Recognizing Trent’s Loyal Family of Donors on National Philanthropy Day
The Trent University community celebrated National Philanthropy Day at the new Student Centre with inspiring speakers and lively music. This year’s guests, who have made donating to Trent a priority for collectively over 459 years, were treated to performances by Unity and student band, Modest Apollo, and two guest speakers who reinforced the importance and impact of philanthropy.
“Trent required people with a vision. It’s not enough to dream, you have to roll up your sleeves and be committed to do all the purposeful things to make a dream a reality,” explained alumnus, proud parent, donor and member of Trent’s advancement committee, Gavin Marshall ’76 who spoke at the morning event. “All the people that came before me gave me that opportunity. They were the ones who built the portal that I walked through and the most impactful important investment any of us can make is in the leaders and architects of tomorrow.”
Following Mr. Marshall’s heartfelt words, guests heard from Tessa Smith, a first-year Trent student studying English Literature and Gender & Women's Studies, who spoke about how the generosity of others has impacted her life. Ms. Smith is one of this year’s prestigious Board of Governors scholarship recipients. She is a two-time cancer survivor, a Terry-Fox and SickKids ambassador, a motivational speaker, philanthropist, journalist, model, poet, and self-described “go-getter” and was an inspiration to all attendees.
Sherry Booth, the director of philanthropy at Trent, thanked the wonderful giving community and looked forward to unleashing the vibrant learning culture that will help students flourish as engaged, critical thinkers that are socially conscious, committed to environmental sustainability and so much more.”
The National Philanthropy Day event highlighted the Bata Library transformation and how it will strengthen what Trent is known for – a collaborative learning environment. Trent’s library of the future will ensure students, faculty, and staff can meet future demands around technology and new models of educational delivery.
The Bata Library project is part of Trent University’s $50 Million Campaign Unleash the Potential, the University’s most ambitious philanthropic campaign to date. Funding for the $18 million project includes a $1 million gift for David and Joan Moore, $8.1 million from the federal and provincial government, university contributions and a fundraising target of $700,000. Please join us in the Bata fundraising efforts by visiting trentu.ca/give to help continue to make Trent University a transformative institution known for world-class research and teaching excellence.
Posted on November 16, 2017