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Small, mightybusinesses

30 YEARS ON SPY HILLSAIT’S 2013 ALUMNI AWARDS RECIPIENTS

ALUMNI IN THIS ISSUE: KERRY BENNETT (PCK ’08), ERICH BINDER (ACT ‘74, DA ‘00), CRISTI BIRCH (GNT ‘10), AL BROWNE (HRA ‘72, DA ‘08), HEATHER CULBERT (DA ‘03, CT’79), STEFAN DALBERG (MET ‘2011), VIC CLOSE (BA ‘75), TERRY DENOMME (JA ‘96), BRAD DIGGENS (APBP ‘79), JENNIFER DIGGENS (HRA ’06), MELANIE GUKERT (TC ’00, MKT ’04), RUPERT GARCIA (PCK ‘12), STAN GRAD (PT ‘66, DA ‘95), KYLE GROVES (ACKP ‘05), PAUL HERN (CID ‘04), KAREN HUMPHREY (VC ‘85), SHIVA JAHANSHAH (CTSR ‘03, OYA ‘11), PATRICK JARVIS (PET ‘81), JOANNE JOHNSON (TSR ‘82), KEN KING (EMTP ‘82, DA ‘89), GORDON LLOYD (ACPP ‘85), SYD LOEPPKY (SVT ’65, DA ’93), ADAM LORIA (EMTP ‘05), JANICE MOORE (BA ‘98), BRAD MORRISON (CKP ‘97), PAT MORROW (JA ‘73, DA ‘10), JIM NIKKEL (EDT ‘11), DESMOND NWAERONDU (BA ‘06, OYA ‘12), SHANE RENNIE (PBP ‘98), PATRICIA ROKOSH (EDT ‘84), AL SHORT (APT ’99, DA ’04), ROBIN STICKLEY (CTSR ‘98), ED TICKLES (EET ‘60, DA ‘94), JAY WESTMAN (BA ‘84, DA ‘98)

WINTER 2014

A PUBLICATION FORSAIT POLYTECHNICALUMNI

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18

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FEATURES

Exceptional alumnae 10SAIT’s 2013 Alumni Awards

recipients are distinctly different women who have in common an

uncommon community spirit. WRITTEN BY | JULIE SENGL

SAITrepreneurs 18Meet four SAIT alumni who have

built successful businesses through entrepreneurial savvy and

sweat equity. WRITTEN BY | MICHELLE WOODARD

Schooled on Spy Hill 24Meet the SAIT instructor who has served almost 30 years at

the Calgary Correctional Centre, teaching inmates to craft hope for

their futures. WRITTEN BY | CAROLYNN SEMENIUK

SHARED COMMUNITY

3 LINK NEWS & VIEWSPeople, programs, partners and

perks on campus

8 LINK CAMPUSYou are what you tweet

31 LINK INSPIRATIONAlumni in the community

39 INNOVATIONApplied research and innovations

THEN AND NOW

42 CALENDAR OF EVENTS

44 FLASHBACK

45 ACHIEVEMENTS

46 CLASS NOTES

48 FIRST PERSONThe ability to succeed

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ON THE COVERKerry Bennett (PKC ‘08) has good reason for looking this pleased. Her Care Bakery gluten free buns give their wheat flour competitors a run for their money.

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Small, mightybusinesses

30 YEARS ON SPY HILLSAIT’S 2013 ALUMNI AWARDS RECIPIENTS

ALUMNI IN THIS ISSUE: KERRIE BENNET (PKC ’08), ERICH BINDER (ACT ’74, DA ’00), CRISTI BIRCH (GNT ’10), AL BROWNE (HRA ’72, DA ‘08),

HEATHER CULBERT (DA ‘03, CT’79), STEFAN DALBERG (MET ‘2011), VIC CLOSE (BA ’75), TERRY DENOMME (JA ’96), BRAD DIGGENS (APBP

’79), JENNIFER DIGGENS (HMGT ‘06), MELANIE GUKERT (TVT ’00, BAMK ’04), RUPERT GARCIA (PCK ‘12), STAN GRAD (PT ’66, DA ‘95 ),

