch kilt after an entrance interview with Vice-Principal Michaele Robertson, who became her teacher, mentor and valued support. Shelagh admits to being an average student who was “terrible” at art. Nevertheless, she signed up for OAC art in Grade 12, where she came under the tutelage of late HSC art teacher Doug Moore, whom she calls one of the most influential teachers she ever had. “If he knew you were committed, he would let you do anything,” which, to Shelagh, meant figuring out how to express through art what really mattered to her. “I wasn’t athletic, I wasn’t musical—the art room was a safe space for me.” Her dad even bought her a paint box, a treasure she keeps in the upstairs office of her cosy Riverdale home. And no one was more surprised than she when she won the art prize in Grade 13, an honour she shared with fellow student Jonathan Menon. Desperate to get out of sleepy Dundas and move to the big city, the aspiring writer buckled down and graduated from HSC with outstanding marks that got her into the literary studies program at the University of Toronto’s Victoria College. Within weeks, disillusioned by the massive classroom and restrictive course content, the young

woman who’d had “free rein with wonderful educators at HSC” had dropped out of the one fine art course she was taking. Despite two years in English and literature, she ended up with a Bachelor of Science degree in psychology and biomedical ethics—and no idea what to do with it. That’s when she went off to the Université Canadienne en France in the mountains above Nice and enjoyed “one of the best years of my life.” After marrying a Canadian who worked internationally, Shelagh lived in Europe and other destinations with him for extended periods. But the realities of motherhood brought her back to Toronto, where she became a full-time parent, often on her own, to Natasha, now 22, and eventually Lauren, who is 16. She wasn’t looking for a full-time professional career, but the excitement of her summertime darkroom discovery motivated Shelagh to register for more photography courses at Ryerson that fall. She took one course at a time, attending one night a week and relishing the company of students who were equally passionate about the craft. A basement bathroom was converted into a darkroom and Shelagh upgraded to a Nikon single-lens reflex camera. She worked away when her daughter was asleep and spent every spare moment honing her photographic skills. Shelagh was well on her way to getting her diploma when she started working with acclaimed Czech photographer Yuri Dojc, who became her mentor and inspiration. Collaborating with and learning from such a master, she left school to pursue photography full-time. In the early days, she drew her clientele from her immediate environment— photographing friends’ families, hanging her images at Starbucks, doing headshots for friends’ websites, even shooting a few weddings.

Word of her skills spread and she developed a specialty in high-end corporate portraiture for lawyers, bankers, wealth managers, accountants, educators, musicians, artists, actors and others. That was her bread and butter, but always, in the back of her mind, she yearned to make images of the human body, to explore, in her own words, “the construction of the self, involving gendered beauty, body image issues, vulnerability, isolation and acceptance.”

But now, single with two kids to support and bills to pay, she found it was completely impractical. She didn’t have a surplus of the “time and money and support and space” that making such art would require. Finally, two years ago, she made it happen. Her portfolio now includes exquisite and tasteful studies of the nuances of the naked form, captivating works that are not about eroticism or sex but the vulnerability and sensitivity of human beings. “I photograph people in suits, I photograph people in nothing,” says Shelagh, who feels that people are fundamentally alike once the trappings of current culture and times are stripped away. As she explains it, her work “focuses on the layers of experience and memory carried within the human body.” Using creative lighting techniques, multiple exposures and long shutter speeds, she produces mesmerizing images of movement and form. Working in environments as diverse as rented studios and her own kitchen, she “paints” with the camera, controlling certain aspects of the image creation process while allowing others to emerge as magically as those first images in the darkroom. Her work continues to garner significant attention. It has hung in galleries in Canada and the United States and been published in a variety of print and digital publications. In March, she was to travel to Barcelona to be recognized for her honorable mention in the prestigious Julia Margaret Cameron Awards for Women Photographers from the international Photography Gala Awards. “I’ve waited my whole life to be able to create work like this,” Shelagh says. “It’s been a 48-year journey. This is who I am and what I do and I’m proud of it.” SPRING 2020

