Guelph The Portico Magazine, Fall 2007 by University of Guelph

An Alumni Success Story

Emily and Rob know they can't predict their future. But they know how to protect it. Emily and Rob know there are no guarantees in life. They make the best financial decisions they can for their future and accept that some things are out of their control. The future security of their family isn't one ofthose things. That's why Emily and Rob invested in their Alumni Insurance Plans- the ones that support their alma mater. They benefit from the low rates and the security of knowing that help will be there, just in case it's ever needed. After all, the future is too important to be left to chance. Term Life Insurance

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To find out more about these Alumni Insurance Plans that support the University of Guelph, visit the Web site designed exclusively for University of Guelph alumni at:

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the portico ,.

Fall 2007

president's page â&#x20AC;˘ passages -

35 â&#x20AC;˘ grad news -

-8in and around the university

reat thinkers congregate at the University of Guelph to discuss Canada's role as a global citizen, develop Ontario's bioeconomy, advocate for better child care, conduct cancer research and challenge consumer attitudes about garbage disposal and air pollution,

cover story

GOT AN IDEA? U of G is an incubator for ideas, a testing ground and a place for discussion and brainstorming. This feature presents some of the Guelph ideas that attracted attention over the summer.

I6 WHO WOULDN'T WANT A JOB LIKE THIS? on the cover Master's graduate Tayler Murphy demonstrates a patented armrest designed to protect heavy-equipment operators from repetitivestrain injuries. PHOTO BY MARTIN SCHWALBE

Profiles of creative and entrepreneurial Guelph grads who have cleared their own career path and reap the rewards of doing work they love.

UGAA REACHES OUT The University of Guelph Alumni Association launches a new affinity program that will benefit alumni and student programs.

alumni matters

uelph alumni speak out and get involved in University life, charitable organizations and Canada's technology industry. The campus prepares for Homecoming by playing football, celebrating athletic achievements and launching a new studentorganized film and music festival.

In times of limited resources, conflicting demands, and rapid cultural and technological change, organizations need skilled leaders and managers. The University of Guelph's MBA and MA (Leadership) offer unique solutions tailored to your personal leadership development.

Fall 2007

â&#x20AC;˘VOLUME

39 ISSUE 3

Editor Mary Dicki eson Director Charles Cunningham Art Direction Peter Enneso n D esign Inc. Contributors Barbara C hance, BA '74 Rachelle Cooper David DiCenzo Deirdre H ealey, BA '01 Lori Bona Hunt Heather Ives, B.A.Sc. '04 Rebecca Kendall, BA '99 SPARK Program Writers Andrew Vowles, B.Sc. '84 Advertising Inquiries Scott Anderson 519-827-9169

Make another educated choice ... Bring your colleagues home

Direct all other correspo11dmce to: Communications and Public Affairs University of Guelph Guelph, Ontario, Canada N1G 2W1 E-mail m.dickieson@exec. uoguelph.ca www.uoguelph.ca/ th eportico/ The Portico magazine is published three times a year by Communications and Public Affairs at the Un iversity of Guelph. Its mission is to enhance the relationship between th e Un iversity and its alu mni and fr iends and promote pride and commitment within the University com munity. All material is copyright 2007. Id eas and opinions expressed in the articles do not necessarily reflect the ideas or opinions of the Universiry or the editors. Publications Mail Agreement# 40064673

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lSSN 1714-8731

To update your alumni record, contact: Alu m ni Affairs and Development Phon e 519-824-4120, Ext. 56550 Fax 519-822-2670 E-mai l alumnirecords@uoguelph.ca

THE PORTICO

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be true, but there is a centuriesold story about the Greek mathematician Archimedes, who thought up a brilliant idea while taking a bath. Water di splacement. Archimedes was struggling with the problem of how to verify the authenticity of a gold crown when he suddenly realized that he could calculate the volume of the crown by measuring the volume of water it displaces. H e could then divide the object's weight by its volume to calculate its density, an important indicator of purity. Archimedes was so excited by his discovery that he jumped from the bath and ran naked through the stree t shouting "Eureka I" - translated to " I have found it!" We don't all know what it's like to have one of those "Eureka" moments, but we do know that Archimedes earned that flash of insight through years of hard work and study. N eurological studies since the time of Archimedes have shown that intuition forms in a specific region of the brain's right hemisphere that is fed by information along neural pathways coming from the left brain, which we now know is the storehouse of logical thinkin g and ac cumulated knowledge.The more you challenge your brain, the more connections you will make along those neural pathways, and the more likely such "Eureka" moments will be. In other words, new ideas come to us only because we already have knowledge about th e topic or problem we are thinking about. It follows , that, the more we know, the more ideas we will have. No doubt the right-brain thinkers among you are already relating this analogy to post-secondary ed ucation and why we should encourage young people to pursue university and college programs. We need their ideas. From a University of Guelph perspective, our challenge is not only to edu cate individual students but also to make connections between scholars. For the past 12 yea rs , we have actively pursued collaboration as a strategic direction of this institution. First and foremost, collaboration on campus - within and between disciplines. We have lea rned that we are able to achi eve mu ch more by sharing our knowledge. It's not a coincidence, for exa mpl e, that U of G researchers attract more health resea rch fundin g than any other Canadian university without a medical school. Our expertise in the life sciences encompasses the whole campus and touches many aspects of human health, from emerging diseases to nutrition, food safety, nanotechnology, environmental issues, and human relationships. The list goes on because the connections are well-established among our various colleges and disciplines and T MAY OR MAY NOT

because we have encouraged research relationships with colleagues around the world. Such collaboration is not an end in itself but acts to stimulate intellectu al ideas. Althou gh G uelph resea rchers and sc h o lars have refrain ed from running naked through the stree ts, we have recently celebrated a number of new ideas - you'll read about som e th em in this issue ofThe Portico- and we're moving ahead with collaborative initiatives aimed at generating ideas for cancer treatm ent, sustainable comm erce, and bioproducts that will reduce our relian ce on the wo rld 's petroleum- based reso urces . To be successful in the 21st century, all universities must be more fl exible, more effi cient and more intensely interactive than in the past. Back in 1995, U of G's strategic plan referred to this stra tegy as th e " scholarship of integra tion" - includin g links amo n g th e sciences, the social sciences and the humani ties . It's a strategy that is producing positive resu lts and generatin g great ideas in all corners of the Uni ve rsity w hile ensurin g our students und ersta nd the increasing complexity and interconnectedness of the problems th ey w ill be asked to solve as Guelph graduates . ALASTAIR SUMME RL EE

PRESIDENT

Fall 2007 3

people • research • highlights

1n &a o Biothinker recruited to U of G

A DROP of sunflower or canola oil, add wheat straw and, presto, you've got a rigid building block. Well, it's not quite that simple, but we're AKE

certainly on the cusp of discoveries that will help us build more and more consumer products from agricultural crops. That's the word from Prof. Amar Mohanty, an international leader in biomaterials and a new recruit to U of G 's faculty. He'll be moving to Guelph this fall from Michigan State University to take up a new Premier's Research Chair in Biomaterials and Transportation. The Ontario Research Chairs program was established to create a culture of innovation and to strengthen the province's economic advantage. Mohanty's research focuses on developing biobased materials and biofuels, which he calls "the wave of the future ," to provide sustainable alternatives to

petroleum-based resources. He has four U.S. patents and more than 20 patent applications pending. Mohanty says his ultimate goal is to facilitate a transition to a biobased economy by providing a foundation of economic and environmental sustainability for the materials industries, especially the automotive industry. He will also serve as director of Guelph's new Bioproducts Discovery Centre, a f.1cility that will be the hub of the University's bioproducts research. He will be joined at Guelph by his spouse, Manju Misra, a professor in Michigan State's Composite Materials and Structures Ce ntre who has stro ng expertise 111 nanotechnology and biobased materials research. She will hold a cross-appointment in U ofG's School ofEngineering and Ontario Agricultural College.

President's dialogue a huge

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3 President's Dialogue on Canada's role as a global citizen drew an audience of 600 University and community members. Canada's role in peacekeeping, global hunger and global warming were some of the topics discussed by the seven distinguished panellists, most of whom received honorary degrees during summer convocation: • Sally Armstrong, a journalist, filmmaker and human rights activist. • Lloyd Axworthy, president of the University ofWinnipeg and a former Canadian foreign minister. • Louise Frechette, the first deputy secretary-general of the United Nations.

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THE PORTI CO

• Peter Hannam, a leader in Canadian agriculture. • Craig Kielburger, who founded Free the Children. • Paul Rusesabag ina, who sheltered more than 1,200 people in the Rwandan hotel he managed during the Rwandan genocide. • Pamela Wallin, a journalist, diplomat and U of G chancellor. This was the second annual President's Dialogue, an initiative started by U of G president Alastair Summerlee to engage the public in stimulating discussions about issues of contemporary importance. To view it onli ne, visit www. uoguelph.ca/ president/ dialogue.

From left: Paul Rusesabagina, Alastair Summerlee, Craig Kielburger and Louise Frechette.

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DRIVE CLEAN TOO COSTLY

rot. John Uvernois and PhD student Arian Khaleghi Moghadam

of the Department of Economics say Ontario's Drive Clean Program could

achieve a similar emission reduction and save taxpayers millions of dollars by targeting only older cars. The Guelph research ers are the first to evaluate the cost-effectiveness of the provincial program, which currently costs drivers $131 million a year. They found that fewe r than 10 per

cent of vehicles actually fail the test.

from my recycling bin, and I wanted them to be alive;' says artist Nicole Vogelzang, a master's student in the School of Fine Art and Music whose show "Landfill" runs until Oct. 7 at the M acdo nald Stewart Art Ce ntre. " Landfill" is filled with characters created using rescued items such as plastic disposable cups, tin cans and Styrofoam . Vogelzang says the motive behind her work is to provoke discussion about society's attitudes abo ut co nsumerism and the value it places on the seemingly inanimate obj ec ts she brings to life on woo d, panel or board in her paintings. " I've always believed that artwork is a site for imagi nation and contemplation," she says, "and it's an invitation to engage with possibility that otherwise wouldn't exist." LOOK ED AT OB JEC TS

Her paintings have been included in close to 20 group shows in New York, Toronto, London and Newfoundland. To many in the art world, she is known as the "gummy bear girl" because of earli er gummy b ea r portraits that were mounted in her first solo show in 2003. Vogelzang, whose great-grandmother has been sending her packages of gummy bears from Germany for many years, says she grew to appreciate the humanlike charac teristics and qualities of the candies and the way they refl ec t light and shadow. From the gummi es, she moved on to common items like marbles, wooden clips and small toys to express her ideas. A graduate of the Ontario College of Art and Design, she was awarded the Shuebrook Graduate Scholarship from Guelph's College of Arts earlier this year.

"A lot of people have the experience of having their car tested and passing," says Uvernois. "That means they are expending resources and getting nothing in terms of pollution reduction. We're not saying to tolerate more pollution, but th is is a very expensive way of reducing it." He and Moghadam found the province can achieve 70 per cent of emission reduction at one-fifth the cost if it limits testing to vehicles between six and 15 years old. Under the current program, vehicles between five and 12 years of age must undergo the test every two years, and vehicles older than 12 must be tested annually. Relaxing the req uirements wou ld lead to cost savings that could be allocated to a more effective pollutionreduction program, Uvernois says .

Fall 2007 5

SUNDANCe MELISSA VICTOR received a newly minted SUNDANCe bursary this spring. The award is named after the Shared Universities Native Development and Navigation Committee, which is supported by the universities of Guelph and Waterloo and Wilfrid Laurier. An aboriginal student from each campus was recognized for significant contributions to student life and activities that preserve aboriginal culture.

Student lands water award QI (TINA) SHA, a master's student in the School of Engineering, has received a $40,000 scholarship to study how climate a: change may affect Ontario's water resources. w j She's the second U of G student to CS: receive the two-year award from the Con~ suiting Engineers of Ontario. Sarah Watts, B.Sc.(Eng.) '04, received the award in its ~ inaugural year in 2004. ~ This year's funding will allow Sha and ~ faculty in the Guelph Watershed Research G Group to study the impact of climate change (fJ ~ on groundwater and surface water. They will ~ then make recommendations for munici~ palities, conservation authorities and engi~ neers to mitigate adverse effects. The work is also intended to help project the effects iJ: of municipal growth on infrastructure needs.

