Mark Your Calendars

The Classes of 1955 and 1956 met on Tuesday, January 23 at the Le Paradis restaurant in Toronto (which is owned by former UTS student David Currie). In attendance were 12 alumni from the two classes, as well as several of their spouses. Tom Sanderson ’55 arranged the reunion, which provided those in attendance the opportunity to enjoy great conversation and great food more than 60 years after their graduation.

On Friday, June 8, the Class of 1958 gathered at the Rosedale Golf Club in Toronto. The 28 alumni in attendance, including John Wood ’58 and George Carrick ’58, who travelled from British Columbia and California, respectively, created biographies about their lives after UTS to share with classmates. The event, organized by Art Elliot ’58, Doug Davis ’58 and Doug Peter ’58, also featured updates about UTS from Principal Rosemary Evans, Executive Director, Advancement Martha Drake, and Don Schmitt ’70, the architect overseeing the revitalization of the school building.

The Class of 1958 and their spouses and partners.

THURSDAY, NOVEMBER 8

Annual Remembrance Day Assembly

The annual Remembrance Day assembly will take place on Thursday, November 8 at the temporary 30 Humbert Street location of UTS. Join the UTS community in paying tribute to Canada’s veterans.

OCTOBER 17-DECEMBER 7

Keys Gallery

Check out the work of artist TJ Lou ’93 at the Keys Gallery from October 17–December 7. Showing in Room 137 at 371 Bloor Street West.

To RSVP to any of these events, go to www.utschools.ca/rsvp or contact: alumni@utschools.ca. For further information, please call 416-978-3919. DOUG CARTER 1952–2018 Doug Carter ’70 was an accomplished high school athlete, a competitive skier, and an avid cyclist. All of which makes his recent death in a cycling accident that much more tragic. But it was not his lanky athleticism that defined Doug. As his wife Jane observes, “Yes, he loved participating in sports, but if he’d been nothing more, I never would have married him. I wanted someone to debate economic policy, politics, world order, books, and go to the ballet, art gallery, and theatre with me. Doug was that person.”

He had a sunny but not mindless optimism, coupled with a gently persistent persuasiveness and a puckish sense of humour. Where some saw problems, he saw solutions. Where some saw difficulties, he saw opportunities. Doug was that most dangerous of people: an encourager. He gave courage to others. Although he held the position of

Vice President and General Manager at Armtec, his employees saw him not as their superior but as a mentor, someone who brought out the very best in them. When the Terry Fox Centre ran into roadblocks for its planned museum to house Terry’s memorabilia, Doug stepped up and helped to move things forward. In the words of the Chair, Rob Reid, “I know we could not have carried out the vision of this great project without the guidance from Doug.”

As you age, you look back over your life and wonder if it was important that you were here. In Doug’s case, he could point to physical confirmations that it was: the business he built, the planned Terry Fox Centre. And then there is his wonderful family: his wife Jane, their children James and Sarah, and their grandkids Claire, William, and Jeremy, as well as his mother Jeanne Carter.

But there is another confirmation of his importance, in a family’s escape from the cratered rubble of Syria to the privations of a Jordanian refugee camp and, finally, to safety and freedom in Canada. Doug had a finely tuned moral compass that pointed towards compassion and founded the UTS-70 project (see p. 12) to help resettle a Syrian refugee family.

When asked by their future children, the young members of this family will recount a tale that will end, “We were really nervous when we stepped through the airport doorway, but there stood a man with red hair and the warmest smile welcoming us to Canada.” — Bruce Stodart ’70

ROB DOWSETT 1929-2018 In his nearly 89 years, Rob Dowsett ’46, established a remarkable legacy that will endure for decades to come. An accomplished businessman, philanthropist and family figurehead, Rob will be fondly remembered by everyone whose life he touched.

Rob graduated from UTS in 1946 after a distinguished academic and co-curricular career. His classmate Ralph Barford ’46 remembers him as “academically gifted,” particularly in the areas of math and physics. Outside of the classroom, Rob was the captain of the UTS football team. “At 150 pounds soaking wet, he was one of the very best all-time secondary linebackers,” Ralph recalls. “He had grit, determination and courage.”

After graduating, Rob earned his BA in Honours Mathematics and Physics from the University of Toronto’s Victoria College. Later, having already begun his career with Crown Life Insurance Company, he became the youngest person in Canada to receive the designation of actuary. He would eventually assume the role of President and CEO with Crown in 1971. In 1982, he left the company and went on to become Vice-Chairman of William M. Mercer in 1985.

Rob’s contributions to his profession included serving as a founding member of the Canadian Institute of Actuaries, and acting as the organization’s president for two years. He retired in 1995, but continued working as a consultant until months before he passed away.

Although his business career was impressive, Rob’s heart lay in his service to the community. He was a successful fundraiser and generous donor to causes ranging from the McMichael Canadian Art Collection to CAMH to three UTS campaigns. He served on the UTS Alumni Association Board, the UTS Advancement Committee and the Building the Future Campaign Cabinet.