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2019

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Finding his Niche For Warren Dakin ’78, it took a while before he discovered that a career in finance was the key to a fulfilling working life CONFIDENCE, PATIENCE AND PERSEVERANCE were the disciplines that achieved success for Warren Dakin ’78. Today he is enjoying retirement after three decades in the financial industry. Having had a successful career in both Toronto and New York City at a leading Canadian investment bank, the HSC alumnus has fond memories of his time at the College. However, Warren will admit that his preference at the time was more aligned with socializing and athletics than it was with studying. Whether it was hockey, soccer, rugby, fitness training or track and field, Warren was actively involved in HSC’s athletic program, and even competed at an Ontario-wide track meet with the Thunderbolts, a four-person HSC team. While academics might not have been high on his list of priorities, his first exposure to what would become his ultimate passion occurred in Senior School, when a classmate’s father who worked for a large mutual fund company came to the College to speak to students about the stock market and mutual funds. “It was such a rare occurrence for a parent to come speak to us. It really just hit me between the eyes and clicked with me,” says Warren. “From that point on, I had an interest in the stock market and the financial world. I just didn’t know how to get into it or how to begin a career in it.”

Alumni Award of Distinction The HSC Alumni Award of Distinction Program celebrates the achievements of alumni in our community who have lived the aspirations of the Hillfield Strathallan College vision and developed into global citizens who have in effect bettered the world around them.

Top Honours

Photo by Wandering Eye Photography

“The best investment that you can make in life is within yourself. Figure out what your passion is and everything will fall into place.”

After graduation, Warren attended Sheridan College, where he studied business marketing, and realized that life in post-secondary was a little different than at HSC. “When you get to college or university, you are on your own,” he says. “The responsibility shifts to the students. I may not remember a lot of what I learned about business marketing, but I can tell you that the biggest lesson I took away from that experience is that the world isn’t going to sit there and hold your hand every day. You’ve got to go out and make it happen on your own.” Following his time at Sheridan, Warren set out to find his niche. “It took me the better part of five years to try to get a proper sense of what I wanted to do, what my interests were, and where my strengths and weaknesses lay,” he says. “I spent those five years not really loving what I was doing or excelling. I was constantly assessing myself, and one thing I did learn was that I need a structured environment. I am a go-getter, but I thrive when I have framework and structure.” In 1985, at 25, Warren finally found his place. He secured an entry-level position at a financial brokerage firm and it was exactly what he needed. He started at the bottom and worked his way up to become a vice-president and later a director of institutional equity trading before his retirement.

Warren Dakin ’78

Coming full circle, Warren returned to HSC in 2016 to speak to a Senior School economics class about the financial industry. “I was able to speak to those students about my area of knowledge and I hope I was able to duplicate what that classmate’s father had done for me when he came to speak to my class about his career,” says Warren. “I think as alumni we owe it to do that. Hopefully we can plant a seed and encourage the next generation of students.” Warren will be the first to describe himself as having lack of focus in his younger years, but once he found his passion there was no looking back. “Believe in yourself,” he says. “The best investment that you can make in life is within yourself. Figure out what your passion is and everything will fall into place. Your friends and family might have a different perspective about where they see your life heading, but it is your life. Have confidence in yourself and your ability to create your own future.” SPRING 2020

Top Honours

David de Freitas ’94 turned his passion for athletics into a career he loves FOR DAVID DE FREITAS, there was never any question that he would attend HSC.

The son of a teacher at the College, David was a “lifer”, starting his education in the Montessori program and continuing on until his graduation in what was then Grade 13. It’s no surprise, given his current role as the director of player relations for Maple Leaf Sports & Entertainment in Toronto, that David was, and is, passionate about athletics. “I was always drawn to the world of sports, and that has definitely led me to where I am right now,” he says. “I played on a number of teams at HSC and was able to try a wide variety of sports.” In the sea of well-rounded students at HSC, it was clear to him from an early age that he was going to have to find a way to differentiate himself from the crowd, always making sure that he went the extra mile. “When you’re in an environment that is full of incredibly smart, goaloriented individuals, it really makes you rethink how you’re going to work and what approach you’re going to take to whatever you’re doing,” he says. “Doing the minimum doesn’t cut it. You have to step it up.” That mentality carried into his post-secondary endeavours at both the University of Windsor and the University of Michigan. “University was a big reality check for me in terms of what I was going to do in life,” says David. “I was a basketball player at HSC and was a bit of a big fish in a small pond. When you get to university you realize that you’re a small fish in a big lake, and then you take it one step further and attend a college in the States and you realize you’re a small fish in a giant ocean.” When he failed to make the basketball team in university, he realized that if he wanted to be around the basketball, he would have to figure out another way besides playing. 42