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6 THE PORTICO

Cancer institute unites researchers

ROFS. Brenda Coomber,Biomedical Sciences, and Paul Woods, Clinical Studies, are co-directors of a new Institute for Comparative Cancer Investigation at U of G that will provide comprehensive cancer care for companion animals and conduct cancer research for the benefit of all species, including humans. "While in general our pets are living longer, healthier lives, as they get older they are also prone to cancer -just like people," says Woods. "Dogs, in particular, develop many of the same types of cancers that we find in people. So by studying dogs with cancer, we can help fight and perhaps even

prevent the disease in humans while improving care for the animals." Cancer treatments currently account for about one-third of the visits to the Ontario Veterinary College small-animal clinic. Establishing the institute will involve building a world-class facility within the OVC Teaching Hospital and collaborative research among at least a dozen departments in OVC and other colleges. Guelph investigators will be studying all aspects of the disease, including abnorma l cells and tissues at the molecular level, applied clinical care, cancer nutrition and prevention, environmental factors and societal impacts.

NOTEWORTHY • U of G chancellor Pamela Wallin has been named to the Order of Canada for her contributions in communications. Her career has included numerous positions at CBC and CTV She completed a term as consul general of Canada in New York and is currently senior adviser to the president of the Americas Society and the Council of the Americas. • Trans-fat-free margarine developed by U of G food scientist Alejandro

Marangoni will go into commercial Prof. Chris Whitfield joins 23 other U of G faculty named to the Royal Society.

production this fall at a new Guelph company called CoaGel , a part-

One of Canada's best

nership between Marangoni, PhD '90, and Steve Bernet, B.Sc. '80, a sales specialist with a background

ROF. CHRIS WHITFIELD, chair of the Department of Molecular and Cellular Biology, has been elected a Fellow of the Royal Society of Canada. The Royal Society is the country's oldest and most prestigious scholarly organization, and scholars selected for fellowship are those the society believes have had a profound impact on sciences and humanities in Canada. "Although this award recognizes the individual, now more than ever, science is a team sport," says Whitfield. "I have been fortunate to have supervised some outstanding students and post-docs, and we have benefited from an excellent network of collaborators and colleagues here and overseas. Each of them has made an important contribution to the

body of work that has led to this fellowship, and I am grateful to them all." Whitfield's research focuses on the nature and assembly of bacterial surfaces. He is interested in fundamental research problems concerning the functions of bacteria, as well as exploiting this knowledge to identifY new targets for therapies against bacterial infections. Whitfield joined the University's Department of Microbiology in 1984. He has held a CIHR Senior Investigator Award and was awarded one of the University's first Canada Research Chairs in 2001. He has also received the CMS/Roche Award from the Canadian Society of Microbiologists and last year was elected a Fellow of the American Academy of Microbiology.

in chemistry.

• Wendy Mesley, a two-time Gemini Award-winning reporter and co-host of CBC's Marketplace, received an honorary degree from the University of Guelph-Humber on June 18.

• Rob Mclaughlin, B.Sc.(Agr.) '69 and PhD '77, has been seconded from his position as U of G's associate vice-president (research) agrifood and partnerships to serve fulltime as chair and president of the Royal Agricultural Winter Fair in Toronto. He has been balancing both jobs for the past year. • The

University

Guelph

Kemptville Campus has launched an equine major as part of a four-year bachelor of bioresource management degree program starting this fall. The

Good news for families

program's 25 introductory seats are the recent announcement of an additional $142.5 million in child-care funding as part of Ontario's Best Start plan.

already booked, and applications are being taken for 2008. • The Ontario Government has

Prof. Donna Lero of the Department of

Lero, who is a lead researcher at

awarded $390,000 to Universite de

Family Relations and Applied Nutrition

Guelph's Centre for Families, Work and

Guelph- Campus d'Aifred as

chairs a provincial advisory panel that has

Well-Being, says the funding includes a

flart of its 2007 funding for French-

recommended access to training, setting

$12-million commitment to create a Col-

language post-secondary educa-

professional standards and increasing

lege for Early Childhood Educators in

tion A 35-per-cent boost from last

wages for early childhood education work-

Canada that will set professional stan-

year, the additional funding wi ll be

ers as essential requirements for improv-

dards to help ensure that children in ear-

used to support the development of

ing Ontario's early learning and child-care

ly learning and care programs are being

new programs in environmental sci-

system. Those recommendations fed into

cared for by qualified professionals.

ences and technology.

Fall 2007 7

y favourite American novelist dropped out of Stanford University, but he must have spent enough time there to realize that universities are the perfect breeding ground for ideas. Just as Steinbeck suggests, all ideas are the offspring of existing ones, and the more you mix it up in the nest, the more productive you become. At the University of Guelph, we call this collaboration. That's an umbrella word we use to describe the way our faculty work with each other and with our staff and graduate students. It's the conversation that happens when a student drops into a professor's office or corners a teaching assistant to ask a burning question. It's the research institute that brings together people from many disciplines to solve a critical problem. And it's the sharing of new research in the classroom, where students build the perceptions that will enable them to conceptualize their own ideas. The University of Guelph is a place where ideas run rampant. Looking back just six months or so, I have picked out some homegrown ideas that showcase a variety of thinkers who are sure to have an impact on our future. MARY 0/CK/ESON, EDITOR

ere's an idea from Guelph engineers - an armrest that m oves with your arm to reduce repetitive strain injuries . Tests show the provisionally patented arm rest re du ces muscle activity in th e neck by more than 60 per cent compared w ith typical armrests, says Prof. Michele O liver. She leads a project aimed at reducing injuries in heavy-machinery opera-

tors, but says the armrest design is flexible enough to be used w ith almost anything that has a seat. "It's simple, cheap and relatively robust, so its potential uses are broad;' says Oliver, who presented the idea o f using the armrests on powered wh eelchairs this summ er at the Canadian M edi cal and Biological Engineers C onference. H eavy-machinery operators have high

rates of repetitive strain injuries. A joystick operator's limbs can go through 20 ,000 motions in a typical 10-hour workday, and the neck muscles never get a chance to rest. Over time, these small but constant move1nents can cause severe injury to the upper trapezius muscle and acute pain in the neck, shoulder and back. Oliver says stationary armrests don 't provide enough support for joystick users beca use the arm is left floating when it moves forward and the shoulder is forced to rise when the arm moves backwards. She began working on this problem when she was in graduate school, and now she and her own graduate student, Taylor Murphy, M.Sc. '06, have patented th eir design for a moveable armres t that mimics th e natural motion of th e arm during joystick operations. The armrest

moves with th e arm vertically and horizontally, relieving the shoulder from constantly stabilizing the arm and preventing strain on the neck muscles . "Simple solutions are the most elegant, and this is a solution that will apply to any environment where a person is operating a co ntrol ," says Oliver, who hopes the armrest will ultimately sell for about $300. She recently received an Idea to Innova tion grant of $122,000 from the Natural Sciences and Engineering R esea rch Council to help move th e design from th e laboratory to the commercial market. She and Murphy will begin field testing a refined prototype thi s fall and predict that their dyna mic armrests could be implemented in hundreds of thou sa nds of work environments as early as 2010.

sing feathers from museum collections all over North America, integ rative biology professo r R yan Norris has tested a new hypothesis about what led to population declin e in a species of seabirds in Canada. Norris conducted a historical analysis of museum specimens of marbled murrelets going back more than a century to exa mine how dietary changes may have affected the sea birds' numbers. "One of the bigges t unknowns for endangered or threaten ed species is how their populations fluctuat ed naturally before human disturbances," he says. "But there are millions of specimens in museums across the country, many of which were collected before habitats started to decline, and that can give you really important baseline information." Working with Peter Arcese of the University ofBritish Columbia's department of forest sciences, Norris visited dozens of museums, collecting feathers from marbled murrelets gathered from the Georgia Strait- the waters between Vancouver Island and British Columbia's mainland. The seabirds spend more than 90 per ce nt of their time on th e sea, but they

travel up to 100 kilometres inland to nest in old-growth forests. The species nunl.bers have been dwindling in Canada over the past 100 yea rs, a drop that scientists previously attributed to a loss of coastal old-growth forests. Norris decided to exa min e how marine di et over the last century might have influenced the birds' populations by analyzing their feathers. In a previous study, he and colleagues at Queen's University and the Snlithsonian Institution were able to determine that the food birds ea t can affect the chemical composition and colour of their feathers . Because stable carbon and stable nitrogen isotopes are chenlical signatures that become fi.;xed into the murrelets' feathers as they grow, Norris 's isotope analysis showed that, prior to 1900, the birds were feeding mostly on fish. But by the 1970s, ' 80s and '90s, their di et consisted of marine invertebrates, which are much less energetically rich than fish . " Murrelets have to ca tch around 80 to 100 marin e invertebrates to get the sa me nutritional value as in one forage fish," he says. The res earc hers concluded that the

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seabirds' population changes in Canada after 1950 were probably influ enced by a decline in the amount offish in their diet. " Instead of spending all their tim e and money on th e murrele t's nes ting hab itat, conservationists and m anagers

may have to take a step back," says Norris. " If we keep pouring all of our m oney into the current plan, it's possible this amazing seabird will continue to decline anyway."

and the poet is the diagnostician compe!Jed to observe and analyze this condition." A professor in U of G 's Department of English and Theatre Studies, Trinidadborn Brand becam e prominent first as an award-winning poet, but has also achi eved great distinction and acclaim in fi cti on, non-fiction and film. H er most rece nt nove l, What We A ll Long For, won both the 2006 Toronto Book Award and the H arbo urfront Festival Prize. She is the author of eight volumes of poetry, including Land to Light On, which wo n a Gove rnor Ge neral's Award for Poetry and the Trillium Award for Literature, and thirsty, w hi ch wo n th e Pat Lowther Award for poetry. Providing a balance for the challenging ideas presented in Inventory, which was nominated for a Governor General 's Award , Brand also published in 2006 her first book of poetry for children. Earth Magic draws on m emories from her Caribbea n childho od.

rof.Di onne Brand's most recent book, Inventory, is actually a long poem that ta!Ji es for the reader all the human and ea rthl y conditions that western civilization must take responsibility for in the 21st ce ntury.War, violence in the streets, rar11pant consumerism , environmenta l and cultural degrad ation the list goes on and on until th e inventory is complete. Literary critics have praised Brand's seve n-part poem for its craft and engaging use oflanguage. They also warn that it will awaken yo ur conscience. " In ventory is not a collec tion th at is easy to grapple with and read as a citizen of the world Brand is attempting to o: describe," says New Brunswick poet Jenn ~ Houle. " It is mercilessly realisti c." ~ Manitoba professo r and critic Diana ~ Brydon writes:"This is a poem that co no veys the emotional impact of globalization >OJ as an intensely intimate eA:perience.To read 0 b it is harrowing .. .. Our civilizati on is sick, I

of G's bar-coding proj ec t now has a building to call its own. The Biodiversity Institute of Ontario (BIO) is the world's first centre for highvolume DNA bar-coding. Inside the $4.2-million facility, researchers are working on creating a complete inventory of the world's species using tissue samples. A short DNA sequence from a gene found in aiJ multice!Jular organisms is malyzed and used to identifY the species. T he information is then entered into an online database of established DNA bar codes. It's anticipated that the ce ntre

w ill enter about 500,000 bar-code analyses a year once it is in full production. Integrative biology professor Paul H ebert was the first scientist to propose this form of species identifica tion , w hich has already led to the discovery of new species of birds, butterfli es and fishes . H e says th e technology ca n help reduce species identification time from days to a matter of minutes. Bar-coding technology will ultimately be introduced to public use for applications such as border control, pest managem ent, food safety and environmental monitoring.

