Published by the University of British Columbia Alumni Association the Magazine of the University of British Columbia Fall 2003
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The Magazine of the University of British Columbia Fall 2003 Published by The University of British Columbia Alumni Association The Magazine of the University of British Columbia Editor Christopher Petty, mfa’86 Designer Chris Dahl Assistant Editor Vanessa Clarke Board of Directors President Jane Hungerford, bed’67 5 Take Note Senior VP Martin Ertl, bsc’93 Past President Gregory Clark, bcom’86, llb’89 16 Marshall Lawrence Alton Smith Treasurer David Elliott, bcom’69 Challenge, courage and strength. A personal remembrance Members at Large ’02 – ’04 Darlene Marzari, msw’68 of a remarkable man. By Don Wells Colin Smith, basc’65 18 Music in the Morning Members at Large ’03 – ’05 Raquel Hirsch, ba’80, mba’83 June Goldsmith has brought classical music to a whole new Mark Mawhinney, ba’94 audience, with morning coffee. By Vanessa Clarke Doug Robinson, bcom’71, llb’72 Acting Executive Director 21 UBC Builds a City Leslie Konantz The new university town will create a new vibe on campus, Editorial Committee and a big endowment in the bank. By Chris Petty Vanessa Clarke Chris Dahl Sid Katz 38 Achievement Award Winners Scott Macrae, ba’71 We show off this year’s roster of achievers. Christopher Petty Herbert Rosengarten 55 Cecil Green Remembered Trek (formerly the UBC Alumni Chronicle) is The co-founder of Texas Instruments liked UBC. A lot. published three times a year by the UBC Alumni Association and distributed free of charge to UBC alumni and friends. Opinions expressed in the magazine do not necessarily reflect the views of the Alumni Association or the university. Letters to the editor are welcome. Address 26 Letters correspondence to: 28 The Arts Christopher Petty, Editor UBC Alumni Association, 6251 Cecil Green Park Road, 30 Books Vancouver, bc, Canada v6t 1z1 32 Alumni Events or send e-mail to [email protected] Letters will be published at the editor’s discretion and may be edited for space. 42 Class Acts For advertising rates and information, contact the editor at 604-822-8914. 46 In Memoriam Contact Numbers at UBC Address Changes 604-822-8921 e-mail [email protected] Alumni Association 604-822-3313 toll free 800-883-3088 Trek Editor 604-822-8914 ubc Info Line 604-822-4636 Alma Mater Society 604-822-9098 Campus Tours 604-822-8687 Continuing Studies 604-822-1444 Development Office 604-822-8900 Library 604-822-6375 Registrar 604-822-3014 Left: UBC aerial view, 1925 Belkin Gallery 604-822-2759 Right: UBC Womens’ Field Hockey Team 1929 Bookstore 604-822-2665 Chan Centre 604-822-2697 Frederic Wood Theatre 604-822-2678 Museum of Anthropology 604-822-5087 Volume 56, Number 3 Printed in Canada by Mitchell Press issn 0824–1279 Canadian Publications Mail Product Sales Agreement # 40063528 Cover photograph: Bridgeman Studios Fall 2003 Trek 3 legacY } able backlog. This issue catches us up and empties our “overset” Two of the many clichés used in university promotion are, “A university is only as good as its alumni,” and “A great university obits. produces great alumni.” Slightly contradictory, they never appear Another reason for the volume is that our graduate base is get- together, but both usually precede florid exposition (I know, I’ve ting older. Those men and women who flooded into the university written some) on an alumnus who has gained fantastic fame after World War ii are now in their 70s and 80s, and the first wave and fortune. Of course, it’s impossible to know how much the of the baby boomers is pushing 60. Sadly, our graduates are dying university had to do with it – did the Eidgenössische Technische in larger numbers. Hochschule create Einstein? – but taking credit by association is But that’s just demographics. From purely a reader’s point of no sin. view, we publish so many long obituaries because the stories they What we sometimes miss in our rush to lionize the big hitters is tell are compelling. We only wish we could make them longer. that everyone who passes through our university is a noteworthy Read about George McKee, bcom’46, Master Mariner, for person. Every life, no matter how outwardly dull, is full of drama, instance. He attended UBC in the ’30s, when he could afford it, emotion, turmoil, hilarity, success, sadness and joy. Part of the spending the rest of his time working at sea. In 1944, as navigator function of Trek Magazine is to reflect on some of those lives, on hmcs St. Catharines, he was involved in the longest submarine especially in death. chase of the war. This issue contains nine pages in the In