“He engaged himself fully in causes for the public good,” Ralph says. “He was among the best fundraisers I ever met.”

Ralph adds that, despite making a significant impact in so many areas of society, Rob was humble about his accomplishments.

“For a man of such great achievements in all his endeavours, he was amazingly modest, and thrived without the public recognition he could have had.”

If not by the broader public, Rob will forever be held in the highest esteem by his family, friends and the UTS community. STEVE OTTO 1940–2018 Steve Otto ’57 shuffled off this mortal coil on April 22, 2018. His funeral, which packed Trinity College chapel to the gills, had an elegance of word and song that only he could have planned—which of course he did.

Steve studied Commerce at the University of Toronto and History at the University of Oxford, before obtaining his final degree from Harvard Business School. After a brief career in corporate business, Steve joined the Ontario government in a role that focused on preserving the province’s built heritage.

He left a legacy of preserved and re-purposed landmarks, such as Fort York, Fort William, and Toronto’s Distillery District, which will give pride to Torontonians and Ontarians for centuries to come. Steve knew that legacy requires more than worthy buildings and political will. It requires cold, hard cash. He was an exemplary contributor to causes important to him — including a longstanding record of generosity to UTS. A few weeks before his death, Governor General Julie Payette pinned the Order of Canada medal to his lapel, celebrating over 40 years in the struggle to preserve Ontario’s built heritage.

Steve never married, but he danced his way through Christmas and March break formals with every girl, most of whom later complained to their dates about how much better a dancer he was. Known at UTS as a superb swimmer, he maintained strong ties with the school throughout his life. He served as the default coordinator of our class reunions for decades, and in between kept us informed about marriages, divorces, kids, careers, and last rites. He was a stellar uncle and godfather and a great friend. He initiated contact and got grumpy if you did not get to Toronto regularly. He always offered a bed and elegant home-cooked meals. In return, one had only to endure hours of play-by-play about friends, family and, of course, heritage. Always a good bargain.

When I last visited Steve in early

February, he knew his days were closely numbered. We reminisced a bit, but he had work to do: negotiating the publication of his final book on early Ontario architecture and preparing his Gladstone and Disraeli memorabilia for shipment to a goddaughter in England.

Heritage to the end.

— Doug Ward ’57

KATE TILEY 1967–2018 “TA NA SA MA.” Life Death Rebirth Eternity.

This chant was one of a great number of the tributes made with heavy hearts to our beloved Kate Miriam Tiley. With the sound of song and poetry, the smell of white sage smudge in the air, and tearful words of remembrance and celebration, hundreds of those who knew her — family, friends, colleagues, students, and her parents — gathered in Toronto and in Powell River, BC to honour Kate.

An exceptional woman of character, kindness, dedication, and talent who touched so many, Kate will be missed yet continues to inspire so many of us. Her example was to live life with joy and integrity. She was grateful, loving, and deeply loved. She studied, read, and traveled to develop her intellect and languages, yet was most moved by the good people she came to know through her diverse life experiences. And such a beautiful human being, inside and out. So much more could be said if words could be found. Another tribute invited us to imagine taking her by the hand, walking her toward the light, telling her we are okay, and that she can fly on angel wings.

—Robert Mackle (UTS Faculty, 1988-2011)

After a most successful practicum with us in the UTS Languages Department in 1989, Kate joined UTS in 1991. A brilliant linguist, Kate was a truly gifted, creative, hardworking, and passionate French teacher.

Kate was deeply committed to her students, always finding new methods and original and authentic teaching materials to enrich and deepen their learning experience. Mengting Qiu ’14 is grateful to Kate for “first being exposed to and falling in love with French theatre, and for inspiring me to continue studying French literature.”

Moreover, Kate made the classroom a happy place, with her great sense of humour, mischievous smile, and sunny personality. Matthew Sohm ’02 reminisces: “She was truly alive, all the time, and I will always remember her sense of playful curiosity and inquisitiveness.”

A generous and caring spirit, Kate was also very attentive to her students’ wellbeing, helping and supporting them in and outside the classroom regardless of the time of day. As Raphaela Neihausen ’95 wrote, “She left such a strong and lasting impression on me and I still vividly remember her energy, warmth, curiosity, and kindness.”

Sunny, caring and generous. Among Kate’s numerous qualities, those are the ones I think about every day; they warm my heart and my soul, and they help me with my grief and my deep sense of loss. Kate was not just an exceptional teacher; she was also a wonderful friend. She forged lifelong friendships and met her soulmate Robert Mackle at UTS. She touched and inspired so many of us, and her sunshine will live within us forever. —Carole Bernicchia-Freeman (UTS Faculty, 1988-2014)

What will you do? To designate UTS in your will or as a designation for memorial gifts, please contact Martha Drake, Executive Director, Advancement. 416-946-0097 mdrake@utschools.ca