Profs. Dionne Brand and Paul Hebert

hen contaminated pet food was identified in late April as th e probable cause of illn ess and death in pets in C anada and th e United States , it was U of G 's Laboratory Services unit that answered the question: How? Perry M arto s and colleagues in the Agriculture and Food Lab at Lab Services discovered th at chemical contaminants-

m elamin e and cya nuri c acid - fo und in th e pet food products ca n react w ith o ne anoth er to form crystals that may impair kidn ey function. Tests conducted at U o f G's Animal H ealth Lab and elsew here identified those crystalline substances in th e ki dneys and urin e of affected animals. T he Martos findin g is significa nt beca use neither substance o n its own is suffic iently toxic to cause dea th.

EAT LOCAL Jhe D epar011ent of Plant Agriculwre has I compiled a booklet oflOO-m.ile recipes - including baked trout, sweet potato soup and turnip apple pie- as a way of encouraging people to eat locally grow n food. With estimates of food travel for a typical m eal rangin g from 1,500 to 2,000 miles, it nukes sense to create meals from homegrown ingredients, says department chair Prof R ene Van Acker." Locally grown food is the next big thing, much larger than the draw towards organic fo od," he says. The cookbook I S ava ilabl e at www.plant. uogu elph.ca/ docum ents/100_ m.ile_recipe_cookbook.pdf.

BUY LOCAL esearchers in th e School o f Environm ental D esign and Rural Developm ent are beginnin g a on e-yea r stud y aim ed at breakin g down barriers standing in the way of establishin g a local food system . Prof Karen Landman says th e proj ect co uld ultimately lead to shoppers having th e conveni ence o f going to any local grocery chain and bu ying from a sec ti on d edi ca ted to foo d produ ced in G uelph and Wellington Coun ty. Not everyone can make th e weekl y trek to a farm ers' market, she says, so " bu ying local food products has to be made more conveni ent."

uelph economist D oug Auld is looking outside th e current edu cation system for a way of making th e move from high sc hool to post-secondary education more successful for deaf students. Just one per cent of stud ents w ho are deaf or hard of hearing go on to university or college after high school , and those who do often drop out after th e first year because they struggle to make th e transition, says Auld, an adjunct professor at U of G and retired president of Loyalist College. " The real challenge is th e transition from high sc hool and living with your

family to all of a sudd en living o n yo ur ow n and go in g to a unive rsity w ith 25 ,000 stud ents. It's to ugh for the ave rage student, so imagine what it's like for a student who is deaf or hard of hea rin g." In a report rece ntl y submitted to th e O ntario Ministry o f Training, Coll eges and Universiti es, he suggests th at th e province create a transitional in stitution w here stud ents with a hearin g di sa bility could spend a year taking post-seco ndary co urses and li vin g in residence be fo re attending university or college. Auld proposes th e province turn Sir Jam es Whitney School in Belleville into this

transitional school. It was established decades ago to provide primary, secondary and specialized ed uca tion for deaf and hard-ofhearing students before they became integrated into regular sc hool programs.The transitional school would provide co urses and offer co unselling and support to pre-

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pare students for university or college. " This is a radical approach ," he says. "But the current and past approaches have not worked as well as they should, and there is now a moral o bligatio n o n the part of Ontario to take bold act ion to assist th ese students."

classmates love nature

of G classmates and roommates Liv Monck- Whipp and Jessica Morrison, both B.Sc. '07, are doing their best to turn the Nintendo and Wii generation on to nature. Monck-Whipp has develope d a series of boa rd ga m es that teac h players about ecology and social insects . Morrison has written and illustrated nature

books featuring an inqui sitive hero ine called Liv Wylde. The games and books are both produced and marketed by Benchmark Publishing and Design Inc. in Windsor, Ont. The compa ny is ow ned by MonckWhipp's mother and markets the products und er the Blu e Green Dreams label at www.bluegreendreams.com.

rof. H eather Keller, Family R elations and Applied Nutrition, advises those w ho ca re for Alzheimer's patients to sit down together for a meal every day. She says mealtime is w h en people with dem enti a feel most connected to th eir family, even if they can't take part in th e dinner- table conversation. " It's the face-to- face contact yo u have w hen sitting at th e table together," says Keller, who compares it to the way young families often make time to eat together. Mealtime co nn ects people physically and psychologically, regardless of the ability of all family members to co nverse. "This is vital to people w ho are los-

ing cognitive interaction and th e ability to communicate," she says. "There's an exchange of support among dinner companions. During the meal, the person with dementia can give as well as receive physical, social and emotional support." These findings are the first part of a three-year study aimed at understanding the importance of mealtime in maintaining a cmm ection with someone who has dementia.The study involves interviewing some 30 famili es across southwestern Ontario. "Mealtime is a w indow into how a family functions," says Keller. " It's not about eating - it's abo ut takin g the time to sit down and have a m eal with som eone yo u care about."

s part of a first- yea r studio design course, 50 U of G landscape architecture stud ents analyzed plans for a multi-p urpo se site adjacent to th e C ity of G uelph 's new civic administration centre and presented their

designs at an open house in April. Prof. Maurice Nelischer, director of the School ofEnvironm.ental Design and Rural Development, says the designs resonated with both Guelph citizens and city council members, w ho saw that the space

could be more than a concrete plaza. Although the city isn 't likely to choose any one student's design, N elischer says council members have expressed a desire to create a civic precinct that refle cts the character in the student proj ects.

"The excitement and skills of the students playe d an important ro le in th e direc tion the city is now taking," he says, noting the trem endous value this type of service-learning project brings to students and th e communi ty alike.

uelph food scientist Ri ckey Yada loves potato chips munching, crunching and figuring out how to make a better chip. But like most potato chip fa ns, he doesn't like the ones that are brown and bitter. "Not many people like brown chips," saysYada, who e>..'Plains that cold temperatures needed for long-term storage of potatoes cause the starch in spuds to break down into smaller sugar molecules. It's the reaction between these sugars and the extreme heat of deep frying that causes browning. "The longer you refrigerate potatoes, the more starch converts to sugar to cause the browning," saysYada, who has an idea that may prevent brown chips.

H e and a tea m of resea rchers in th e departments of Food Science and Plant Agriculture have discovered an enzy me in a particular potato vari ety that prevents chips m ad e from cold-s to red potatoes fro m brow nin g. T hey identified the enzyme pyruvate decarboxylase in a potato from N orth Da kota. Introducing th e ge ne fo r th e enzyme into local potato va ri eti es w ill enabl e Ontario produ cers to store them at a lower temp erature, p roviding a yea r-rou nd supply for chip produ cti o n witho ut the hi gh perce ntage o f brow ning, says Ya da. Thi s would be a big plus not o nly fo r the avid chip eater but also fo r the province's $26.8-million chip industry, he says.

he lives of millions of animals used in research around the world including tho se us ed to study a host of human and animal diseases - are set to improve, thanks to a new $25 ,000 US award received by Prof. Patricia Turner of the Department ofPathobiology. Turner was named the inaugural recipient of the 2007 Animal Welfare Award of the Humane Society of the United States and Procter & Gamble. She will use the award to broaden distance lea rning progranls for lab animal veterinarians abroad. More intensive use o f lab animals for research in industry, government and universities means rising demand for vets able to look after the animals and promote th eir welfare, she says. Turner plans to extend a novel distance education certificate progran1 in lab animal medicine that she spearheaded and devel-

oped with C anadian colleagues for veterinari ans in 2004. It combines web-based lea rning and applied skills training at regional training sites across Canada. Now she and a group of U .S. colleagu es plan to offer distance education in lab animal medicine to America n veterinarians, beginning this fa ll . She w ill use her award to help implement that program and to introdu ce distance ed uca ti on to parts of South America and Southeast Asia. "We know th e research market in Asia is expanding exponenti ally," says Turner, "a nd app ropriately trained ve terin ary prac titioners pl ay an important rol e in advising researchers on animal use. " A gradu ate o f G uelph 's DVM and D.VSc. progranlS, she manages the can1pus diagnostic lab animal pathology service for U of G researchers and is program leader for th e D.VSc. program.

Artist uts her foot down his was the fourth sunm1er for fine art professor Sandra Rechico's annual ritual of documenting everywhere she goes in Toronto, the city she's called home for the past 20 years. It's all part of a unique art project she began in 2003, drawing massive maps of Toronto. Between two and nine metres long, the maps detail wherever her feet, her bicycle and sometimes cars take her. She lays down tape on the route she

has taken and marks destinations with colour-coded map pins. Using tape allows repeated travel to build up on the map, so there's also a sculptural presence in the drawing, she says. Rechico insists there is no metaphor in her artwork paralleling decisions we make in life about where we go, how we get there and where we want to be. She says she simply likes maps and uses them to turn her footsteps into works of art.

niversity of Guelph students are helping to fund a $650,000 stateof-the-art lodging house that combines accessibility and green technology. The 12-person home, located just metres from campus, was retrofitted this summer in an eco-friendly way for students with physical disabilities. "This house is at the forefront in its use of green technology," says Tom Klein Beernink, housing manager of the Guelph Campus Co-operative, which partnered with the Central Student Association's Affordable Housing Initiative and other stakeholders to retrofit the home. In 2003, undergraduate students voted to donate 87 cents each semester to help create more accessible housing for

students. This is the first project to be funded through these donations. Although there is accessible housing on campus, off-campus options for students with disabilities are primarily one- or twobedroom apartments located a fair distance from the University, says Klein Beernink. The house at 7 College Ave. is now completely accessible for students with mobility challenges and visual impairments. The building has also been outfitted with energy-efficient appliances and lighting. A grey-water infrastructure allows water to be recycled (water from a shower can be used to flush a toilet, for example). The house also collects rainwater to flush toilets, sports a green roof and uses solar panels to heat water.

ore than a decade ago, Peter Hannam, BSA '62, had an idea for a competition to encourage U of G students to develop new products made from soybeans . Project SOY was born, and almost 200 ideas later, students are still taking up the challenge. The 11th annual event held this spring showcased 12 projects by 35 students from the University's Guelph, Alfred, Kemptville and Ridgetown campuses. Their ideas ranged from soy food products and fash-

ion accessories to biodegradable utensils and packaging materials. Winners in the undergraduate/ graduate category were: Kara Gauthier, Robert Godin, Christina Marsigliese,Andrew Roberts and Kevin Van Groningen. These food science students produced a soy-based alternative to a European truffie delicacy and shared a $2,500 prize. Other top entries included ice cream and cones, a biodegradable pot for plants, potting soil and fabric for shoes and handbags.