KYLE GROVES (ACKP ‘05), PAUL HERN (CID ’04), KAREN HUMPHREY (VC ’85), SHIVA JAHANSHAH (CTSR ’03, OYA ’11), PATRICK JARVIS

(PET ’81), JOANNE JOHNSON (TSR ’82), KEN KING (EMTP ’82, DA ’89), GORDON LLOYD (ACPP ’85), SYD LEOPPKY (SVT ’65, DA ’93), ADAM

LORIA (EMTP ’05), JANICE MOORE (BA ‘98), BRAD MORRISON (CKP ‘97), PAT MORROW (JA ’73, DA ’10), JIM NIKKEL (EDT ’11), DESMOND

NWAERONDU (BA ’06, OYA ’12), SHANE RENNIE (PBP ‘98), PATRICIA ROKOSH (EDT ‘84), AL SHORT (BAPT ’99 DA ’04), ROBIN STICKLEY

(CTSR ’98), ED TICKLES (EET ’60, DA ’94), JAY WESTMAN (BA ’84, DA ’98)

WINTER 2014

A PUBLICATION FORSAIT POLYTECHNICALUMNI

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The day SAIT’s alumni stayed home.IT’S A “WHAT IF?” CONVERSATION we’ve had over coffee in our office. What if no SAIT grads went to work one day?

Imagine all the services and businesses that would cease to function: Hospitals and emergency services (no SAIT respiratory therapists, EMTs and x-ray technologists); garages and auto body shops (no SAIT service technicians or painters); restaurants and hotels (no SAIT trained chefs, bakers and hospitality professionals); oil and gas industry companies (no SAIT petroleum engineering technologists or land administrators); and media (no SAIT journalists or photojournalists), to name just a few, would all feel the void. The footprint of the occupations in our SAIT alumni family is staggering.

I was reminded of this game as I looked over this issue of LINK, in which we plumb the depth and breadth of occupations in our SAIT community.

On page 18, we meet SAIT alumni who’ve ventured into small business and who highlight the range of skills among our graduates. We introduce you to the entrepreneurs behind a gluten free commercial bakery, an architectural modeling firm, a pet clay impressions shop and virtual office administrator service.

Thomas Lucaszuk, Alberta’s Deputy Premier

at the time, touched upon the value of this range of occupations when he spoke at SAIT’s 25th annual alumni awards celebration last fall. On page 15, you’ll find his official letter thanking SAIT’s alumni for their role in the response and recovery after the Southern Alberta floods last June. In this feature, we also meet this year’s award recipients whose occupations — radio personality and geomatics project coordinator — are completely distinct, but whose heart for their communities provide common ground for success.

In our Innovation section, we explore the diversity of SAIT’s applied research projects from soil remediation methods to improved respiratory devices. In detailing this work, we illustrate the scope of SAIT’s researchers, and tip our hand to the reasons why SAIT was selected as Canada’s Top Research college this year (see page 6).

Underlying this “what if” conversation is our pride in the value our grads serve in their communities everyday. We hope you will stay in touch with us and keep us informed about your role in the community as one of SAIT’s accomplished graduates.

BRIAN BOWMAN

DIRECTOR, ALUMNI AND DEVELOPMENT

YOUR PRIVACY AND SAIT ALUMNI AND DEVELOPMENT

WHO HAS ACCESS TO MY INFORMATION?Only individuals working or volunteering for SAIT, who have signed a non-disclosure agreement, and who have a specific need to see your contact information for alumni, marketing or development purposes have access to your personal information.DOES SAIT ALUMNI AND DEVELOPMENT SELL DATA?

No. SAIT Alumni and Development enters into partnerships to provide benefits and services to its members and releases contact information to only these partners. SAIT is at all times responsible for safeguarding your information.

I PREFER NOT TO BE PHONED AND I ONLY WANT TO RECEIVE CERTAIN KINDS OF MAIL — WHAT DO I DO?Contact us at 403.284.7040 or alumni@sait.ca. It is our responsibility to ensure that your information is accurate and treated

according to your wishes.