HSC REVIEW

The Alumni Hall of Excellence The Alumni Hall of Excellence celebrates alumni who embody and promote the ideals of Hillfield Strathallan College. By honouring this distinguished group of alumni, the College continues its tradition of inspiring others through the legacy of alumni who have come before them

Photo by Wandering Eye Photography

He’s Got Game

David de Freitas ’94

“I think that moment, being cut from the team, is the key to what I do today,” says David. “When I was told that I wasn’t going to make the team, I asked what else I could do to be involved. To the coach’s credit, he said I could manage the team and I jumped at the chance.” After graduating from university, David was offered an internship at Maple Leaf Sports & Entertainment in the ticket sales department, and again seized the moment. “I didn’t care that I would be working for free—I couldn’t have jumped at the opportunity quicker,” says David. “That was my ‘in’ to pro sports. I knew I could prove myself once I got in there.” The eight-month internship allowed David to learn the ins and outs of what happens off the ice, courts, pitches and fields, and what goes on in the boardrooms. Using that internship as his gateway, he has held multiple titles within the organization and has been director of player relations for eight years. “We handle everything to do with our players when they’re not playing,” he explains. “There are 130 athletes that we work with and we handle anything that isn’t coaching or media. If they aren’t playing or practising, their schedules are managed through our group.” Working with players and their agents, public relations teams and lawyers to facilitate things like sponsorships, endorsements, building of personal brands, and philanthropy keeps David and his team pretty busy, but it’s a job he truly loves. If he could give one piece of advice to today’s students, it would be: Find something that you gravitate towards and that excites you, as that’s something you’re going to excel at naturally. Take the time to figure out what you like and find a way to make that a career. “It’s really not hard for me to get up in the morning,” David says. “The day that I have to set an alarm clock to get out of bed is the day that it’s probably time to look for something different. That day still has yet to come. I genuinely love what I do.”

Top Honours

High Performance

the support of outstanding mentors and steadfast supporters. Some early career advice I received was to say ‘yes’ to everything and to follow where your curiosity takes you. My varied career journey exemplifies this attitude. To this advice, I would add: stay committed to those who help you along the way.” Today, Meagan works as a consultant for McKinsey & Company in its Transformation practice. Despite her busy career, she continues to support Indigenous governments and organizations on both sides of the Canada-U.S. border.

Photo by Stevan Duarte

Meagan Hill ’07 uses financial know-how to create opportunities for Indigenous professionals BEING THE FIRST HSC STUDENT ACCEPTED TO HARVARD COLLEGE is only one of Meagan Hill’s outstanding accomplishments. The 2007 alumna attended HSC for high school and, in addition to being an avid athlete, was also a prefect, editor of the HSC Yearbook and a member of the debate team. While reflecting on her time at HSC, Meagan looks back most fondly upon the lasting relationships she built on campus. “While I loved the rigour of the academics, HSC was about more than attending class every day,” she says. “What remains with me to this day is that the HSC faculty created and nurtured a unique connection with their students.” After graduation, Meagan attended Harvard, where she concentrated in sociology, and embraced the university’s rich, connective extra-curricular environment. “I knew that wherever my post-secondary studies took me, prioritizing relationships and building connections were going to be incredibly important to me.” As an undergrad, Meagan became president of a university-based business organization called Harvard Student Agencies (HSA). Considered the world’s largest student-run corporation, HSA provided Meagan with executive-level business experience, along with valuable insight that helped her choose her first career step—applying to the 2+2 MBA Program at Harvard Business School (HBS). The 2+2 MBA Program accepts a limited number of students and requires candidates to work for two years before returning to complete the two-year MBA program. Once accepted, Meagan’s curiosity about global financial markets led her to a two-year analyst position at Morgan Stanley, a global investment bank based in New York City. “I was a student at Harvard College when the financial crisis hit, and that’s when I became interested in how different stakeholders could impact an economy both globally and domestically,” she says. At Morgan Stanley, Meagan was fortunate to find another community that fostered her personal and professional development. She helped lead diversity recruiting efforts at Harvard on behalf of Morgan Stanley, which aimed to increase awareness of job opportunities for individuals historically underrepresented in finance. “I was grateful for the support that fellow Harvard alumni had offered me during the job recruiting process and I wanted to pay this forward,” she says. After the analyst program, Meagan returned to HBS and became the first current student to create a custom HBS Executive Education program. The custom program, designed for Indigenous finance professionals and government leaders, has a mission to inspire participants, as well as equip them with the tools to lead high-performing, innovative communities or organizations. “The development of this program was an incredibly proud moment for me,” says Meagan. “Since starting at Harvard College in 2007, I have aimed to support efforts that increase the number of qualified individuals from communities that I care deeply about. The opportunity to see Indigenous professionals on campus every year engaging in a rigorous, transformative experience has meant the world to me.” Since its creation, the program has graduated some 200 First Nations, Métis, Inuit, American Indian and Alaska Native professionals and continues to operate every year in May on the HBS campus. “I have been fortunate to engage in roles and projects that are incredibly compelling,” she says. “Many of these opportunities were afforded through

