Issue link: http://publications.winnipegfreepress.com/i/1241346
L E AV E A L E G A C Y ™ M a k i n g a D i f f e r e n c e i n t h e L i v e s t h a t F o l l o w 3 For more information please call Valorie Block at 204.261.6381 or email ValorieBlock@mccmb.ca www.mccmb.ca A gift in your will changes the lives of people affected by conflict, disasters, food and water shortages and climate change around the world. Your legacy gift is a message of love and compassion, a story of hope for a better future. It's your story to tell. leave a legacy Relief, development and peace in the name of Christ " U niversity enabled me to fulfill my potential and aspirations," says John Vail. "That's what I got as a student and what I want to pass on to students now. It's even more important now, during this pandemic, for them to successfully soldier on." John and Audrey Vail followed very different paths in life, but this physicist and lounge performer duo share a strong belief that when you help a student, you help humanity. As a physicist, John studied atomic defects in insulating materials, and most recently, introduced ideas around a new material that can be used in many of our electronics. Audrey, a jazz pianist, made a name for herself performing as "Requestfully Yours" in cocktail lounges across North America in the 1970s. While on the road, Audrey took university courses at every opportunity, eventually graduating with an English degree. "I think higher education gives you a chance to develop who you are," she says. "It contributes to the cultural and intellectual development of mankind," adds John. When it came time to create their wills, the couple looked for ways to give other students the opportunities they themselves were fortunate to have. Audrey suggested they start a scholarship at UM which they could fund in perpetuity through a bequest. The gesture brings John's journey with the University of Manitoba full circle. In high school, he received an Isbister Scholarship to study at UM. Today, as a legacy donor, he is now part of the Isbister Legacy Society, named after the same benefactor who supported him 70 years ago. "I am most proud to be a member of the Isbister Legacy Society." The Isbister Legacy Society recognizes individuals who have informed the University of Manitoba that they have left a gift in their will or established another planned gift benefitting the university. Learn more about the society at umanitoba.ca/giving ❚ Grateful graduates happy to return the favour