THE OFFICIAL WORDSAIT’s Alumni and Development department collects information on behalf of SAIT, under the authority of Alberta’s Freedom of Information and Protection of Privacy Act and the Post-Secondary Learning Act, for the purposes of administering alumni relations, marketing and development programs for SAIT. Any information submitted by an individual to SAIT may be used to update his or her record.

Information gathered for these purposes will be protected, disclosed and used in compliance with Alberta’s Freedom of Information and Protection of Privacy Act. Individuals who submit information to the Alumni and Development department acknowledge the above and consent to the collection of personal information.

For more information or to make changes to your record, please contact SAIT Alumni and Development at 403.284.7040 or alumni@sait.ca.

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EDITOR-IN-CHIEF

Brian Bowman

MANAGING EDITOR

Susan MainellaONLINE EDITOR

Amanda Knoss

EDITOR

Carolynn Semeniuk

CONTRIBUTORS

Suzanne Bowness, Rich Castillo, Greg Fulmes, Mike Grant, Robin Hertz, Todd

Kimberley, Kate Kunz, Julie Sengl, Christie Simmons, George Webber, Michelle

Woodard, Jessica Woollard

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The LINK is published three times a year by SAIT Alumni

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LINK invites your advertising, letters to the editor and

comments. Please direct them to alumni@sait.ca.

LINKSAIT Alumni and Development

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Ph: 403.284.7010 (address updates)

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Return undeliverable Canadian addresses to: Circulation Department

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SAIT updates

THE KINDLY DRAGON:

Entrepreneur and philanthropist W. Brett Wilson (of Dragon’s Den fame) shared his sought after secrets for success with an audience of more than 600 in the I.G. Lewis Atrium last November. Students and staff were offered free entry and a copy of Wilson’s new book “Redefining Success: Still Making Mistakes.” In lieu of payment for the event, attendees were asked to contribute to the I.G. Lewis Fund, supporting students in crisis. Wilson pledged to match these donations. In total, the event raised more than $36,000.

A WINNING CULTURE:

SAIT has been named one of Canada’s 10 Most Admired Corporate Cultures in a competition presented by executive search firm Waterstone Human Capital. The award recognizes the importance of great workplaces, where culture has boosted performance and competitive advantage. Winning organizations were measured on vision and leadership; cultural alignment, measurement and sustainability; rewards, recognition and innovation achievements; organizational performance; and corporate social responsibility.

THE CURRICULUM HAS LANDED:

A new classroom resource landed at SAIT’s School of Transportation. A Robinson R44 helicopter, donated by Alberta aviation business owner, Ken Miller, arrived at the Art Smith Aero Centre via semi truck from Whitecourt, Alta. last fall. The helicopter had been previously used by Global News and is in need of an overhaul, making it the perfect class project for the Aircraft Maintenance Engineering Technology students who will learn as they tune it up.

WIDE OPEN:

High school students traveled by yellow school bus from as far away as Golden, B.C. to attend SAIT’s open house last October. Some 62 busses brought high school students onto SAIT campus for the fall show-and-tell of SAIT programs. A record breaking 5,652 online applications were collected; a dramatic increase over the fall Open House for 2011 (2,400 applications) and 2012 (3,700 applications).

GET ‘EM WHILE THEY’RE HOT:

SAIT grads jumped at the chance for a Taste of Thailand last fall, signing up in droves for an alumni cooking class with Chef Michael Dekker at SAIT’s Culinary Campus in downtown Calgary. During the four hour class, attendees connected with fellow alumni while preparing and eating a Thai meal. Alumni and Development will offer several more of these discounted classes ($50 instead of the standard $90) for alumni in the new year. Space is limited. Follow us on Facebook for registration information.

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THIS FALL SAIT POLYTECHNIC OPENED THE DOORS to its newly renovated Thomas Riley Building and welcomed students into 162,000 square feet of new, state-of-the-art learning spaces.

First opened in 1972, the blocky, brick structure situated directly west of the new Aldred Centre on the north side of SAIT presented a stolid, somewhat uninspired face to the campus from 16th Avenue – particularly sitting alongside SAIT’s fresh, new Trades and Technology Complex expansion.