The Alumni Hall of Excellence Meagan Hill ’07

SPRING 2020

Top Honours

Singular Students

The Alumni Association Leadership Award Scholarship is given to one male and one female Grade 9 recipient who embodies the College’s Mission, Vision and Values, especially through outstanding leadership potential.

Liam Harper-McCabe Maple House

Elise Sawyer Earn House

LIAM HAS A PASSION FOR MAKING A DIFFERENCE. He

HSC REVIEW

ENTHUSIASTIC ABOUT ATHLETICS, this MVP has

Liam Harper-McCabe

Elise Sawyer

been a leader on a variety of sports teams since joining the HSC community. Elise has not only been a member of the soccer, track and field and volleyball teams, but she was the winner of the Morgan Mile and House Cross Country three times. As a participant at the Canadian Accredited Independent Schools U15 National Soccer Tournament, and a qualifier for the Ontario Summer Games for track and field, Elise is no stranger to teamwork and leadership. In fact, after her debut at the Ontario Summer Games, she was selected by Athletics Ontario in 2018 as the U14 Female Athlete of the Year. In addition to her athletic pursuits, Elise achieved honour roll status throughout her time in the Middle School, received an academic award in Grade 7, and was recently accepted into enriched math and French classes. She has also been actively involved in volunteering at U10 soccer and track and field practices, has been a team captain, and is a sports representative. She is an HSC Executive Ambassador and communicates with other ambassadors, assists with campus events, welcomes new students to HSC and works to encourage and motivate her peers. “I truly love helping people and being a leader,” says Elise. “Every chance I get to help someone, I will always try to do so. With all my leadership opportunities, one thing I have learned is that to be successful doesn’t mean to be victorious. It means being able to motivate and encourage someone to be their best self and to try their absolute hardest.”

Photos by William Vipond Tait

takes every opportunity he can to volunteer, whether it is helping in the community or taking on a leadership role in his co-curricular activities, athletics or academics. Growing up at HSC, Liam was taught at a young age the importance of giving back. In Grade 5, his interest in volunteering was sparked when he discovered the Junior Duke of Edinburgh’s Award, which led him to help out at a local school’s garden. He then became involved with Hamilton Victory Gardens, a non-profit organization dedicated to providing fresh produce to local food banks. He has also volunteered at campus events such as HSC’s Open Houses and Grandparents’ Day. Liam’s dedication to furthering his education both inside the class and out was recognized when he was named recipient of the Robin Polson Celebration of Life Award. This honours a Grade 5 student who puts exceptional energy and effort into their academic and co-curricular life at the College. In Grade 6, he became a sports representative for his house, and in Grades 6 and 7 he helped welcome new students as one of HSC’s Student Ambassadors. During Grade 8, he was a Maple House Captain. Despite classes and volunteer work, Liam has still found time for his arts and athletics interests. From choir and band to soccer, basketball, rugby and track and field, he has followed his passions while encouraging his peers, winning leadership awards for doing so. “I recognize how important it is to work hard and be a role model in everything you do,” Liam says. “I try to put my best effort forward and put others before myself.”

Top Honours

Great Grads

The Lori Morris ’82 Alumni Award of Distinction Graduate Scholarship is given to one or more departing students who epitomize the nature of service and leading by example.