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What's a kid to do with an unwavering interest in monsters and oddities? He could grow up to be a scientist or he could direct his energy into performance. Jason Thomas, B.Sc. '00 and MA '02, started out as a physics stud ent and has developed a pretty freaky ca ree r as freakshow operator and performer Dr. Burnaby Q. Orbax, more co mmonly known as the Great Orbax . "I always liked monsters and other weird things," says Thomas, who has travelled across Canada and Europe wowing and revolting audiences with colourful humour and his high threshold for pain. ;;f Thomas, w ho dabbled in professional ~ wrestling before becoming Orbax, made his 0 ~ first career performance as a "freak" on U a: of G's Branion Plaza when he and a friend (.') ~ were invited to prese nt "The Lamest ~ Sideshow on Earth" at the ca mpus co m ~ munity barbec ue in 1998 . The pair per~ formed a 90-minute set and left th e show 0 O with about $16 in cash, he says. 0 b " It was a pass- th e-hat sort of deal. We 6: weren't expecting anything, so we thought

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that was pretty good." Nearly a decade later, his show has expanded to include elements of street theatre, physical comedy, traditional sides how stunts and modernized versions of classic circus feats. It also includes a numb er of unu sual characters, including Monsieur Stinky Pants, a contortionist and Thomas's sidekick from "The Lamest Sideshow on Earth," and M adame Harpie, a bug eater w ho consu mes insects with chopsti cks and a glass of M erlot. Thomas, who also operates Fiendish C uriosity, a company that specializes in produ cing bizarre creatures using elements of taxidermy, latex casting and special effects, is know n for a va ri ety of stunts, including escapes, walking on blades and glass, hammering a nail into his nose, and th e classic sledgehammer- in- the-groin numb er. " It's the idea of pure slapstick," he says. " It harkens back to th e days of th e T hree Stooges and DaffY Duck cartoons. It's a quest to become a cartoon character." Thomas says his university education has proved valuable w hen it comes to doing his

stunts safely. " It helps m e in terms of know ing what materials are combustibl e and und erstand ing the transfer of energy behind smashing a ca n over yo ur hand. It doesn't help me w hen things go wrong, but it helps m e figure out how to safely make these thin gs possibl e." To illustrate his point, T homas inserts the entire handle of a coffee spoon into his nose w hile explaining the physiology and fl exibili ty of th e nasal cavity. "There's no magic to what I do," he says whi le removing th e metal utensil from his nostril. " What I do is real. There are co ncepts of physics that must be understood and years of training involved." Thomas has bee n covered by media in Canada, th e United States, Europe and Japan. In 2005, he was hi red as a scientifi c consultant for the Discovery C hannel's Strar1ge Tales if the Flesh, a progra m that discussed the scientifi c basis behind seemingly imposs ibl e physical acts . (www. thegreatorbax.com)

Carol Maier, B.Sc. '90, co mbin ed her entomology degree with her entrepreneurial spirit when she opened th e Victoria Bug Zoo in October 1997, and business seems to be the only thing that isn't crawling. The zoo fea tures insects, ara chnids and other (mostly) terrestrial arthropods from around th e world - a leaf cutter ant colony from Trinidad, orchid mantids from Malaysia, M exican tarantulas and fluorescing (glowin-the-dark) scorpions, to nam e just a few. The zoo has almost 60 species from aro und the world but specializes in tropical insects. To ens ure a m emorable experi ence, M aier provides one-on-one time with visitors and allows various species such as th e giant Africa n millipedes, hissing roach es and biza rre sti ck insects to be handled. The millipede mustache is a favourite with kids, but only adults get a chance to cradle a tarantula, she says. "The tarantulas aren't dangerous, but they are very fragi le, so we protect them by co ntrollin g th e amount of handlin g th ey get," says Maier, whose goal is to dispel th e myths

and fears surrounding these " misunderstood" creatures . She grew up on a farm in so uth ern Alberta and admits she was pretty ambivalent about bugs until her late teens w hen she started to lea rn abo ut honeybees . She studi ed apiculture and th en entomology at U of G. After graduation, she moved to Victoria, B.C., and tried a few other jobs before hitting on the idea of opening a bug zoo. ''I've always had a bit of an entrepreneurial spirit and have been ope n to new adve ntures and ideas, w ith the hope of somehow making a living at the same time," says M aier. " I spent seven years after gradu atio n experimenting and getting so me solid hands-on experience with running a business . Not all of my original id eas were financiall y feasible , but w hen th e idea of developing a bug zoo started to gel, I knew I had a winner. I kn ew in my so ul that I needed to do this." Ten yea rs later, th e excite m ent is still there. She virtually bubbl es w ith enthusiasm when talking about her three-year quest to import Australian spiders as part of the

zoo's collecti on. T he paperwork was exte nsive, but they finally arrived in July: a Sydney funnel-web, o ne of the wo rld 's deadli est spiders; an Australian redback, a near cousin of the black widow spide r; a w hitetailed sp ider similar to North Am erica's brow n recluse; and a Huntsman crab spider that walks sideways. You may have seen the Huntsman spider in th e movie Arachnaphobia, which Maier calls a " horrendous" film because it used inaccurate stereotypes to villainize insects and arachnids. She tries to help people live in harmony with insects through edu ca tion and fun. Maier believes the Victoria Bug Zoo will be th e first Ca nad ian faci lity to host these ~ Australian imports, which are extremely poi-

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sonous. "Some people ask if the spiders are de- ij veno mi zed," she says, explaining th at fear~ often turns to curiousity w hen people learn ~ so m ethin g about arachn ids. "Spiders ca n 'tยง chew," says Maier. "They only suck up Jig- ~ uids, so they need veno m to predi gest their ~ Gl food ." N 0 (www.bugzoo.bc.ca) 0

Fall 2007 17

On his eighth birthday,

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Michael Spence, BA '92, got his fir st tas te o f live th eatre. As a gift, his paren ts to ok him to see O klahoma at the Royal Alexa ndra Thea tre in Toronto. As he watched the performance, Spence never dream ed that one day he'd stage a show of his own th ere, but ea rli er this year that's exac tly w hat he did w ith e-DE N T IT Y , a play he w rote and starred in. The show ran from M arch 20 to May 20. " Very few C an adi an plays are do ne th ere," he says, adding that a producer from Mirvish Produ ctio ns ca ught th e show at Toronto 's Artwo rd Thea tre, w here it p remiered in fall 2005, and thou ght an expanded version wo uld be a great addition to the Royal Alex's lineup. T he play explores the rapid and complex ways human relationships have changed since the advent of cyber conm1unication. Spence explo res w ho we really are w hen we 're onlin e and asks:" Are there rules of engagement in the shifting digital landscap e?" Five p erfo rmers play in a virtu al world as the audience surfs throu gh an Internet experi-

T H E P OR TI CO

en ce - from chat rooms and blogs to matchmaking.T he play integrates text, movement, original music, live chat and technology-based interactive proj ections. " UR going 2 lu v e-DENTIT Y and BT W, it's ofte n LO L funn y," w rote o ne rev iewe r. O th er jou rnalists desc rib ed the show as "genius ," " co mp elling" and "exuberantly executed." "This play was a lot of fun , and the reactions were intense," says Spence. "We fo und that every demographic has people w ho feel th e impac t of th e n et, altho ugh yo unge r audien ces were m ore familiar with th e specific languages that have emerged online. We tri ed to m ake th e pl ay accessible to the diverse audi ences we performed for. It was an exhausting and rewarding process." E-D E N TIT Y marked the seventh original ilieatre cycle for T heatre Gargantua, which was founded in 1992 by Jacquie T homas. Spence j o ined Theatre G argantu a in 1994 as a cas t m emb er of T he Tri als, the company's inaugural show. " From that experi ence, I becam e m o re invo lve d w ith the comp any, and Jacquie invited m e to design

sets and lighting." T he wo rkin g relati o nsh ip betwee n Spence and T homas blossomed, and the couple was m arri ed in 2000. They now have two ch ildren: fo ur-yea r-old M eghan and two-yea r-old Zoe. " It's challengin g being in the th eatre business, and to also have a fa mily is extra challenging," says Spence, w ho 's been nominated for six Dora M avor M oore Awards, Toronto's prerni er honours for th ose working in th eatre, dance and opera. H e won two D oras fo r se t design fo r his w ork on Th e Epoch Project and Love Not Love. T heatre Gargantua has been nomin ated for a w hopping 24 Do ras over the pas t 14 yea rs. " Perfo r m ance is fun, and it's the dru g that lures you into the art," he says, "but once you 're actually in a space with a group yo u trust, und erstand and know, yo u're able to explore and create wo rk usin g th e uniqu e se t o f skills each artist brings .You start o ff with an idea and don't know how it's going to end up. T hat's exciti ng to m e - the possibilities." (www.theatregargantu a.ca)

The Levi's brand name is one of the most recognizable in the wo rld. So imagine being responsible for ensuring that the durable quality behind that brand name stays tru e to its reputation. From th e hem to the button fly, M arina Wright, B.A.Sc. '85 and M.Sc. '88, manages product performance standards and product testing for Levi Strauss & Co. in North America. She joined the international clothing company after completing her master's degree in co nsumer studies at Guelph. As part of her work, Wright d evelops standards for new products, creates testing protocols and manages supplier certification programs. It's a job that sends her across the globe to meet with suppliers. "I love my job because it's allowed m e to travel around the world and work with very interesting people;' she says. It also offers endless learning opportunities, she adds. Wright spent her first 11 years with Levi Strauss working in Canada, but she now lives in Sausalito, Calif., and is based at company headqu arters in San Francisco. She started out managing the product testing lab but

quickly moved up. And she attributes much of her success to her years at Guelph. She says she kn ew at a yo ung age that she wo uld attend U of G. H er father, Norman Watson, BSA '52, would bring her with him to campus for class reunions and to attend College Royal. "The many family trips to the University made it feel like home from the start; ' she says. What she didn't foresee was how far her education would take her into the international business world. "The strength and diversity o f my co nsumer studies program allowed me to work well w ith the purchasing, product developnl.ent, sales, marketing and m anufac turing tea ms. Having studied in a program that exposed m e to the principles of these areas helped me establish some credibility in the organization early on." As Wright was fini shing her m as ter 's degree, she heard about an opening at Levi Strauss & Co. from another Guelph graduate w ho worked there. "Through the support of my professor Anne Wilcock, I was fortunate enough to get

in the door," says Wright, who also credits her Guelph experience as a house adviser and hall adviser in Lamb ton and Lennox/ Addington halls with helping her build the teamwork and leadership skills needed for her current job. With years in the clothing industry now under her belt,Wright says she's found that most quality-co ntrol problems aren't necessarily du e to product defec ts but rather to a miscommunication of expectations. " It's challenging to clearly communicate requirements so that there's common understanding of w hat's expected."

D espite the challenges, she is passionate about her job and the company she works for. " I love that this co mp any has a co nscience and works very hard to bring clothes -u to people in a socially responsible way. The B -I apparel industry is a key component of many ~ startup economies and, as a result, is highly :: dynamic. Levi Strauss & Co.'s commitment ~ . )> to supporting th e communities in which it ~ operates and dealing with suppliers and con- ~ 0 tra ctors fairly and ethically makes a big dif- @ ference to my daily wo rk life." rri (www.levistrauss .co m)

Fall2007 19

If you've watched

any of the rece nt animated films such as Shrek, Madagascar, An.tz and Over the H edge, you've seen the work of Steve Bell , B.Sc. '96. The Guelph graduate is one of the reaso ns that today's animated movies look so lifelike . In his job as a lighting tec hnical director with Drea mworks, Bell ensures that the artists have the technical tools they need to create the details that make every shot come to life- from leaves blowing in th e wind to sunlight reflecting off an ocean wave. ''I'm responsible for making sure that all 6 th e components in the shots work in th e ~ fina l image," says Bell, who was part of the 2 z<C animation team behind the Academy Award\2 winning fir st Shrek film. "Technical direc~ tors are kind oflike the du ct tape that holds ~ the w hole process together." ~ But it's not th e fame or the glamour of ~ th e film industry that drives his passion. He says he JUSt loves using his co mputer skills gj to help people. 0 o "It's cool to help someone w ith a techa 5 nical problem they 've been working on for 6: a while, because they're usually really grate-

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THE PORTICO

ful. There's instant gratification. Plus it helps that the people here are so interesting, smart and talented. There's this great mix of geek and artist going on." Bell says he also enjoys his job because it allows him to find ways of in corporating new technology into the film animatio n industry. "I am really passionate about pushing the technology and trying to make it easier for artists to have as much freedom as they want to make a great-looking image." It also doesn't hurt that he gets free breakfast and lunch while working in his Los Angeles office. Bell adds that the work envlium11ent is also fairl y laid back. H e has set up a model railroad, complete with lit-up buildings, that runs around his desk and th e desk of a co-worker. "You don't get to do that kind of stuff at most companies." The Holl ywoo d sce ne is a far cry from life at a northern Ontario pulp mill , where Bell worked as a programmer after graduating from Guelph with a major in physics and a minor in computing science. The mill

was in his hometown of Marathon. He went on to work as a systems adm inistrato r for a northern mining company, then applied for a similar position with Dreamworks in 1998. "They thou ght I would be suitable for production work and asked if I would be interested, so of course I didn't wait for them to ask twice." Bell quickly picked up and moved to Los Angeles and now lives just a couple of kilometres from the famous Hollywood sign. "There are more people Jiving on my block than in my entire hometown," he says . Right now he's working on Jerry Seinfeld's upcomin g animated fi lm , Bee Mollie. Bell has been involved in finding ways to incorporate a new technique for motion blur into the film's images. With every new film comes a new tech nical chall enge, like ensuring the fur and foliage in Shrek looked realistic. But those are the challenges that keep his job interesting, says Bell. "I wish I found it less interesting because then I wo uld probably go home ea rlier." (www.dreamworksanimation.com)