While in much need of upgrades and a facelift, the building was structurally solid, says Boris Dragicevic, associate vice president of Facilities Management and Campus Expansion. It was a prudent alternative to renovate and repurpose rather than demolish and build from scratch, he says.

The renovation has brought the building systems up to 2013 standards and has helped align the aesthetic of Thomas Riley with the rest of the Trades and Technology Complex. More importantly, says Dragicevic, the renovation has repurposed the classrooms, labs and shops to improve the learning experience for students in the schools of Construction and Manufacturing and Automation.

The space now features the Founding Builders home lab with a 100 foot clear span where students

can simultaneously build two 1,000 square foot homes. In keeping with the Complex’s open design to foster outside interest, the lab has large glass hanger doors on the west side that allow people outside to see what’s going on inside. The building also has brand new millwright and natural gas compression labs and a new atrium space on the east side.

In keeping with previous expansions, the renovation realized opportunities to use the building as a learning tool to support SAIT curricula whenever possible. The PCL Construction atrium, for example, uses large

“glue-lam” wooden beams to showcase materials the construction students might be working with in class and later in industry.

The renovation, which cost SAIT roughly $60 million, was an economically prudent means of upgrading this part of the campus, says Dragicevic. But it came with challenges. Beyond having to work with the limitations of an existing structure, the construction team had to work around students and instructors who continued to function in Thomas Riley.

“While we renovated we still had people in labs, classrooms and shops and the rest of the building, so anything from noise to power outages could be a big problem. It was definitely more of a challenge to manage because we actually were affecting the day to day lives of people.”

According to Dragicevic, one significant advantage of the renovation is that many students and staff based at the Bob Edwards building in northeast Calgary have been able to join the rest of SAIT on the main campus.

“We’ve brought carpenters, masons, cabinet makers, painter decorators, tile setters...back on campus,” says Dragicevic, adding that there’s value in students from those programs connecting on campus before they work together in industry. “It’s a good mix of trades that are needed in industry and have connection to those on campus.”

CHRISTIE SIMMONS

BUILDING UPGRADE

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SAIT’S LEED CERTIFICATION

Green buildings earn silver and gold

The labs and classrooms in SAIT Polytechnic’s Trades and Technology Complex offer state-of-the-art learning spaces for students, but that isn’t their only benefit. A creative approach to building is also giving the environment a helping hand.

Buildings — especially large, industrial buildings — have the potential to create a lot of waste. They emit greenhouse gases, generate landfill waste from construction and demolition, and use a lot of water. But with careful planning and creative thinking, the 740,000 square foot Trades and Technology Complex is more environmentally efficient than you might think.

The Canada Green Building Council recently recognized the world-class complex with three LEED® certifications — two gold and one silver. Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design (LEED®) is an international rating system for green buildings. It considers a variety of factors — energy usage, water efficiency, sustainability and life cycle

— and assigns points for each. The number of points a building earns determines its LEED® certification.

“We’re very proud to receive these certifications and think that achieving them is not only environmentally responsible, but also financially prudent,” says Boris Dragicevic, SAIT’s associate vice president of Facilities Management and Campus Expansion. “We know that we will own and operate these buildings for 50 — maybe even a 100 — years, so making choices that increase their efficiency over the long term just makes sense.”

One example is the Complex’s digital lighting system. “The system is more advanced than in a typical building and saves a significant amount of energy,” explains Dragicevic. “It also comes with a higher initial cost, but will pay for itself in about three years. Knowing that we pay the utility bill over the long term, choosing the more costly system still made good financial sense when we assessed it using a life cycle costing analysis.”

Energy performance was another big consideration. “These buildings are industrial in nature and we need to move a lot of air in and out of them rapidly to accommodate the activities that happen inside, such as power engineering and welding. We were able to find systems and processes that allowed us to meet our objective while still operating the turbines and fans we need if we are going to offer those courses.”

This is the first time a SAIT building has been recognized with LEED® gold. “Considering the type of buildings and their reputation for being incredibly inefficient, this is quite a significant accomplishment,” says Dragicevic.

MICHELLE WOODARD

LEADING ENVIRONMENTAL FEATURES:• 95 per cent of building material waste is recyclable.

• White reflective roofing materials stay cool in the sun, reducing the need for air conditioning.