Camille Bruckmann ’19 Pursuing excellence in science

Camille Bruckmann ’19

Photo by Edge Imaging

Now studying Engineering Science at University of Toronto

WHEN THE ODDS WERE STACKED AGAINST HER, Camille Bruckmann still forged ahead, knowing that the chance to attend the program and school of her dreams was at stake. “I decided to take a chance and apply abroad,” says Camille. “The program was incredibly competitive and I knew that there was a very small chance of being accepted. However, I still threw my hat in the ring. After five months, I learned that I had made it to the second round of applications and that I had to complete a problem-solving assignment to prove my academic ability.” With one week to complete it, Camille spent every waking minute working through the assessment assignment. A few weeks later, she received notification that she had been accepted to the Imperial College London for its Aeronautical Engineering program. In the end, she chose not to go, but her display of determination and self-motivation is par for the course for Camille. Along with academic excellence, she has displayed strong athletic and leadership capabilities. The captain of two varsity teams, she was elected as Athletic Prefect and as Head Girl. “These leadership roles have allowed me to develop my skills not only as a leader but as a teammate,” says Camille. “I strive to set up my teammates for success, and that’s the basis of my leadership style. I acknowledge the potential in others and influence them to become stronger.” This mentality has also served her well in her role as a junior teaching assistant within the science department, where she forged connections with younger students to foster an interest in science. Camille was also involved in a variety of clubs and volunteer initiatives. She was an active member of the Social Justice Committee, raising awareness and funds for different issues around the globe, including the construction of an eye clinic in Kenya. It is her interest in science, though, that has led her to her current path in aeronautics. “I want to use my passion for STEM [science, technology, engineering and math] to inspire others to embrace the challenge of the sciences,” she says. “I would like to continue being a positive role model for younger students, and to encourage girls to pursue a career in STEM.” SPRING 2020

Top Honours

Perfect Prefects These 13 students are this year’s leaders across Hillfield Strathallan College. From reading to dinner companions, here’s what they’re into.

Will Assad

Academic Prefect

Dream job

Big tech entrepreneur

Favourite HSC lunch Chicken Burgers

Currently reading

Astrophysics for People in a Hurry by Neil de Grasse Tyson

I’d love to have dinner with... Elon Musk

Head Girl & Middle School Prefect

Dream job

National Geographic traveller/writer

Favourite HSC lunch Chicken Burgers

Currently reading The Last Tycoon by F. Scott Fitzgerald

I’d love to have dinner with...

Finance/Entrepreneur but my dream job would definitely be a late-night talk show host

Favourite HSC lunch Veal cutlets, easily

Currently reading The Glass Castle by Jeannette Walls

Stevan Vujicic

Lillian Guy

LeBron James

Chapel Prefect

Dream job

Medical professional

Criminal or family lawyer

Favourite HSC lunch

Currently reading

I’d love to have dinner with...

Breakfast

AI Superpowers: China, Silicon Valley and the New World Order by Kai-Fu Lee

Queen Elizabeth

HSC REVIEW

Dream job

I’d love to have dinner with...

Dream job

Male Athletic Prefect

Freddie Mercury

Head Boy & Service Prefect

Luke D’Ambrosi

Sausage and perogies

Truth Be Told: My Journey Through Life and the Law by Beverley McLachlin

James Corden

Photos by William Vipond Tait

Kate Masliwec

Top Honours Nathan Ha

A.K. Okpala

Dream job

Dream Job

Wellness Prefect Manage my hedge fund

Favourite HSC lunch Chicken Burgers

Currently reading

The Billion Dollar Whale: The Man Who Fooled Wall Street, Hollywood and the World by Bradley Hope and Tom Wright

Diversity Prefect Specialist in any medical field

Favourite HSC lunch Chicken fajitas with all the fixings

Currently reading Gifted Hands by Ben Carson M.D. with Cecil Murphey

I’d love to have dinner with...

Devansh Kaloti

Isabella Ruse

Warren Buffett

Media & Public Relations Prefect

Dream job

CEO of Google

Favourite HSC lunch Pancakes

Currently reading

Cold Steel by Byron Ousey and Tim Bouquet

I’d love to have dinner with... Elon Musk

Charlotte Leyland

Female Athletic Prefect

Dream job

NHL player or physical education teacher

Favourite HSC lunch Veal cutlets

Currently reading Don’t Look Now by Daphne du Maurier

I’d love to have dinner with... Michelle Obama

Brynn Mercer Arts Prefect

Dream job

Freelance illustrator or designer

Favourite HSC lunch Chicken Burgers

Currently reading Othello by William Shakespeare

I’d love to have dinner with...