Hers is a voice

that avid CBC Radio listeners have come to know and trust over the past 35 years.Judy Maddren, B.A.Sc. '72, brings daily current events and news into th e homes of Ca nadians each morning through CBC Radio 's World R eport, a show she's hosted for 14 yea rs. H er voice is also one that almost never hit the airwaves. When Maddren was 15, she wrote a letter to the CBC expressing her interest in beco ming a radio broadcaster one day. She received a reply informing her that there were already enough "gentlemen" to do th e job. "I grew up listening to th e radio at home, and I'd get ca ught up in th e stori es and the disc ussions ," she says. " I thou ght broadcasting was a really cooljob.What fascinated me when the CBC refu sed me was that it hadn't occurred to me that I wasn't hea ring a lot of female voices . I found it interesting that th ere was a divide." Maddren adjusted her career plan and decided to m ajor in consumer studi es at Guelph. Her thesis focused on th e role of women in radio, and she spent a week at the CBC conducting research. One month after

graduating, she was hired by the network as a researcher in its consumer affairs department. She continued to learn more about broadcasting and eve ntu ally auditioned for an on-air position in Ottawa, w here she wo rked on contract in radio and television for two years. She was then hired as the third full - time female announcer at CBC. Maddren freelanced for th e network for 14 years while raising four children and was invited to host World R eport in 1993. " I love making pictures with words," she says. " I love using the right verb to conjure up an image. The older I get, the more l believe that stories are th e base of all our lea rning. The news stories we cover are ones we believe Canadians need to know about because Canadians may need to change things." In addition to hosting the news show, she is the corporation's media language advise r and is responsible for making recomm endations on pronunciation, granunar and style. " It can be quite involved," says M addren, who is constantly adding new entries to the more than 12,000 currently listed in the CBC database. "For the first two years, I fOLmd myself

staying well past the end of my workday." She's now d eterminin g how to wo rk with C hinese pronun ciations in time for th e 2008 Olympics in B eijing. "M an darin is very diffi cult because th ere are intonati ons. M y position is that we must give pronunciations for the Canadian tongue. We need to strike a balan ce by using pronunciation that won't offend Chinese speakers and wo n't distract Ca nadian listeners." M addren, who deve loped the co ncep t for the an nu al CBC C hristmas Carol readings, which are held in more than 100 co mmuniti es ac ross Canada eac h year, is also striking a balance between her professional life as a broadcaster and her personal interest in sharing people's stories with those who are closest to them - th eir loved ones. Six years ago, she found ed Soundportraits, a business that produ ces audio reco rd- ~ ings of people recalling th eir memories and 8 0 experi ences . o 0 "When you hear a voice, you're immedi- ยงj ately co nnected to th e person. The voice is GJ the instrument of th e so ul. It tells all." ~ (www.so undportraits.ca) ~

Fall2007 21

After almost a decade as the sole practising veterinarian in central and northern Yukon,John Overell, B.Sc. '82 and DVM '98 , has learned a few things that didn't necessarily come up during his studies at the Ontario Veterinary C ollege. "They don't teach you a lot about gunshot wounds or being attacked by wolves or stomp ed on by moose," he says, referring to the patients he sees in his D awson clinic and in a handful of remote northern communities. The school of hard knocks , indeed. Overell runs the Dawson Veterinary Clinic in a converted restaurant building just outside of town.That's a big step up from his first clinic - basically working out of the back of a truck - and his second location in an old snowmobilers' shack. Last year, he moved into ff3 his new space, which he's outfitting with diag~ nostic equipment to help trim the e).:pense and mtime involved in sending samples to Whitef~ horse or even British Columbia or Alberta. H e (ยง hopes to obtain a digital developer this year to >co begin using a recendy acquired X-ray machine. 0 b A native of Ottawa, O ve rell moved to 5: Dawson after meeting and marrying a woman

TH E P O RTI CO

from the north. N ow divorced, he says a strong sense of conmlUnity keeps him th ere. His roughly 1,000 cli ents are split between Dawson and several rem ote communities.The latter include M ayo in central Yuko n and Old C row, north of the Arctic C ircle, as well as Inu vik and Tuktoya ktuk in the neighbouring Northwest Territori es . He travels by air in winter and o n the road in summer, se tting up clinics in vario us ve nu es: a fire hall, a research statio n, a sc ho ol classroo m . Those ro ad trips evo ke som ething of his ea rly days in Yukon as he packs anestheti c, surgical equipment, drugs and other necessities into his 1986 Toyota 4Runner. " I ca n put a fairly dece nt clinic into six Tupperware containers," he says. The Dawson vet also serves on th e practitioner team for several annual sled dog races in the territory. The biggest is theYukon Quest, a 1,000-mile run from Fairbanks, Alaska , to Whitehorse involving more than 300 dogs. H e's worked that race seven tin1es since 1999, sometimes remaining in Dawson, where his clinic serves as the halfway checkpoint, and sometimes shadowing the race by vehicle, air-

plane or snowmobile. H e's also been head vet for the Percy D eWolfe M emorial M ail R ace, a three-day 200- mile run between D awson and Eagle,Alaska. (It's named for a mail carrier who covered that route from 1910 to 1949). Las t year, O ve rell was asked by a governm ent biologist to help study g ri zzly bears, considered a species at risk on Yukon's N orth Slop e. The assignment saw him dropped into the no rthernmost part of th e territory to wait for a helicopter to deliver sedated bears to him for examinatio n. That experience fed into a new research proposal he is writing to study climate change effects in the territory. N orthern residents are increasingly worried about how a warming climate might help insec ts bring up human and animal diseases such as West Nile virus and hea rtworm. Beyond an ecdotes, there 's been litde science done about changes to parasites and their insect carriers. "A lot of those organisms are influenced heavily by the enviro nment," he says . "We want a baseline of w hat's here to see what's em ergmg." (www.yukonqu est.com)

As a child

growing up in Guelph, Rev. Kathryn Gorman-Lovelady, BA '82, felt spiritually incomplete. She was detached from her aboriginal traditions and lacked o utl ets to lea rn about and explore her Anishnabec culture. " I didn't have a lot of access to anything First Nations in Guelph," she says ." T here wasn't open awareness or outreach." Today things have chan ged for Go rmanLovelady, w ho, along with her husband, Brian Lovelady, BA '72, is changing that landscape by helping to bring aboriginal tradition an d spirituality into public consciousness. They are two of only three national elders of th e Canadian Metis Council, says Go rman-Lovelady, who helps people find peace and inner wellness through her work as an aboriginal m edi cine woman, shaman, therapeutic touch practitioner, reiki master, writer, artisan and aboriginal interfaith minister. "We help set policy and facilitate healing in situations w here communities need some guidance and foundation ," she says. Gorman-Lovelady studied psychology at U of G and received nine years of instru c-

tion through the Midewiwin Society. "Midewiw in is a sacred grand medicine society w here I lea rned the shaman ic side of w hat I do. I studied parapsychology, and that fed into my cultural perspective because the spirit world and the spirit realm are part of my native backgro und." Her early career was spe nt working at th e Guelph Correctional Centre, in group homes and in eldercare. Many of her clients were aboriginal, and some had grown up in residential schools, she says. Gorman-Lovelady is currently a church moderator and a licensed minister at Wolfe Island Aboriginal Interfaith C hurch. ''I'm th e only person with that designation ," she says. "There are other native people who are ministers in the big five churches (Anglican, Lutheran, Presbyterian, United and Roman Catholic), but there's no on e else doing w hat I do." She and her husband are also the founders of Moonstar Lodge, where they facilitate counselling, channelling, soul retrieval, regression therapy, house blessin g and medicine w heel charting for clients who may be strug-

gling with difficult issues or wanting to connect or reconnect with native spirituality. T he lodge sits within a 50-acre fores t outside of Durham, Ont., w here the couple and their nine-year-old daughter, Angeni Elu Lovelady, also raise llamas and alpacas and run an animal resc ue shelter. " I bring the psychology and the socialservice work training I received at U of G into a broad spiritual base," says GormanLovelady, w ho notes that laws, ra cism and fear have historically prevented aboriginal people from practisi ng traditional spiri tuality. She recalls her gra ndmo ther, a shopkeeper in northern Ontario, being told by the Mounties that if there were ever more j1 than three aboriginal people in her store at one time, she wo uld be shut down. 8 "That is the clitnate I grew up in , but !jj today it's very different. I live in a time where fR w hat I do is more respected and sought after ~ than I was ever told it could be. It's a good 8 z time to be a shama n. It's a good time to be ~ a healer. And it's a good time to be a woman, 55 r a mother and an artist." 8 (www.moonstarlodge.com) ~

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Fall 2007 23

Alumni Achievements

Events

u of guelph Setting Wheels in HEN RI C K HAN SE N was wheeling his way around the world in 1987 to raise money and awareness for people with spinal cord injuries, Laurie Arnott, Sandra Burton and Cyndy McLean were teenagers, deeply involved in school, sports and fri end-filled activities.They hardly knew who Hansen was, let alone understood anything about spinal cord injuries . But two decades later, th ey came together to mark the 20th anniversary of Hansen's 40,000-kilometre journey through 34 countries. Arnott, Burton and McLean led the organizing committee for Guelph's fourth annual Wheels in Motion June 10.The national fundraiser was started by Hansen. The three women don 't actually recall much about Hansen's epic trip and could never have imagined as teenagers that they, too, would one day navigate life from a wheelchair. Arnott was 18, in the midst of her first year at the University ofWestern Ontario, when she suddenly became very ill with a virus that attacked her spinal cord and left her with permanent nerve damage. "I was in my residence room, and my arm started to go numb. Within an hour, I was totally paralyzed from the neck down." The virus that attacked her spinal cord remains unknown to this day. " I kept asking the doctors: 'What do you mean you don't know? ' But there are millions of viruses out there." After a long recovery, she regained w ':] ~ some feeling and function on her right gI side but is considered to have incomz plete quadriplegia. Burton was also a teenager, just a months shy of her 18th birthday, few in when she suffered a spinal cord injury. ~I n. She was playfully tossed into a back-

I 24 THE

PORTICO

yard swimming pool and str uck her head on the pool's co ncrete bottom. "It was a fluke," says Burton, w ho has complete quadriplegia. McLean was injured in 2003 in an equally bizarre incident. She was hikin g on a peninsula in Michigan when both she and her dog fell more than 100 feet off a cliff. The form er marathon runn er was left with a broken back and severed spinal cord and is now paraplegic. "If you look at the statistics for spinal cord injury, you'll find that 82 per cent of people injured are young m en between the ages of 16 and 30," says McLean. "The three of us don't really fit the stereotype, yet here we are, all around the same age, sitting around the table talking about this Wheels in Motion event. We are very connected to each other and at similar points in our lives." There are other ti es that bind them.