• Digital lighting systems save energy and money. Energy savings will cover the cost of the systems in less than two years.

• Sophisticated air handling systems can be adapted for the next 50 to 100 years, eliminating the need to change the building’s mechanical systems over time.

• 30 per cent of building materials were sourced regionally and 50 per cent of wood products are from responsibly managed forests.

• Irrigation uses 50 per cent less drinkable water and the buildings use 30 per cent less drinkable water overall.

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SAIT Polytechnic is the number one research college in Canada. In its inaugural ranking of colleges, RE$EARCH Infosource Inc. gave SAIT top spot on its 2013 Canada’s Top 50 Research Colleges list.Alex Zahavich, director of SAIT’s Applied Research and Innovation Services (ARIS) department, says this ranking — and the fact that RE$EARCH Infosource has added the ranking to its lists of top research universities, hospitals and corporations — helps give legitimacy to the applied research SAIT and other colleges are doing.

This legitimacy, as with ARIS itself, has taken time to grow and develop. Officially launched ten years ago, ARIS started operating out of an office in what was the Heart Building with what Zahavich jokingly calls one and a half people – he functioned as ARIS’s first director while he was still dean of the School of Manufacturing and Automation. Today, ARIS employs 39 full time people and 30 contract researchers and engages hundreds of students in 40,000 square feet of space in the Aldred Centre, the Enerplus Centre for Innovation and the Green Building Technologies offices.

According to Zahavich, ARIS grew out of what he, then SAIT president Irene Lewis and Gordon Nixon, vice president academic, saw as an opportunity to fill a gap in commercialization technology transfer. They saw there was very little being done in the way of prototype development and generation of funding to support it, so they used a provincial grant originally earmarked for commercializing IT research to start ARIS.

Having looked at the models of applied research that existed at the time

— those in Quebec, Ontario and BCIT — SAIT clarified its vision and set out on a path of its own.

“What’s unique to SAIT, and is the cornerstone of our success, is that from the very beginning we have involved students,” says Zahavich. “The reason ARIS exists is to fill the commercialization technology transfer gap and to give SAIT students a competitive advantage.”

The model has been very successful. In the past five years, ARIS has carried out close to 200 industry-driven, applied-research projects that have resulted in the development of more than 250 prototypes. Plus, each year between 150 and 200 students, who go on to employment where they directly apply their experiences, have hands-on involvement with industry in applied research projects. Last year, SAIT attracted $9.8 million in applied-research funding.

In its relatively short life, ARIS has worked on a number of projects that have given SAIT significant traction in applied research. Examples include a water remediation project with Volker Stevin, green building technologies developed with

APPLIED RESEARCH RANKING

SAIT named Canada’s Top Research College

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Avalon Master Builder and their Discovery houses, Radio Frequency Identification animal tracking for the Alberta Livestock and Meat Agency, as well as prototype work for the sliding sports — bobsleigh, skeleton and luge.

“We have provided industry and students with the opportunity to develop and test new products before they go to market,” says Zahavich. “Our work with skeleton sleds has led to world championship performances.”

Ultimately, says Zahavich, ARIS works as an industry-based model — an enterprise within a bureaucracy where industry partners aren’t threatened by working with an academic organization. It’s this unique aspect of ARIS that has helped SAIT work very closely and productively with industry partners and is a big part of our success, he says.

“What makes us number one in the country is that industry is appreciative of our policies and our operating processes. The way we engage companies is very similar to the way they engage their clients. We’re industry-centric with the objective of giving our students an advantage. When they get hired, they will have been exposed to that industry-centric model and nobody else is doing it that way yet.”

CHRISTIE SIMMONS

“ WHAT MAKES US NUMBER ONE IN THE COUNTRY IS THAT INDUSTRY IS APPRECIATIVE OF OUR POLICIES AND OUR OPERATING PROCESSES. WE’RE INDUSTRY-CENTRIC WITH THE OBJECTIVE OF GIVING OUR STUDENTS AN ADVANTAGE.”