My favourite artist, Jamie Hewlett

Sir Alex Ferguson

Junior School Prefect

Dream job

Play rugby professionally for Canada and one day go to the Olympics

Favourite HSC lunch Chicken Burgers

Currently reading

The Epic of Gilgamesh

I’d love to have dinner with... Beyoncé

Gillian Sawyer

Montessori Prefect

Dream job

I am interested in biology but I would also love to work as a luxury interior designer

Favourite HSC lunch Chicken Burgers

Currently reading The Hate U Give by Angie Thomas

I’d love to have dinner with...

Zach Galifianakis

Chiara Simone Spirit Prefect

Dream job

Dermatologist with my own line of products, or another career in the medical/health sciences

Favourite HSC lunch Chicken Burgers

Currently reading

The Handmaid’s Tale by Margaret Atwood

I’d love to have dinner with... Emma Watson

SPRING 2020

Top Honours

HSC Lifers 2019 Front row left to right · Ashvin Moro

Centre row left to right · Jace Ellis · Matthew Grace · Michael Timmer · Hannah Boucher · Maja Barrett · Jessika Heddle · Mehar Soni · Anna Spencer · Sophia Richardson

Back row left to right · Samuel Guilbeault (lower) · Mateo Larrazabal · Cole Hynes · Keaton Harber · Mo Mochner · Maya Oster · Joshua Kemp · Alexandra Reinhardt · Daniel Doble · Maya Gaind

Photo by Wandering Eye Photography

· Justin Semelhago · Daphne Hammond · Lauren DiLoreto · Hannah Clanachan · Alexandra Kolios · Meghan Mitchell

Every year as we celebrate the graduating class at HSC, we say goodbye to a group of students we know as “Lifers”. These students joined the College at the start of their education and have been part of the HSC community throughout their school years.

HSC REVIEW

Passages

Lives Lived

HARRIET HILTON SPRAGUE ’37, avid bridge player, enthusiastic opera fan, intrepid world traveller; lifelong Hamilton resident whose greatest love was Pointing Pines, the family cottage in Muskoka where “over decades, family, friends, pets, and chipmunks enjoyed her generous spirit and gracious hospitality,” according to her family; wife, mother, grandmother, great-grandmother. On November 15, 2019, at 99. ANNE LOUISE MCDOUGALL (NÉE FINCH) ’48, strong-willed Hamilton native with a dry sense of humour, known for service to those with special needs though Famous People Players, Wheelchair Tennis, and Guide Dogs for the Blind; skilled organizer who ran many campaigns for P.C. candidates; founded a 20-year University of Ottawa scholarship program for Polish master of law students, in her late husband Barry’s name, for which she received the Knight’s Cross of the Order of Merit of the Republic of Poland; wife, mother, grandmother. On May 6, 2019, at 88. W. MICHAEL MCCLEMONT ’48, strong athlete who became a revered track and field coach in Sarnia, Ont., while working at the Shell refinery; excelled in track, cross country, hockey, football and cricket at Hillfield School in the 1940s; played junior football in Edmonton and later ice hockey as well as becoming a longdistance runner; considered an innovative coach for the Sarnia Track & Field Club, training athletes year-round and spurring several to earn NCAA scholarships; an environmentalist as early as the 1950s; wrote short stories and poems; husband, father, grandfather. On October 16, 2019, at 87. WILLIAM DOUGLAS LIONEL GRAHAM ’51, successful investment dealer, lover of the Canadian Horse and member of the Hamilton TigerCats, 1953-60, who played on two Grey Cup championship teams; see profile, page 22. On January 2, 2020, at 84. JOHN ROXBURGH SMITH ’56, former Ontario minister of correctional services (1975-77) and of government services (1977), Conservative MPP for Hamilton Mountain 1967-1977, Hamilton alderman in the 1960s; sat on the Immigration Refugee Board of Canada for four years; with friends founded The Mountain Fund