The three now have friends in common, so m e of w hom they m et w hil e in rehabilitation. All three are also Guelph graduates, and both Arnott and McLean work on campus. Arnott graduated from U of G with a history degree in 1999. She chose to come here rather than return to Western because Guelph's Centre for Students With Disabilities "was far and away the best." She and Burton became friends and were later roommates. Arnott eventually returned to Western to attend law sc hool, where she became interested in disability advocacy. But she came back to Guelph in 2003 to become a human rights consultant for U of G's Human Rights and Equity Office. Burton graduated from Guelph with a child stuclies degree in 1998 and went on to ea rn a master's degree in speech language th erapy. She is now a

Networking U OF G ALUMNI ASSOCIATION alumni@uoguelph.ca

speech pathologist for preschoolers at KidsAbility in Waterloo. McLean earned a master's degree in human biology from U of G in 1997 and is now director of the University's Health and Performance Centre (HPC). Following her injury in 2003, she was instrumental in bringing Wheels in Motion to Guelph in 2004. The national event raises awareness

ALUMNI GROUPS SPEAK OUT DELEGATES REPRESENTING alumni constituent groups across North America attended the first U of G Alunmi Forum May 12. Participants heard about volunteer recruitment from keynote speaker David Hughes,

and money for research and support for people living with spinal cord injury. People collect pledges either individually or as a team and then walk, run, wheel or bike a 2.5-kilomctre course. Half of the net funds raised stay in the host community to support high-priority needs and services; the rest goes to fund national spinal cord research. This year's Guelph event raised more than $30,000.The HPC team headed by McLean collected more than $11,000, and she was the top individual fundraiser, bringing in close to $3,000. "It's great to have something locally like this because individuals can apply for funding that they can use to improve their quality of life;' says Burton. "There are so many extraordinary costs associated with spinal cord injuries." Wheels in Motion added a new event this year, a relay challenge in which teams competed against one another to complete everyday tasks like grocery shopping and getting dressed from a wheelchair. "The relay is a good way to have people try out different activities like getting breakfast and getting ready for work from a chair," says Burton." It helps raise awareness because people get a tiny idea of what challenges you face when you're in a wheelchair."

president and CEO of Habitat for H umanity Canada, and attended sessions on volunteerism and communications . Delegates also had an opportunity to network with each other and with members of the University of Guelph Alumni Association executive.

ALUMNI AFFAIRS AND DEVELOPMENT Joanne Shoveller, Vice-President I jshovell@uoguelph .ca Pamela Healey, Assistant VicePresident (Development) I phealey@uoguelph.ca Jason Moreton, Director, Alumni Affairs I jmoreton@uoguelph.ca ALUMNI OPPORTUNITIES Alumni Chapters, CME Mary Feldskov I mfeldsko@uoguelph.ca Students and Young Alumni , Arts Mary-Anne Moroz I mamoroz@uoguelph.ca CBS, CPES, Athletics Sam Kosakowski I skosakow@uoguelph .ca OAC,CSAHS Carla Bradshaw I cbradsha@uoguelph. ca

ovc Kim Robinson I krobin01 @uoguelph.ca Alumni Online Community www.olcnetwork.net/uoguelph Events & Communications Jennifer Brett Fraser I jbrett@uoguelph.ca Grad News Updates alumnirecords@uoguelph.ca

ALUMNI GIVING Arts I Chuck Ferguson I cferguso@uoguelph.ca CBS/CPES I Richard Manning I rmanning@uoguelph.ca CM E I Jennifer Barrett I jebarret@uoguelph.ca CSAHS I Karen Bertrand I karenber@uoguelph.ca Library I Lynn Campbell/ lynn.campbell@uoguelph.ca OAC I Paulette Samson I psamson@uoguelph. ca OVC I Stephen Woeller I swoeller@uoguelph.ca THE PORTICO Mary Dickieson, Editor I m. dickieson@exec. uoguelph. ca Online edition I www.uoguelph.ca/theportico U OF G CONTACTS www.uoguelph.ca 519-824-4120

Fall 2007 25

1,000 alumni and friends celebrate

More than 1,000 alumni and friends attended Alumni Weekend 2007, includ ing, from left: Melanie and Peter Graham, B.Sc.(Agr.) '77, of Woodstock, Ont., and Wilma and John Wood , B.Sc.(Agr.) '77, of Winnipeg.

Greetings from the UGAA

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t's been a busy year for the University of Guelph Alumni Association, and we'd like to tell you about our new initiatives: Alumni survey - Launched in June 2007.All U ofG alumni received an invitation to complete a much-needed webbased survey to help us form the direction of future affinity programs, services and communications. Look for results in the next issue of The Portico. Alumni Forum- Held on May 12. Representatives from alumni constituent groups across North America gathered to network, communicate and better determine alumni needs. New credit card program - The UGAA has partnered with BMO Bank of Montreal to offer a new credit card program for students and alumni. Revenue from this affinity program will support the University and alumni programming. See page 36 for more details. Award winners -Through our annual awards program, we recognized five accomplished alunmi for their unique and remarkable contributions: Gord Surgeoner, Mike Jenkinson, Cyndy McLean, Fred Ramprashad and Kira Kumagai (see page 28). Committee representation - The

THE PORTICO

alumni voice is being heard on campus. Alumni were represented on the recent presidential review and chancellor selection committees and also participate as members of the University Senate. In addition, UGAA members represented alumni at more than 10 events over the past year. Alumni Advocacy Council - Several key alumni and I have met periodically with U of G president Alastair Summerlee to advise him on various issues ranging from the University's new branding strategy to preparations for the provincial election and the need for increased financial support of post-secondary education.

Jason Tran, B.Sc.(Env.) '07, and student Marena Brinkhurst attend a party celebrating the 1Oth anniversary of the Faculty of Environmental Sciences.

Memorandum of Understanding -

The UGAA is working with the University to develop a document that clearly articulates the relationship between your alumni association and the University. Our goal for completion is December 2007. The UGAA is a volunteer board of alumni who are interested in sustaining and strengthening the relationship between Guelph graduates and the University. We continually seek your input. Please contact us anytime at ugaa@uoguelph.ca or call 519-824-4120, Ext. 56544. We look forward to keeping you engaged with the No.1 university in Canada! Trish Walker, UGM President

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COMING EVENTS

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INDIE FILM, MUSIC FESTIVAL FOR HOMECOMING homas Gofton plans to add an artistic flavour to U of G's Homecoming this fall. The fourthyear psychology major and head of local Lynnvander Productions is organizing the first SharpCuts Festival, a two-day independe nt film and music event to be held on campus Sept. 22 and 23 during H omecoming. Fihrunakers, screenwriters, actors and musicians will co nverge in Guelph for the festival, taking part in a series of live performances, film screenings, workshops and comp etitions, including a screenwriting contest, a battle of the bands and a 24-hour film festival. Gofton says th e inclusion of both film and music was a natural becaus e the two media consta ntly intersect . " I don 't think you really have one without the other today. Movies use mu sic all th e time. Music uses vid eo and film all the time. I love both." Last sunm1er, Gofton produced his own debut film, Four Aces, with classmates and other G uelph filmmakers. Shot on camp us and downtown, the film premiered at the Guelph Galaxy in the spring. Confirmed guests at the SharpCuts Festival include U of G graduate Laura Bertran1, a two-time Gemini Award winner w ho is currently appearing in CTV's Robson Arms. The two-day event is free. For details, write to tgofron@uoguelph.ca or visit www.sharpcuts.ca .

T REUNIONS

Canada calls on Gudbranson

AYN E GUDBRANSON,BA

'80,

president and CEO of th e Branham Group Inc., was recently invited to sit on th e board of a new organization called International Science and Technology Partnerships Canada. The arm's-length organization w ill accept proposals for bilateral resea rch proj ec ts in India and China from companies and universities/col-

leges, as well as other private-sector research and development institutes. Gudbranson w ill be involved in reviewing research projects in the areas of environment, health and nanotechnology. He says the opportunity drew his attention because of Universiry of Guelph expertise in these areas. He currently sits on the board of the U of G Alumni Association and the fundraising cabinet for the science complex. His own career is fo cused on strategic development of th e informati o n technology sector. Branham Group is a "go-to market" consultancy providing planning, marketing and partnering se rvices to global IT companies. From its base in Ottawa, Branham generates more than 70 per cent of its business from markets outside Canada. Yet Gudbranson remains a passionate promoter of Canada's IT industry capabilities (www. branham300. com).

Fall 2007 27

u of g They make us proud! The following are recipients of the 2007 University of Guelph Alumni Association Awards of Excellence.

From left: Gord Surgeoner with presenters Linda Hruska, left, and Trish Walker; Mike Jenkinson; Fred Ramprashad; Cyndy Mclean and Kira Kumagai.

ALUMNUS OF HONOUR ORD SuRGEONER, B.Sc.(Agr.) '71 and M.Sc. '73, is a retired professor of enviromnental biology and plant agriculture and a recipient of the Order of Ontario, who continues to have a leadership role in developing Ontario's agri-food sector. He has played a key role in introducing mandatory certification for the use of farm pesticides in Ontario and in determining the direction of research and development in the agricultural sector. He also helped create and is now president of Ontario Agri-Food Technologies, an organization committed to the development and use of advanced technology for agriculture and food production. Through collaboration with international groups, he is helping to elevate the province's capaciry for agricultural development to a global scale.

ALUMNI VOLUNTEER AWARD

IKE JE NK INSON,BSA ' 63 and M.Sc. '67 , is a lifelong advocate for the Ontario Agricultural College. He spent more than 30 years in Johnston Hall as assistant to the dean and a valued adviser to students, faculry and college staff. Through all those years, he was also working as a volunteer for th e OAC Alumni Association and Foundation.

28 THE PORTICO

For 25 years, he was chair of the foundation 's sc holarship and awards committee and liaised with donors to maximize opportunities to support students. In the greater conmlUniry,Jenkinson has provided signal service to 4-H, the Advanced Agricultural Leadership Program, the Ontario Institute ofAgrologists, the Guelph-Wellington Men's Club, the Guelph Rowing C lub and Canadian Executive Services Overseas.

ALUMNI MEDAL OF ACHIEVEMENT YNDY MCLEAN,M.Sc. '97,has served as director of the Universiry's Health and Performance Centre (HPC) since its opening in 1998. The HPC is a clinic and education centre that gives health and nutrition students practical experience in their field while providing a va luable service to the Guelph community. McLean is also a lecturer in the Department of Human Health and Nutritional Sciences. A positive role model both for athletes with disabilities and for women in sport, she works for the Rick Hansen Wheels in Motion Foundation and has been an organizer for the Guelph Wheels in Motion event for the last three years . She is a metnber of the provincial wheelchair tennis team and was recently invited to the national team training camp.

EMPLOYEE VOLUNTEER AWARD RED RAMPRASHAD, M.Sc. '71 , retired in 2005 after 30 years of service to the Universiry and was named a Universiry Fellow in 2006. In addition to teaching zoology at U of G, he was academic assistant to the dean of CBS before becoming the first associate dean of the B.Sc. program. He was also cocreator of a number of academic support programs for varsiry athletes. ln recent years, Ramprashad has taken a leadership role in the Universiry's United Way campaign, serving as co-c hair for 2005 and 2006.

STUDENT VOLUNTEER AWARD

IRA KUMAGAI, w ho graduated in June from the arts and science program, came to U of G as a President's Scholar with an extensive record of vo lunteer work in her hometown of Burlington , Ont. As a U of G student, she was a volunteer with Women in Crisis, teen programs Change Now and Give Yourself Credit, the Universiry Centre board, the Masai campaign to support African A!DS victims and many other campus and local groups. She also helped organize student volunteers who spent time cleaning up in Mississippi after hurricane Katrina.