— ALEX ZAHAVICH, DIRECTOR OF APPLIED RESEARCH AT SAIT

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(Left) ARIS principal investigator Brian Hughes examines an Auto CAD model of a bobsleigh generated from a 3D laser scan.(Right) ARIS researcher Anthony Arcand crafts a bobsled designed for para athletes.(Below) ARIS’ Green Building Technologies team worked with industry partner Avalon Master Builder to design several net zero Discovery Houses. The version here is the Discovery 5 House, located in Altadore.

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LINK CAMPUS

You are what you tweet:SOCIAL MEDIA BRAND MANAGEMENT TIPS FROM DESMOND NWAERONDU

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CLEAR

When branding yourself online, choose a unique name, and keep it as simple and intuitive as possible. Difficult spelling or funky punctuation will hinder access. You want your name to be remembered, repeated and shared effortlessly.

Do some online research. Check to make sure the name you want to use is available on every social media platform that you intend to leverage. If someone else is already using the name somewhere online, choose another name. The last thing you want is to be confused with another brand already out there.

COMMITTED

Once you’ve got a name and you’re ready to launch, broadcast to every social media channel you’re going to use. Don’t set up accounts that will be dormant just to reserve the name. A dormant account will reflect negatively on your brand.

Use social media every single day to reinforce your brand, and use word of mouth to reinforce your social media presence. Check in and stay on top of your various accounts. It’s the in-your-pocket, up-to-the-minute currency of social media that makes it such a valuable power tool. Leverage that power to your advantage — or let it lapse at your peril.

YOURSELFBefore anything else, social media connects individuals. Personality goes a long way toward building a sense of commonality, familiarity, trust and loyalty. Engage people from the perspective of a real person, not as a corporate representative. Reply online to comments and messages you receive, and do so in a way that demonstrates genuine personal interest and understanding.

Des Nwaerondu (BA’06, OYA ‘12) has made a name for himself in the competitive world of personal finance, thanks in large part to his successful use of social media to build and grow his professional brand. For more information, search AdvisorDes online.

If you think the realm of social media resembles a super-sized popularity contest, where the object is to get hoards of distant acquaintances and even complete strangers to “like” you and become your “friends” or “followers,” then you’re absolutely right. If you think that’s a time-sucking exercise void of meaning and substance, think again.

In the business world, our connections are our lifeblood. We need people to know who we are and what we have to offer them. We need to be relevant, approachable and somehow, always top-of-mind. Social media platforms such as Facebook, Twitter, LinkedIn and blogs can help us be all that. They have tremendous marketing powers if you know what you’re doing. In this realm, your name is your brand. Get it right and your business will soar.

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ordinaryextra

Each year, SAIT recognizes one Distinguished Alumna/us and one Outstanding Young Alumna/us and celebrates their achievements at an evening awards gala on campus. Recipients are selected based on a combination of their professional achievements, and their demonstrated leadership and engagement within the community at large. As SAIT alumni, these extraordinary individuals join an elite roster of proud ambassadors of the school. Last fall, as SAIT celebrated it’s 25th anniversary of these awards, Joanne Johnson (TSR ‘82) and Cristi Birch (GNT ‘10) received their respective titles. Both are as humble as they are deserving. WRITTEN BY | JULIE SENGL

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2013 DISTINGUISHED ALUMNI JOANNE JOHNSON (TSR ‘82)Calgary’s community voice

If you’ve lived in Calgary for any time at all, chances are good you know Joanne Johnson. She’s been the cohost of popular morning radio shows in the city for the past 29 years. With a total of 31 years in the business (and still going strong), she’s a true industry veteran, though it’s probably more appropriate to call her a local icon.

“When I graduated from SAIT’s Television, Stage and Radio Arts program in 1982, I was just a child. I was…like 12,” laughs John-son. “It’s been amazing to watch the city grow and flourish over the years, and to have grown up here right along with it.”

A career in radio was a bit of an odd choice for Johnson, who believe it or not, started off as the shy, quiet girl at the back of the classroom. A favourite high school drama teacher sparked her interest in broadcasting. Two years at SAIT helped her find her voice.

“A lot of what I do on the radio every day goes back to the basics we were taught at SAIT,” says Johnson. The public speaking, mock newscasts and even on-camera interviews… “It was all part of the groundwork for what I’d need to do to be successful in this career.”

