LAURENTIAN UNIVERSITY MAGAZINE FOR ALUMNI & FRIENDS FALL 2006 Famous champion races home FUTURE OF LU A decade of healing Building a house – one bale at a time Congratulations! Your degree and graduation photos are symbols of years of hard work. Publisher Editor Metal Frame Associate Editor Blue mat with gold inlay Design/Layout Degree $45.00 8 x 10 Portrait $40.00 Additional 5 x 7 Portrait $30.00 Contributors Package A $100.00 Package B $70.00 Package C $ 60.00 Translation Wood Frame Blue mat with gold inlay Photographs Degree $65.00 8 x 10 Portrait $50.00 5 x 7 Portrait $40.00 Package A $140.00 Printer Package B $100.00 Special Package C $90.00 thanks to Briarwood Frame Editorial Blue mat with gold inlay Advisory Board Degree $95.00 8 x 10 Portrait $70.00 5 x 7 Portrait $55.00 Package A $205.00 Laurentian University Package B $150.00 Alumni Association Package C $135.00 (LUAA) Board of Directors Diplomat Frame Blue mat with gold inlay Degree $135.00 8 x 10 Portrait $80.00 5 x 7 Portrait $65.00 Package A $265.00 Package B $200.00 Package C $185.00 Diplomat Plus Frame Blue suede mat with gold wood fillet Degree $155.00 Package A: Degree Frame, 8 x 10 Portrait & 5 x 7 Portrait Package B: Degree Frame & 8 x 10 Portrait Package C: Degree Frame & 5 x 7 Portrait Shipping and Handling $20.00 TO ORDER Contact Alumni Relations with your name, address, daytime phone number, MasterCard or Visa number and expiry date, along with frame type(s) and size. Tel: (705) 675-4818 Fax: (705) 671-3825 Email: [email protected] Laurentian University Alumni Relations 935 Ramsey Lake Road, Sudbury ON P3E 2C www.alumni.laurentian.ca LAURENTIAN UNIVERSITY MAGAZINE FOR ALUMNI & FRIENDS inside Publisher Tamás Zsolnay, University A HOUSE OF STRAW 8 Advancement, Laurentian University A grad and his partner experience the Editor Shirley Moore joy (and pain) of building their own Associate Editor Laura Young environmentally friendly house. Design/Layout Melanie Laquerre JoAnn Wohlberg Additional Craig Gilbert Contributors Greg Hoddinott Carrie Ivardi 12 THE RETURN OF THE Kevin Roche OLYMPIC CHAMPION Judith Woodsworth Alex Baumann comes home to save Canada Translation Michelle Lejars* from disaster at the Summer Olympics. Mots pour Maux Photographs Mike Dupont Kim Leger-Frawley Mary-Catherine Taylor 14 Brent Wohlberg LIGHTNING AND LADDERS Printer Dollco Printing How one grad is climbing the corporate ladder of a Stanley Cup winning team. Special Suzanne Chartrand, Ray Coutu, thanks to Sylvie Chrétien-Makela, Lise Nastuk, Guylaine Tousignant Editorial Phil Andrews* Advisory Board Lindsay Crysler Rejean Grenier 16 Tanya Hutchings* THE FUTURE OF EDUCATION Marko Roy* What Laurentian could look like in a few Mike Whitehouse* years from now. Laurentian University Andrew Battistoni* Alumni Association Rick Bellrose* ** (LUAA) Albert Corradini* Board of Directors Lisa Demers-Brooks* ** Madeleine Dennis* ** Tracey Duguay* Suzanne Fortin* Todd Frawley* Claude Lacroix* In every issue Linda Morel* Victoria Pownall Gisele Roberts* ** Editor’s message and correspondance. 2 LETTERS Daniel Robidaux* Bradley Stewart* Campus happenings including 3 LATEST Robert Thirkill* new history book, new buildings, David Throssell* new PhD and events. Jacques Tremblay* David White* (president) Test your knowledge of 5 QUIZ *graduates of Laurentian University **also serve on the Editorial Advisory Board Laurentian for great prizes. The views expressed in this magazine do not necessarily reflect official positions of the LUAA or News from the academic 18 DEPARTMENTS Laurentian University. departments and new books. Laurentian University Magazine is published three times per year by the Office of University Advancement. News from your alumni 20 CONNECTIONS Circulation: 25,000 ISSN 1489-5781 association including reunions, Publications Mail Agreement Number 40063502 chapters and events. Return undeliverable Canadian addresses to: University Advancement Laurentian University Alumni updates, grads in 25 NOTEBOOK 935 Ramsey Lake Road the news and profiles: Sudbury ON P3E 2C6 • Model Parliament reunion Advertising, inquiries and address updates can be directed to • Grad donates bursary [email protected] or 705-675-1151 x4120. • Alumni fosters spirituality For alumni inquiries, please contact Alumni Relations at 705-675-4818. Remembering our roots. 