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Careers

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Families

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Life Experiences

university of guelph Truffle love more than a passing fancy

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At 14, Saijal Patel received an unusual gift for a teenage girl. Most girls her age longed for clothing and fashion accessories, but Patel wanted kitchen supplies. The summer before entering high school, she received a mixer and a breadmaker. These were the tools she needed to achieve her culinary dreams. "I've always wanted to have my own business," says Patel, B.Comm. '06. ''I'd love to have a cafe with rich coffees and tasty sweets." From a young age, she was comfortable in the kitchen. A sweet tooth made her the perfect candidate to taste-test her father's cooking. "He let me do it because I would give my honest opinion." As Patel grew older, she began to bake on her own. "I remember getting a recipe book for my birthday,"

THE PORTICO

she says. "It was all about chocolate." She started in the cookie section and quickly moved on to more complex creations . She later turned her baking sessions into social gatherings. ''I'd invite my friends over, and we would make cookies and decorate cakes," says Patel. "It usually turned into an entertaining night." In high school, her friends would accompany their treats with a cold glass of milk. In university, martinis replaced the milk. "I would host theme nights," she says. "I would set up stations where my friends and I would alternate between making treats and mixing drinks. It was loads of fun." During her time at U of G, Patel did a work placement at Canyon Creek Chophouse in her hometown of Mississauga, Ont. This placement

eventually led to a full-time job where she would bring treats for her co-workers. "Anytime there was a special occasion, I would bake treats for the team. They joked that I should work in the kitchen instead of the dining room." One of the treats Patel made was truffies, and the first time she prepared a batch was at a friend's cottage in Collingwood. "My friends ate the entire tray. They loved them." After numerous compliments on the truffies, she and her lifelong friend, Pooja Haramshi, started their own business selling th e treat. Based in Patel's kitchen, the pair work together on growing their company, TruffleLove. "It was a bit scary at first," says Patel. "Pooja and I weren't sure where to begin." Patel ended up turning back to her university notes for some pointers on the logistics of putting her business into action. She also took courses at George Brown College and is working to complete a certification m cmsme. Patel says her parents were initially skeptical about the notion of starting a business. "My parents didn't think Pooja and I would follow through with TruffleLove. They thought it was all talk and no action." Now, a year and a half later, the two truffle makers have established a website (www.trufflelove.ca), store space in Toronto's distillery area and a substantial client list. They have become regular vendors at the Toronto Wedding Show and have built relationships with other small businesses in the Toronto area. "Things are working out really well," says Patel. Story by Ana Francisco, BA '04

Memories

Dragon boating down under

OAC '67A in South America

OAC '67A tour group at the Canadian Embassy in Buenos Aires. Front row, left to right: Len Welch, Glen MacPherson of the Canadian Embassy and tour guide Marge Thomas. Second row: Murray Junker, Art Parnell, Ivan Buchan, Dale Clare and tour guide Bob Thomas. Third row: Scott Stewart, Jirn McDonald, Wilson Rae, Ray Konkle and Brian Little. Top row : Tom Bradish, Ross Reynolds and Bill VanBelle.

WHO WOULD HAV E THOUGHT that 40 years after graduation, we would all meet again on the Amazon River? It seems nothing is impossible for the close-knit grads of OAC '67A. It started with the idea of visiting class member Len Welc h, who had returned after graduation to his farming operation in Argentina. The idea blossomed to include so me tourist sites and add Brazil to the itinerary. The 2007 trip started with a three-day stay near Manaus on the Amazon River. Then we flew to Rondonopolis in the heart ofBrazil's vast agricultural Cerrado. Next came a tour of the port of Paranagua, where most ofBrazil's soybeans are shipped to world markets. A highlight of the tour was an overview agricultw:al presentation from the Canadian Embassy in Sao Paulo, followed by

a relaxing weekend at Iguao;: u Falls. The second week of the trip brought the much-anticipated visit with Len and his wife, Rosemary. The highlight was a tour of Len's farm, as well as a soybean crusher, a large dairy and a unique outdoor hog operation. Late nights of reminiscing over a cerveja or two did not deter the early wakeups and full days, including a tour of the beautiful city of Buenos Aires and a visit to the expansive Liniers stockyards. A fabulous tango dinner show capped off the two-week tour. The 14 classmates and spouses returned home with suitcases full of memories and renewed friendships. It seemed as though the 40 years had made little dent in the bonds that tie the OAC '67A class together. HEL EN AND TOM BRADISH, ADA '67, LONDON, 0NT.

I WANTED TO follow up on the article in the Fall 2006 Portico on Dr. Don McKenzie and his excellent work with breast cancer survivors and dragon boating. His influence and renown extend all the way to southeast Queensland,Australia . I have been involved in dragon boating in Brisbane for eight years and am proud to say that our club, the Brisbane River Dragons, has had a long-running relationship w ith breast cancer survivors and the sport. We have a club-within-a-club called Missabitatitti with more than 60 breast cancer-surviving members who compete in both survivo r and sport races in Australia and around the wo rld. Some of our brave women h elp ed our club win 14 titles recently, making us the premier sporting club in Australia. We'll be helping to host" Abreast in Australia 2007 ;â&#x20AC;˘ the second international breast cancer championship, Sept. 28 to 30 on Kawanna Lakes in Queensland. I will be the on-water event co-ordinator and welcome other Guelph graduates to come along and give yo ur support to this great event. Visit the website www.drag onsabreast.com.au / Australia_2007 I index.htm. CRA IG WALTON , M.Sc. '94 BRISBANE, QUEENSLAND , AUSTRALIA

HALL OF FAME

~t;;;r~ The 2007 inductees to the Gryphon Hall of Fame are: Cassie Campbell, BA '97 I Hockey Chris Crooks, B.Sc. '85 I Wrestling Tony Kosztyo, B.Comm. '75 I

Football, Swimming, Waterpolo Mike O'Shea, B.Sc. '94 I Football 1996-97 OUM and CIAU Champion Men's Hockey Team The mductiOn banquet will be held on campus Sept. 21. T1ckets are $75; ca/1519-824-4120, Ext. 56133, or visit gryphons.ca.

Fall2007 31

1950 • Walter Bilanski, BSA '52, was installed as the 88th president ofProfessional Engineers Ontario (PEO) in April. A worldrenowned agricultural engineer, he is the only person to be elected PEO president four times, having served previously in 1971172,1977/78 and 1998/99. Bilanski taught at U of G for 42 years and was named University professor emeritus in 1993. His numero us co ntributions to his field include improved harvesting machinery for grains, fruits and vegetables. He has also served as president or director on several engineering-related bodies, including the Canadian Society of Professional Engineers, Ontario Society ofProfessional Engineers and Canadian Council of Professional Engineers. • Arthur Ferguson, BSA '38 and DVM '50, is a retired poultry pathologist who earned his

THE PORTICO

veterinary credentials after serving in the Royal Canadian Air Force during the Second World War. Ferguson's first position on camp us was at OAC, where he was a poultry consultant. He joined OVC in 1955 and taught students abo ut poultry diseases and husbandry for the next 26 years. He influenced the growth

trol of disease was paramount. After retirement, Ferguson was instrumental in organizing and raising money for several OVC projects, including the stained-glass windows in the Lifetime Learning Centre. He was honoured by th e OVC Alumni Association during Alumni Weekend as OVC Distinguished Alunmus for 2007.

1960

Arthur Ferguson

of Canada's poultry industry as it moved from small individual farms to larger units with more specialization, where the con-

• Jim Horton, ADA '67 and BA '70, is a former U of G hockey goalie who is now retired and interested in contacting "anyone we partied with at the Dip Inn or after the ho ckey games ." He lives in Peterborough, Ont. • Gord Pyzer, BA '69 and MA '71, won a gold medal at the 30th annual National Magazine Awards held in Toronto June 16. He won for his feature story T11e Bite Is On, which was published

in Outdoor Canada magazine. A week earlier, he captured first and second place in the magazine feature- fishing category at the Outdoor Writers of Canada's annual convention in North Bay, Ont. Pyzer, who lives in Kenora, Ont., has received national recognition for his writing more than 20 times. • John Richardson, BA '68, is a company director in Battersea, England. While playing golf at a course in Surrey one day, he met a young man with a Canadian acce nt who was supervising the catering. T h e yo ung man turned out to be Sam Chan, a U of G student in nurketing management. "What a delightful and charming an1bassador;' writes Richardson. " It was a pleasure to meet him."

1970 • Claudia (Pozza) Buck, B.Conun.'73, and her husband,

David, B.Sc. '73 , are in transition, living part of the ye ar in Grande Prairie, Alta., and part of th e year in Kerem eos, B. C., w here th ey are developing a winery. She invites friends to stop in and visit. • James Cotta, BA '77, is regional registry manager with the Family C ourt of Australia in Brisbane. H e writes: "M y so n, Mat, was rece ntly married in California, w here I caught up w ith fri ends Rick, B.Sc.(Agr. '72) and Sue Turnbull, B.Sc.(H.K.) '76. M y dau ghter has made me a proud grandfather. I wo uld love to hear from fri ends and teanm1ates from the U of G basketball team I played on during my most memorable years at th e University. All the best from down under." • Jane and Ron Eccles, both BA '70 and both artists, live and work in Bowmanville, Ont. , but

general Adrienne Clarkso n and ballerina Karen Kain. Eccles is also trying to bring Laumann to Bowmanville to speak to student asse mblies and attend the unveiling of her portrait at th e Visual Arts Centre O ct. 24, which is open to the public and will support the art centre. • Gregory Glenn, B.Sc. ' 72 , married Karyn WhitlumJuly 8, 2006, in Stouffville, Ont. In December 2006, his company, the Glenn Group, m erged with JBL & Associates in Montreal to form th e JBL Gro up, w hi ch specializes in health policy and gove rnment relatio ns consulting to the pharmaceuti cal and m edical device industries. • Robert Morton, BA '7 0 , was recruited in 2005 to launch th e Children's Treatment Netwo rk , a new se rvice-delive r y model for kids and te ens w ith multiple disabiliti es in York Region and Simcoe County. The netwo rk links more than 40 h ealth-care, edu ca tional , recreational, social-service and co mmunity- se rvice organizations, all owing a team approach to each child's ca re. As CE O, Morton is leading plans to open core and specialty rehabilitation and diagnostic services, as well as 10 se rvice-delivery sites.

1980 Portrait of Silken Laumann by Jane Eccles

they receive U of G news regularly from their son Brad, a U of G student who is working with English professo r D ani el Fischlin as a designer on 'Speare, a video game based on the works ofWilliam Shakespeare. For the past year, Jane's work has been focu sing on Canadian ico ns - Olympic goalie Sami Jo Small and rower Silken Laumann, mountain climber Urszula Tokarska, former governor

Hadi Abbas • Sayyed Muhammad 'Abd AL-Mahdi, BA '88, tea ches at Al-lman School in New York City and was chose n to attend a weeklong conference for social studies teachers this summer in Washington, D. C. His sc hool was the only Muslim school selected to attend. • Jan den Dulk, B.Sc. '89, and Shelley Lundvall, B.Sc. '89, have left the great white north to start new careers in the Dutch Caribbean. He is heading up the non-profit Saba Conserva tion

Shelley Lundvall & Jan den Dulk

Foundation (www.sabapark.org), which manages 35 dive sites and 14 back-country hiking trails on the island of Saba. She is developing an integrated management plan fo r the Saba Bank, a 2,000square-kilometre submerged atoll southwest of Saba. And their dog, Zack, is just happy to not be freezing his paws offi • Roberto DiDomenico, B.Sc. '89, is a winemaker at R eif Estate Wines in N iagara-on-theLake, O nt. , and is celebrating three gold m edals received at the 2007 Ontario Wine Awards in April. H e won go ld for R eif's 2006 C henin Blanc, 2002 First Growth Cabernet Sauvignon and 2002 First Growth M erlot. The latter two featured grapes handharvested from vines planted the same year DiDomenico received his microbiology degree. • Maureen (Peppler) Fraser, BA '88, is an artist and also works for Lens Master in Kitchener, Ont. She married Donald Fraser in July 2006 . "We are enjoying a very active life together, cycle-touring in various countries during our vaca tion tin1e," she says . " In three years, we plan to cycle right around Australia. In the meantime, I am working on my painting whenever time allows. I would like to hear from other former inhabitants of Zavitz Hall." • Elizabeth Hopley, B.Sc. '84, is currently on leave from the Durham District School Board, w here she's bee n teachin g ele-

m entary sc hool for the past 18 years. She and her husband, Stefan, recently bought a 10-acre hobby farm outside Uxbridge, Ont. , w here she kee ps horses , dogs, cats and a pot-bellied pig. She says they are enjoying country livi ng with th eir three-yearold daughter, Emma Eli zabeth. • Elenimo Khonga, PhD '87, is a lecturer at Botswana College of Agriculture (BCA) m Gaborone. H e met U of G president Alastair Sunm1erlee in M ay when Summerlee visited the college with a delegation from World University Service of Canada to explore areas of collabo rati on between BCA and Canadian universities. "D r. Summerlee brought back memories of my time at Guelph som e 20 years ago and informed me that U of G is totally changed," says Khonga. "I look forward to being part of the Guelph community again." • Geoffrey Knapper, BA '89 and MA '90 , invites us all to celebrate the Canadian C harter of R ights and Fre edo ms. He and his partn er have been working on a documentary film and acco mp anying website (www.c har terofri ghts.ca) in advance of the 25th anniversary of the patriation of the Constitution in 1982 and the charter. • Richard Leavens, MA '86, is executive director of the Association for M ountain Parks Protection and Enjoyment in Banff, Alta. "This work involves advocating for appropriate use of the m o untain parks and, in many ways, requires a skill se t that I began to develop in my studi es at G uelph," says Leavens , who holds a degree in rural planning and development. • Glenn "Moon" Morison, BA '83 and MA '86, is a chaplain at the R emand Centre, a maximum-security detention centre in downtow n Winnipeg. H e also holds an adjunct tea ching posi-

Fall 2007 33

tion with the Faculty oiTheology at the University ofWinnipeg. • Ernest Rogers, B.Sc . and BA '85, continued his education at Tuskegee University, w here he earned a DVM in 1991, and at Virginia Tech, where he completed a PhD in 2004. H e has opened M aplewood Anim al Hospital in Maplewood, N .J. , and a scientific consulti ng company called P harmaTec h LLC. H e says:" I miss all those I knew from E ast Residence and my academic programs at Guelph . I have to say, for th e quality of edu cation, friendships and cam pus life, Guelph is by far the best experience I've eve r receive d. Thanks. Anyone w ho wants to contact me, feel free to w rite to painrelieverdo c@comcast.net. Go, Gryphons!"