Memoriam section and Or Al Walisser, basc’50, born in the Ukraine, brought up in three more pages of features about recently deceased members of Alberta, pilot of a fighter in the war. He came to UBC as a war vet, the UBC community, one of whom, Cecil Green, was a certifiable became a civil engineer and, for 25 years, had a hand in transform- star in the business world. We’ve never before dedicated so much ing the Lower Mainland building the Granville Bridge, miles of space to obituaries. freeway in the Valley and the Horseshoe Bay terminal. We are publishing all these obituaries for a number of reasons: Every death is a tragedy, but none more so than the death of our policy of printing longer pieces means we can’t always print all someone who still had the vigour and purpose of youth. Eileen the obits we get; and not printing all we get results in an unaccept- Gojevic, bed’82, dip.ed’92, med’02, worked at Woodward’s while she earned degrees at UBC and had a family. Her passion for teach- The first annual general assembly, September, 1925: the university was still waiting for delivery of the auditorium seats, so students were forced to sit on the floor. ing shone through her life. Or Judy Reimer, bsn’83, who took the news of her breast cancer and turned it into an affirmation of life. Her Life Quilt project left a legacy of hope that helps cancer suffer- ers across Canada. Obituaries generally cover the basics only. It’s often what they don’t say, but merely allude to, that calls out for more. Each one could be a book. This issue is about legacy. Each of the lives you read about in the obituaries created, in their own small way, the world we live in today, and reflects to some degree the quality of the education they received here. The clichés are true. Our main feature, “UBC Builds a City,” is an in-depth look at the university’s plans to build a University Town on campus. Its legacy will be both physical and financial. With our regular sections of research-oriented and other news about campus life, alumni events, book reviews and class notes, we hope you enjoy this issue. – Chris Petty MFA’86 Editor 4 Trek Fall 2003 Photograph: UBC Archives TAKE NOTE New Deans Join the Fray nnThe faculties of Law, Medicine and Science have new deans beginning with this academic year. Mary Anne Bobinski, dean of Law, comes to UBC from the University of Houston Law Center, where she was a professor and director of the Health Law and Policy Institute. Under her leadership, the Institute regularly topped the rankings by U.S. News and World Report for health law programs in the US. She is the first non-UBC appoint- ment to the position of dean. Dean of Medicine Gavin Stuart was head of Oncology at the University of Calgary, and a noted clinician and researcher in ovarian and cervical can- cers. He will be responsible for the new medical education program that will involve satellite schools around the prov- ince (called the “distributed model”) and will double the number of medical grads by 2010. John Hepburn, current head of UBC’s department of Chemistry, was named dean of Science, effective in November. He is known Mary Anne Bobinski UBC’s new Dean of Law, an expert on health law, comes from the University of Houston. internationally for his research in laser spectroscopy and laser chemistry. He joined UBC in 2001. The Tinman Wants a Heart that has intrigued humans for generations, Moira Quayle, dean of Agriculture, nnWouldn’t it be great if every house- with artistic representations ranging from and Michael Isaacson, dean of Applied hold could have its own robot – a metal b-movie, sardine-can creations to Star Science, were re-appointed for second servant to complete all those unsavory Trek’s Data. But the transition from imagi- terms. household chores without a beep of com- nation to reality has not occurred much plaint? Or, in a nobler vein, wouldn’t it beyond industrial robots that are put to Correction be great if sophisticated robots could be use on the factory floor – and it’s not as if nnIn the Spring 2003 issue of Trek, we put to use helping the elderly maintain these are able to put the kettle on or sweep told you the new director of the UBC independence? Or minimizing some of the up. Far from interactive, industrial robots Botanical Garden is Walter Cronk. We limitations faced by the disabled? are more likely to be enclosed with a paint- lied. In fact his name is Quentin Cronk. The notion of the robot is something ed yellow hazard line and programmed Photograph: Martin Dee to shut down if anyone crossesFall 2003 it. Trek 5 TAKE NOTE acc ESSI B ILI T Y I S O U R S T RE N G th to shut down if anyone crosses it.