Of course, even with a solid handle on the technical skills and all that industry know-how, there were a few surprises early on in Johnson’s career. Her first local gig was with a start-up radio station just joining Calgary’s airwaves. Eager to make an entrance, the station splashed the city with larger-than-life advertising fea-turing none other than Johnson and her cohost. “It was Jerry and Joanne everywhere, and any thought that I had that radio would be anonymous was gone!”

FEATURE

“ A LOT OF WHAT I DO ON THE RADIO EVERY DAY GOES BACK TO THE BASICS WE WERE TAUGHT AT SAIT. IT WAS ALL PART OF THE GROUNDWORK FOR WHAT I’D NEED TO DO TO BE SUCCESSFUL IN THIS CAREER.”

— JOANNE JOHNSON

LATIN LESSONS FOR THE GRADUATE:We’re not making this up. There really are this many versions of the Latin word for graduate. Even the folks at Merriam-Webster say so.

ALUMNI – more than one graduate, male or female

ALUMNUS – one male graduate

ALUMNA – one female graduate

ALUMNAE – more than one female graduate

(Left, below) SAIT’s 2013 Distinguished Alumna Joanne Johnson carries the torch for the 1988 Olympics in Calgary.

(Right, below) SAIT’s 2013 Outstanding Young Alumna Cristi Birch at a protest rally in Calgary.

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Realistically, the whole celebrity status thing was bound to happen. Whether she intended it or not, it’s entirely her own doing. Johnson’s down-to-earth personality and quippy sense of humour have endeared her to a generation of early-morning listeners. Her approachable demeanor, both on the air and off, have made her the go-to personality for high-profile charitable events and fund raisers. Her genuine enthusiasm, compassion and community spirit have garnered enduring friendships and respect.

“I’ve always been community-minded. That comes from my family and from my mom and dad,” said Johnson. “This job has given me the opportunity to do a lot of real things in life, which has been so cool.”

Local charities know they can call on radio stations for support, and over the years Johnson has been called on many times. She’s done it all, from floating rubber ducks down the Bow River for the Great Alberta Duck Race, to hosting the Calgary Firefighters’ Ladies Night Out, to headlining the Golf a Kid to Camp Tournament that has raised millions for the Kid’s Cancer Care Foundation over its 20 years. Some of her public appearances are straight-up part of the job. Others have a special place in her heart. “With Kids Cancer Care, that’s just been a labour of love.”

The one thing all of Johnson’s out-of-studio commitments have in common is that they’re rarely about her. It’s about giving her time and lending her name, her enthusiasm and her spirit in support of others. So when President Ross called to congratulate her on winning the Distinguished Alumni award, Johnson’s first thought was that SAIT had some kind of a special program they wanted her to come and talk about, or they wanted her to present something.

“This one caught me…I was really taken aback,” said Johnson. “I’m a proud SAIT grad and that’s always been on my bio wherever I’ve been, but this… this has me truly humbled.”

2013 OUTSTANDING YOUNG ALUMNI CRISTI BIRCH (GNT ‘10)Mapping pathways to success

Cristi Birch stood out in the crowd long before she came to study at SAIT. It wasn’t that she wanted the attention. Quite the opposite. Her focus has always been on advanc-ing the status of others while promoting a sense of inclusion.As a teenager, Birch worked with educators to create a for-

credit aboriginal cultural program in her high school. It helped her peers connect with their culture — and each other. That sense of connection was enough to keep them in school and, for the first time ever, to see them all graduate.

At 17 and straight out of high school, Birch got a job with a major oil and gas company. She started volunteering with their in-house Aboriginal Ambassador Team shortly thereafter, reviewing company policies and procedures to make sure they were inclusive, identifying gaps and recommending solutions.

She enjoyed her work and knew she had great potential, but she wasn’t blind to some very real limitations. After seven years in the company, she was still on the lower rungs of the cor-porate ladder.

It wasn’t enough to be engaged and ambitious. “To move up in the company you need something behind you,” said Birch. “I knew about SAIT’s Geomatics Mapping Technology program, and I learned a little about Chinook Lodge (SAIT’s aboriginal resource centre) on campus.” She had no trouble seeing how both would benefit her.