1990 • Mick B h a ti a, P hD '9 5, delivered a p ublic lec ture at U

of G June 28 titl ed " C haracterization and Future Applications of Human Embryonic Stem C ells." He rece ntly j o ined M cM aster Unive rsity as scientifi c chair of the newly created Cancer and Stem Cell Biology R esearch Institute. His current resea rch is fo cused on human cancer and using human stem cells to understand how cancer begins. H e aims to determi ne how trea tment ca n be revolutionized bas ed on this new know ledge. • Cassie Campbell, BA '97, a form er hockey Gryphon and former captain of the Canadian wo m en 's ho ckey team , w ill be indu cted into Ca nada 's Sp orts Hall of Fame in Octob er. A nati o nal tea m m emb er from 1994 to 2006 and a pioneer in the growth and development of her sport, Campbell w ill be the first wom en 's ice hockey player to be inducted into the hall. She

The Guelph Campus-Co-op by students. for students.

Anna Millar

captained the team from 2002 until her retirem ent foll owing th e team 's seco nd straight O lympic go ld m edal w in in 2006. Oohnson) • Michelle McChristie, B.Sc.(Env.) '97, is the co-publisher of a new magazine, Superior Outdoors, that covers a variety of outdoor pursuits, co nservation issues and adventure travel with a focus on the north shore of Lake Superior. She also works for Indian and Northern Affairs as a senior environ-

m ental advise r. She started th e magazine with her husband, Darren. They have two children and live in Thunder Bay. • Anna Millar, B. Sc. '97 , gai ned bio tec h experie nce at the Mount Sinai R esearch Institute and earned an M .Sc. at the University of Toro nto. She m oved to Lo ndon, England , in 200 1 to do ge neti c resea rch with GlaxoSmithKline. Following a sabb ati cal in 2005 that too k her to Beiji ng to learn M andar in, she res umed h er phar m ace uti cal career w ith GSK's business risk consulting practice. Millar is looki ng eastwa rd again w ith an eye on oppo rtuniti es in Asia. • Eden Thurston, B.Sc . ' 95 and M .Sc. '98, and her husband, John Swatman, B.Sc. '93 and DVM '9 8, live in Ottawa and welcomed th e arrival o f their second child,Jason George, April 13, 2007.Their daughter, Rowan

SWAYS TO HELP U OF G

si nee 1913. 1

Volunteer to speak to grad uating students at Careers Night.

Nominate someone for a UGAA alumni award.

Visit the U of G alumni website once a month: www.alumni. uoguelph .ca.

Host a get-together for your Guelph classmates and fri ends.

Our members opened the first bookstore on campus in johnston Hall, and we continue to serve the best interest of students through the Co-op Bookstore on campu s, and by offering off-campus student hou sing.

Donate Aeroplan miles in September to support stu dent travel for intern ational exchanges, semesters abroad , research or study.

(stories, photos, anecdotes ..-)

Contact Grace Correia at 519-824-4120, Ext. 53901.

THE PoRTI CO

Patricia, turned three on July 14. • Yvonne Wiegers, BA '96, completed a master's degree in fine art at the University of C algary and now lives in the Ottawa area. Sh e travelled to Moscow in March to participate in the second Moscow Biennale of Conte mporary Art. She showed a painting in the "Katoptron," an art exhibition on gender issues in contempo-

rary Ru ssian culture that was presented in a special program for the biennale. 2000 • Heather Buck, BA '00, of N ew Hamburg, O nt., is excited abo ut teaching at an internati o nal school in Wroclaw, Poland, starting in September. • Rachel Flanagan, B.Sc. '03, has returned to U of G 's va rsi-

ty wom en's ice hockey team as assistant coac h . She captained th e team for two of her five years as a Gryphon. After graduation, she earned a bachelor of edu cation at Lakehead University and spent nearly two years in England teaching and coaching. She was also a memb er of the U.K. nati o nal ice hockey team and played at the championships in Sheffi eld, England. A

certified kinesiologist, personal trainer and level-one sports conditi oning specialist, Flanagan currently teaches science at the Hill Academy Sch ool m O rangeville, Ont. • Leonard Jackson, MBA '00, was recently named director of th e hospitality and to urism program at m anagem ent Bethune- C ookman University in Sanford, Fla.

PASSAGES Wilda Bartlett, DHE '47, D ec. 12, 2005 Daniela Belluz-Delorme, BA '80, June 2, 2007 Alejandro Beltran, DVM '98, July 12, 2007 George Blackstock, BSA '55, April16, 2007 Michael Bonner, ADA '70, Jan. 5, 2007 James Borland, ADA '61, Dec. 14, 2006 Edith (Dykes) Brisbane, DHE '42, M ay 12, 2007 Charles Broadwell, BSA '54, March 10,2007 Douglas Brydon, BSA '33, May 25, 2007 William Catton, B.Sc.(Eng.) '84, May 14,2007 Allan Cawley, DVM '52, April1 8, 2007 Perry Cockburn, BSA '54, Feb. 6, 2007 David Dewan, BSA '54, April 22, 2007 Randall Dubien, B.Sc. '82, Nov. 21, 2005 Norah Jean Ellis, DHE '42, May 24, 2007 Ralph Estensen, DVM '67,June 16, 2007 Richard Ezernieks, ODH '64, O ct. 7, 2006 Herbert Flax, AMPHI '86, March 20, 2005 Darrin Frew,ADA '87,June 14, 2007 Robert Gage,ADA '49, May 12, 2007 August Gonnsen, MA '75, Feb. 20,

2007 Francis "Frank" Graham, BSA '37, March 30, 2007 Harry Gunning, H.D.Sc. '69, N ov. 24, 2002 Norman Haist, BSA '46, N ov. 16, 2006 John Hayhoe, BSA '61, June 22, 2007 William Hutt, H.D.Lett. '73,June 27, 2007 John "Jack" James, B.Sc.(Agr.) '72, April 21 , 2007 EdwardJewson,ADA '53, Dec. 31, 2006 William Kennedy, BA '78, Dec. 29, 2006 Edward "Eddie" Kenny, BSA '51, M arch 19, 2007 Norman Kerr, BSA '55, May 28, 2007 Melville Knox, DVM '38, April 6, 2007 Anthony Lavallee, B.Sc.(Eng.) '82, D ec. 9, 2006 Alan Marr, BSA ' 48, April1 0, 2007 Douglas Martin, BSA '39, March 7, 2007 Myrna McGuire, B.H.Sc. '71, O ct. 22, 2006 Robert McKie, BSA '57, Sept. 6, 2006 Archibald McLaren, BSA '55, May 20,2007 William Meredith, BSA '34, Oct. 15, 2006 Kenneth Moore, DVM '64,Jan. 19, 2007 Arthur Peppin, BSA '41, May 14, 2007

Thomas Peters, BSA '48, April 5, 2007 Meeka (Walsh) Pfister, BA '79, Sept. 23, 2006 Pawel "Paul" Sadowski, OVC GD '72, June 20, 2006 Cora Savage, DHE '39, M arch 26, 2007 Glenn Sharpe, B.Sc.(Eng.) '66, Dec. 6, 2006 Kenneth Shaw, BSA '39, Feb. 12, 2007 Julia Shields-Bucher, BA '78, May 18, 2007 Nora Spence, B.Sc. '06, March 26, 2007 Gertrude Stewart, DHE '30, Jan. 23, 2007 Jennifer (Moore) Sztramko, B.A.Sc. '73, April 3, 2006 Ralph Totten, ADA '31, Oct. 21 ,2006 William "Bill"Trenwith,ADA '51, N ov. 16, 2006 William van Diepen, BSA ' 35,July 2, 2007 Ruby (Pridham) Walker, DHE '32, May 4, 2007 Donna Wheeler, B.H.Sc. '67, Feb. 20, 2007 John Wiley, BSA '58, May 3, 2007 Donald Willigan, DVM '52, Aug. 3, 2006 Arthur Willis, BSA '39, July 6, 2007 Sydney Wise, H.D.La. '87, March 8, 2007

FRIEND Kenneth W. Hammond, March 26, 2007, Board of Governors

Fall 2007 35

The University of Guelph Alumni Association {UGAA) Affinity Programs and YOU! The University of Guelph Alumni Association is pleased to offer you a new affinity credit card- the UGAA Mosaik MasterCard- thanks to our recent partnership with BMO Bank of Montreal. ~

Why does the Alumni Association need affinity programs like the UGAA Mosaik MasterCard? The earnings frorn affinity programs are reinvested in the university as well as programs that support alumni and students such as special events, networking opportunities, and scholarship and award programs. With the valuable revenues generated by alumni participation in affinity programs, the UGAA cancontinueto support the university and build quality programs and services for alumni and students.

Why was Mosaik MasterCard chosen to be our affinity credit card? The alumni association endorses products and services that we believe offer real value to our alumni. After ca refully researching all availableoptions, we found that Mosaik MasterCard offers the best value-added proposition in the affinity credit card marketplace. It enables you to customize your credit card to suit your needs. For further information on Mosaik MasterCard, please see the ad on the facing page. To apply, go to mosaikcard.com/offer and enter code GUELPHALU.

Why should I participate in the Mosaik MasterCard program? Mosaik MasterCard isaquality product which offers you customized benefits including achoice of loyalty features such as the AIR MILES Reward Program. Even better, every time you use your card to make apurchase, afinancial contribution is made to the alumni association, which uses the funds to support the university, its alumni and students. It is another way of giving back to your alma mater.

What about the previous University of Guelph MBNA credit card? The University of Guelph no longer has apartnership with MBNA.The only credit card program that provides financial support to the University of Guelph is the UGAA Mosaik MasterCard, exclusively from BMO Bank of Montreal.

How will I be kept informed about our Mosaik MasterCard program? The UGAA and the university regularly contact alumni by mail, e-mail and telephone to present opportunities and information that we feel will be of benefit to you. We have the opportunity to use any ofthese methods to inform you about the UGAA Mosaik MasterCard.

How will my personal information be handled in regard to affinity programs? The university safeguards your personal information at al l times, and it is never released directly to an affinity partner. When you are contacted about this program, it will be through third-party professional marketing organizations who have signed confidentiality agreements. To read afull privacy disclosure statement, please visit alumni.uoguelph.ca/aboutus_privacy.htm.

What if I prefer not to receive affinity program information? What can I do? If you do not wish to be contacted personallyabout our Mosaik MasterCard Affinity Program, please contact the UGAA at 519-824-4120 ext. 56550, toll-free at 1-888-268-3108 or by e-mail at alumni@uoguelph.ca.

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