Legacy Awards

Spring 2003,
Volume 24, Number 1

The first annual Legacy Awards will be presented by the UVic Alumni Association and UVic Athletics and Recreational Services at a special dinner and presentation on Monday, November 4 at the Fairmont Empress Hotel and hosted by CH television’s Hudson Mack and Stacy Ross. Net proceeds will support student scholarships and athletic awards.

Eve Egoyan (BMus ’85)
Raised in an artistically talented family, Eve Egoyan began playing the piano at a neighbour’s house at the age of 11 and is now considered among Canada’s finest pianists. Based in Toronto, she specializes in modern compositions—many of which have been written by fellow UVic music grads. “I want to be in the present and I want to re-invent the instrument,” she says. “It has only been in the last 100 years where musicians have been totally disconnected from the music of their time. The kind of attention that people give to books is the same thing I’d like to re-acquaint people with—as far as the act of listening.” Egoyan has studied at the Banff Centre of Fine Arts, the Hochschule der Kunste of Berlin and at the Royal Academy of Music in London. She has performed across Canada and as a soloist in national and international festivals.

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Walter McLean (Victoria College ’55)

Walter McLean (Victoria College ’55)
The Hon. Rev. Walter McLean has enjoyed a long and distinguished career as a pastor, politician, diplomat and corporate executive. “Global thinking” is one of his favourite phrases and it’s a view he traces to his formative years in Victoria (his father was a church minister with African and Asian contacts) and the multicultural environment at Victoria College. In 1962, he became the first CUSO co-ordinator in Nigeria. “The kind of perspectives (that came from working in Africa), I’ve never lost.” When he was first elected to parliament in 1979 (Waterloo), McLean was the only MP who had lived anywhere in the developing world, becoming the ranking member of parliament’s foreign affairs committee. A delegate to the UN, he built on his background and during the “evil empire” period, he and other MPs crossed party lines to try to persuade the global superpowers to talk about lowering the nuclear arms build up.

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Erich Mohr MSci (’80; PhD ’82)

Erich Mohr MSci (’80; PhD ’82)
An expert in experimental therapeutics for central nervous system disorders, Erich Mohr is the Victoria-based chief scientific officer of PRA International (formerly CroMedica Global) one of the top five global clinical drug development organizations. Mohr came to UVic for his graduate studies based on the reputation of its neuropsychology program. “It was a very academically stimulating environment. We were always pushed to the limit,” he recalls. His decision in 1995 to found CroMedica in Victoria was two-fold. “We felt a growing international company ought to have a home the West since most biotech research is in the San Diego to Vancouver corridor. We also wanted a highly attractive place to live and attract staff.” The unofficial reason for coming to Victoria is that Mohr’s wife—whom he met at UVic—is from the city. “It was a wonderful opportunity to come home.”

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David Lai Professor, Department of Geography
For better than 34 years, Dr. David Lai has shared his knowledge of Asian culture and history with countless students who have become inevitably inspired by his wit and honesty. He presents engaging lectures with photos, films and videos from his vast personal collection. He leads field trips to Victoria’s Chinatown and the Chinese Cemetery (he has been instrumental in helping to preserve the heritage of both). Lai sees himself as a “transformer” helping students examine cultural issues from Western and non-Western points of view. A class on China may examine not only geography but also Chinese history, culture, politics and spiritual values. He has established—with the help of the Chinese community—13 awards, scholarships and travel grants to promote the further study of China, overseas Chinese, and Chinatowns. So, his students are encouraged to adhere to the Chinese saying, “To travel 10,000 miles is better than to study 10,000 volumes of books.”

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Gareth Rees Rugby, (BA ’91)
Gareth Rees was twice named UVic Athlete of the Year and went on to a storied athletic career. “Canada’s gift to rugby,” in one writer’s estimation, he is the country’s all-time leading point scorer, and led Canada to four World Cup tournaments—something never before done by any other player. “Being a kid who grew up in Victoria, obviously I played my rugby at UVic but before that I came to soccer camps. I came to see the great basketball teams that Ken and Kathy Shields produced,” says Rees. “So UVic as a community sports centre was really important to me. To put on a UVic jersey and play for the Vikes was a huge reward.” After graduating from UVic, Rees played professionally in England, earned his Masters from Oxford and was a history teacher and rugby coach at prestigious Eton College. He has returned home to serve as executive director of Rugby Canada.

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Kathy Shields Basketball
Kathy Shield’s record speaks for itself. In 21 years of coaching Vikes women’s basketball, she has compiled a regular season record of 320 wins against only 50 losses. Since 1979, her first season with the Vikes, Shields has coached an unprecedented eight Canadian Interuniversity Sport national championship teams, was named CIS Coach of the Year three times and in 1999-00 received the 3M Coaching Award for Excellence. In addition to her coaching responsibilities at UVic, she has served as head coach and assistant coach for the Canadian national women’s team. The impact of her abilities can be found in other ways, too. Throughout the CIS there are three of her former players and assistant coaches currently serving as head coaches for university teams. Possibly the most respected coach in Canadian Women’s basketball, Shields is responsible for a legacy of excellence at UVic, one that will last for many years.

Ken Shields Basketball
Ken Shields was the Vikes men’s basketball coach from 1978 to 1989, in which time his teams won an incredible seven consecutive CIS Championships and he earned four CIS Coach of the Year awards. A former national team program director and head coach, Shields holds a Master Coach certificate from the Coaching Association of Canada. In 1998, he was named a member of the Order of Canada, and in 1999 was inducted into the Canadian Basketball Hall of Fame. Known as the most successful coach in the history of Canadian university basketball, he has dedicated his life to the development of Canada’s athletes and coaches. He was instrumental in establishing the National Coaching Institute at UVic, and was the founding president of the Commonwealth Centre for Sport Development. Shields’ commitment and dedication to the country’s premier athletic programs has been invaluable in building excellence in Canadian sports.

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Lorne Loomer Rowing
Lorne Loomer graduated from Nelson High School in 1954 after a distinguished school rowing career. He attended the University of British Columbia and was selected to compete in the 1956 Canadian Olympic trials. Loomer, along with his three team-mates, astounded the rowing world when they went on to claim Olympic gold in the 1956 Melbourne Games. In the following four years, Loomer would add a gold medal at the 1958 Commonwealth Games and silver at the 1960 Rome Olympics to his list of accomplishments. It was with this remarkable experience that Loomer built the UVic rowing program—a program that today reflects his determination, competitiveness and his success.

Wally Milligan Soccer
Wally Milligan, now deceased, had a long association with soccer in the Victoria community. He was a member of the 1951-52 Victoria United Soccer Club, which captured the Pacific Coast Soccer League championship. After a successful playing career, Milligan turned to coaching where he served as the founding coach of the University of Victoria men’s soccer team, a position he held from 1964 until 1971. Milligan’s outstanding dedication and contributions to the university soccer program were acknowledged with a special award presented to him by his former players during the Vikes alumni soccer weekend in 1998.