To Help The Boat People during the late 1970s exodus, a charity that brought hundreds of Vietnamese men, women and children to Canada over a period of 14 years; ordained later in life into the Reformed Episcopal Church (Anglican) and served as rector of St. George’s Hamilton for 10 years, remaining as archdeacon; husband, father, grandfather. On December 6, 2018, at 82. DR. JOSEPH NICHOLAS (MICKEY) SOLE ’56, owner and operator of Victoria Gardens Long Term Care in Hamilton for nearly 50 years with his late wife Rosslyn; husband, father, grandfather. On November 27, 2018, at 80. BARRY SCOT SANDERSON ’63, husband of Linda (née Jackson) ’65, father, grandfather. On January 23, 2019, at 73. PETER A. TINSLEY ’69, retired lieutenant-colonel in the Canadian Armed Forces and international war crimes prosecutor; served in Canada and overseas in the Office of the Judge Advocate General during his 28-year military career; appointed director of Ontario’s Special Investigations Unit for five years after retirement; went on to become war crimes prosecutor with the United Nations in Kosovo and international prosecutor in the Special War Crimes Department of the new State Court of Bosnia and Herzegovina; on his return to Canada in 2005, appointed chair of the federal Military Police Complaints Commission; ran as a federal Liberal candidate in 2011 in the then constituency of Prince Edward-Hastings; husband of Merry (née Grundy) ’69, father, grandfather. On April 26, 2019, at 68. MAIGEN ELIZABETH BUNDY (NÉE BLACK) ’89, speech language pathologist with a passion for helping her clients and people in her community; practised around southern Ontario, most recently at Peterboroughbased Five Counties Children’s Centre; sister of Drew Black ’89; wife, mother. On December 14, 2019, at 48. PETER (PETE) PALMER JR. ’99, Hamilton landscaper with a passion for the outdoors and anything to do with nature; son of Peter Palmer ’61 and former HSC governor Rose Marie Palmer; husband, father. On July 3, 2019, at 39. SPRING 2020

Giving

2019

–

2020

New Spaces to Play and Learn An update on HSC’s Playground Project initiative By Vanessa Lupton

HSC REVIEW

to develop and grow. The College’s recent Playground Project initiative has given these spaces a new kind of creativity, revitalizing and breathing new life into them. To date, the campus has seen the addition of the beautiful outdoor learning space for Early Education students, along with the creation of the outdoor Blacktop, which will allow for multi-sport use. During the fall of 2019, the naturalized outdoor play space was completed. It gives younger community members the chance to explore outside in a safe and creative way. Rich in natural features, it offers a wide range of age-appropriate activities to promote physical, cognitive, emotional and social development. Its welcoming design provides young students with a unique space to learn and have fun while encouraging group play and collaboration. Senior School students have enjoyed the first stage of the Playground Project with the newly designed Blacktop. Stemming from the need to expend extra energy and release academic stress, the Blacktop is a dedicated space to play court games and road hockey, and includes a multi-purpose volleyball and basketball surface and enhanced jump pits. It will provide much-needed space relief for senior Health and Physical Education classes. Students were invited to give their input during the planning of the project, creating a greater sense of ownership and allowing for a more personalized learning experience. With the Blacktop down, the painting of the court lines will be the final step in creating this much-needed and appreciated outdoor learning area. These outdoor spaces could not have been created without the generosity of our donors. Each of them deserves the thanks of the entire community for investing in our students’ play and outdoor learning.

Photos by William Vipond Tait

Giving

THE PLAYGROUNDS AT HSC HAVE SERVED AS MARVELLOUS LEARNING SPACES FOR DECADES, and have helped many thousands of alumni

Giving MONTESSORI SCHOOL

A welcoming design

JUNIOR SCHOOL Offering a range of activities

SPRING 2020

By the Numbers

Where the Grads Are

Canada The Breakdown 17 12 11 10 8 6

Western University University of Toronto University of Guelph Queenâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s University University of Waterloo McMaster University

5 5 3 3 2 2

McGill University Wilfrid Laurier University Brock University Sheridan College Ryerson University University of Ottawa

1 1 1 1 1

Carleton University Dalhousie University University of British Columbia University of Victoria Gap Year

The Class of 2019 has gone on to study at top institutions in North America and the world

Majors Business & Commerce

5 2 2 2 1 1

Commerce Sports Management Business Business Administration Advertising & Marketing Communications Management 1 Media, Information & Technoculture

Their New Worlds

1 1 1 1 1 1

Public Administration Knowledge Integration User Experience Design Marketing Management Management Management & Organizational Studies 1 Accounting

Sciences 6 5 3 3 2 1 1

BC NS

8 3 2 2

USA

Medical Science Science Life Science Health Science Nursing Direct Entry Medicine Kinesiology