32 MEMORIES Making a cover story out of straw FROM THE EDITOR, SHIRLEY MOORE LETTERS We’ve AFFECTIONATELY To the editor: DUBBED this issue “from Thank you for taking on the challenge of writing about the lock- straw to suits” around the out and the lawsuit, and for providing a fair and balanced article office. That’s because we have [summer 2006]. The Neuroscience Research Group and all of its such a wide variety of grads dedicated researchers take animal welfare concerns very seriously in this issue from the famous, and have made every effort to address them in a compassionate, to the corporate, to the not- reasonable and scientific manner. so-famous but fascinating. We wish to further emphasize that there were no animal welfare issues at the Paul Field Animal Care Facility. It just goes to show, you don’t have to be high-profile or Our students and graduates have gone on to become students, doc- have attracted a lot of ink tors, researchers, and professors in world-renowned institutes such in order to get on the front as the University of Toronto, Cambridge University, Baylor College cover of a magazine. of Medicine and the Hospital for Sick Kids in Toronto. The Neurosci- ence Research Group has been conducting valuable and published In fact, there are two main reasons we chose “straw-bale” for the experiments for many years in diverse fields such as obesity, epilepsy, and neonatal development. We are still hoping for a speedy resolu- cover: because it’s timely given the fact that concerns about global tion through the courts, arbitration and appeals systems, as with warming are getting a lot of press these days and it peaks interest. every additional week that researchers are prevented access, learn- ing experience, discoveries and knowledge are lost. As a rule, we usually leave the cover choice until the final weeks of production, so we’re better able to judge how our feature Vivien Hoang, Sudbury, ON stories are panning out, and we’re better able to take the pulse of Editor’s note: As of publication time, this lawsuit was still before the our audience as we release the magazine. To me, timeliness is next courts. Any statements that relate to the suit have not been proven in to godliness, and if we can finalize our decision closer to press- court. time, we’re better able to see how certain stories will resonate with our readers. Letters to the editor I usually have two or three possibilities for the cover as we go We love hearing your take on stories we publish in the magazine. through the production process, and I like to try them out on If you would like to write a letter to the editor, please address it the designers, the writers and other people I meet. Anecdotally, to [email protected] and include your name, the city where “straw bale” was very well received. People I had spoken to hadn’t you live and your telephone number (phone numbers will not be heard much about the phenomenon of building homes using published). straw as insulation and how it cuts down on heating bills. It’s an Please note that letters are published at the discretion of the editor interesting look at how one couple is trying to do their part for and are subject to fact-checking and editing. the environment. It comes at a time of news stories about the an- ticipated collapse of global fish stocks, British Prime Minister Tony Blair’s cautions about how climate change will affect economies, the documentary on former American vice-president Al Gore’s TAKE YOUR PLACE warnings of how quickly global warming could occur, and the controversy surrounding the federal Conservatives’ new plan on IN THE SUN air pollution. I admire Pierre Harrison and Susanne Leffler, the builders of the Do you have a story idea for us? Do you know of a grad doing some- straw-bale home. They are doing more than just their “own little thing “very cool”? Are you doing something “even cooler”? bit” to help the environment, and they should be commended. It’s We’re always interested in what grads are doing. Here are some pos- not only an honour to be included on the cover of a magazine, it’s sible themes we plan to cover in the future: grads who have unique a statement about what people care about. jobs and grads who are working outside North America in “exotic” places. If you know of anyone who fits the bill, drop us a line at [email protected] . 2 LAURENTIAN fall 2006 LATEST new centre aiming for platinum An architectural drawing of the Living with Lakes Centre by JL Richards and Associates and world-renowned architects Busby, Perkins + Will. Planned research centre strives “The building will live off the water The LEED structure was adapted to win prestigious environmental falling on the building and site,” said from a similar rating system developed Wakelin. “The air and water pollutants by the U.S. Green Building Council. designation coming from the site will be zero. The According to John Johansen, public building itself will be a living labora- relations manager with Busby, Perkins BY CARRIE IVARDI tory that continually monitors its own + Will, the American system has been A leading-edge environmental research performance.” in place for five years and in Canada centre being developed at Laurentian is for two or three years.