1 Kinesiology & Physical Education 1 Human Kinetics 1 Bio-Medical Sciences 1 Direct Entry Dentistry 1 Biopharmeceutical Sciences

Technology Studies

Engineering Engineering Science Mechanical Engineering Software Engineering

1 Systems Design Engineering 1 Computer Engineering 1 Computer Science

Creative Studies

United Kingdom

United Hong Kong 1 States

2 1 52

1 1

University of Edinburgh University of St. Andrews

HK University of Science and Technology |

HSC REVIEW

1 1

University of Detroit Mercy Northwestern University

12 Arts 1 Film & Television 1 Creative Writing & Publishing

1 Arts and Science 1 Media Production 1 Music

Liberal Studies

5 Social Sciences 1 Criminology 1 Humanities

1 Criminal Justice & Public Policy 1 Political Science

TITLE SPONSOR

Tuesday, June 23, 2020 Dundas Valley Golf and Curling Club www.hsc.on.ca/golf

THANK YOU TO OUR 2019 SPONSORS:

TITLE SPONSOR

YOUNG ALUMNI FOURSOME SPONSOR

COCKTAIL RECEPTION SPONSORS

Judith King-Siganski ’62

RETIRED FACULTY BREAKFAST AND FOURSOME SPONSOR

Herb Wodehouse ’71

MULLIGAN SPONSOR

Pearson Dunn Insurance PUTTING GREEN SPONSOR

Waterdown Collision DRIVING RANGE SPONSOR

TD Wealth Financial Planning AWARDS SPONSOR

REGISTRATION AND LUNCH SPONSOR

GIFT SPONSOR

HOLE-IN-ONE CONTEST SPONSOR

Cooper Construction - William Cooper ’57 HOLE SPONSORS Bryan and Hedden Financial Global Fuels Inc. Capo Industries MNP Clearcable Connects Radius Core Urban Inc. Strathallan Old Girls

HSCReview The magazine for the Hillfield Strathallan College community

Take part in a full day of events and celebrations for all members of the HSC community, your families and guests. It’s time to reconnect Take part in a full day of events and celebrations all and reminisce as we honourfor those members of the HSC community, your in family guests. classes ending ‘4 andand ‘9, in It’s time to reconnect and as we Hall addition to reminisce the 2018 Athletic of Fame honourees. honour our classes ending in ’5 and ’0.

nn Student and Alumni Athletic andand House Games Student and Alumni Athletic House Games n Complimentary

Pancake n Showcase of the Arts Breakfast and

Barbecue Lunch catered by The BBQ Gourmet Breakfast and Barbecue Lunch Fun catered 1KM & 5KM Family Run by The BBQ Gourmet

Complimentary nn Hektor’s Home RunPancake -

nn Parents of Alumni CafeTournament HSC Community Tennis n Student

Visual Arts Exhibit n Pine/Yre Student Council Charity Car Wash

n Pine/Yre

Student Charity CarFun Wash n Hektor’s Home Council Run 1KM & 3KM+ Run

n Campus

Store Zone Activities Vendor VillageOpen House nn Early Education nn Parents’ Guild Kids Trojan Hospitality ZoneZone

n HSC Community Tennis Tournament

n Kids

n Vendor

Village andled Minute to Win It Tables n Campus Tours by Admissions

n Campus Tours led by Admissions & Student Ambassadors

& Student Ambassadors n Athletic Hall of Fame Ceremony followed by n Reunions Mixer Reunions Mixer n Slo Pitch Game

905.389.1367, ext.of117 Photo gallery last

galleries.hsc.on.ca/homecomingconcert alumni@hsc.on.ca year’s event! galleries.hsc.on.ca/homecoming2018 galleries.hsc.on.ca/homecomingarts

Spring 2019

Photo galleries of last year’s event!

For Officer Formore moreinformation, information,please pleasecontact: contact:Bianca Barton ’03, Alumni Relations galleries.hsc.on.ca/homecoming galleries.hsc.on.ca/homecomingreunion Bianca Barton ’03, Alumni Relations Officer 905.389.1367, ext. 117 alumni@hsc.on.ca

The Game Changer

Tiger-Cats owner Bob Young ’72 has had a wild ride in business and sport

The magazine for the Hillfield Strathallan College community

Spring 2019

HSC Review 2020

Articles inside

Inside and Out

A Man for all Seasons

Star of the Court

Turning Gold Green

True Grit