Logistically, it wasn’t easy. She studied full time, worked half time and was mom to two young sons, all at the same time. But Birch never considers being busy an excuse for being anything but

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EXTRAORDINARY PEOPLE

This printout may not show colors, photos & logo reproduction as accurately as final production. It is meant for layout purposes only. © All creative concepts/artwork property of g2 marketing inc.

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the best she can be. For her second-year capstone project at SAIT, she partnered with the European Space Agency to do radar mapping of the area affected by the recent Haiti earthquake. She “wanted the work to be something that nobody had done before — some-thing meaningful.” She succeeded.

In fact, her findings were so impressive they caught the attention of the experts. Birch was invited to Regina to present her paper at a joint summit of the Canadian Association of Geographers, the Canadian Cartographic Association, the Canadian Geomorphol-ogy Research Group and the Canadian Remote Sensing Society. It’s a summit traditionally attended by a lot of PhDs. “I was the first-ever technical school presenter,” said Birch.

“Since then it’s actually quite funny because I’ve been invited to Europe to present and I’ve had scientific and engineering jour-nals seek me out to ask if they could publish my results. I just kind of ignore it all.” That’s not to say she isn’t flattered. It’s just not practical. With her job, two young kids, and all kinds of volunteer commitments, this young woman has other priorities.

With her SAIT credentials in hand, Birch advanced to a proj-ect manager position in the oil and gas company. She loves the technical nature of her job and continues to be a tireless advocate for equality, inclusion and social justice, both at work, and outside of the office.

Birch remains active in the company’s Diversity Advisory Group, the Aboriginal and Native American Employee Network, and Inspire Women, a social network for female employees.

Outside of work she is co-chair of the Calgary Urban Aboriginal Initiative, and sits on the Calgary Aboriginal Urban Affairs Committee and the Standing Committee for Housing and Homelessness. She also volunteers as site producer for girl-mom.com, a website providing support and advice to pregnant or parenting teens. And on top of everything else, with her boys both in Boy Scouts, Birch volunteers as a Scout leader one night a week.

“One positive influence in a kid’s life can absolutely change their entire world,” explains Birch. “I was raised to believe that when you come into this world, you make things better.”

So what does she think about being singled out with the 2013 Outstanding Young Alumni award?

“I’m kind of more honoured that there is an aboriginal person being awarded this over it actually being me. I see hope in it. I hope that it serves as an inspiration to other Aboriginal students at SAIT. If you push yourself you can be whatever you want to be. You can do whatever you want to do.”

EXTRAORDINARY PEOPLE

“ THIS JOB HAS GIVEN ME THE OPPORTUNITY TO DO A LOT OF REAL THINGS IN LIFE, WHICH HAS BEEN SO COOL.”

— CRISTI BIRCH

SAIT HEROESThe alumni awards are all about pride in those who have graced SAIT’s halls and gone on to do extraordinary things. This year, we expanded this scope to include members of the SAIT community who played a critical role in the response to the 2013 Southern Alberta floods. Alberta’s Deputy Premier even stopped in to pass along the Province’s appreciation with a framed version of this letter. Adam Loria (EMTP ‘05, pictured below), Calgary EMS public education officer, accepted the letter on behalf of his fellow alumni.

25

Set personal high standards

and adhere to them. In other

words, shoot for the moon.

Even if you miss, in all

likelihood, you will hit a star!

ED TICKLES (DA ’94)

When I was starting my career I told myself, ‘Work harder than everyone else and you’ll be a success.’ If most people worked eight hours a day, I worked 16. It worked.AL BROWNE (DA ‘08)

YEARS

on the

ROADDISTINCTION

of

25 years ago, SAIT launched

its Distinguished Alumni

Awards program. In honour of

this silver anniversary, we’ve

asked some of these award

recipients to share advice that

has guided them on their road

to distinction.

Don’t be afraid to talk with

senior members of your

profession. They won’t bite

and you might just learn

something.

SYD LOEPPKY (DA ’93))))))))

Drive is the key. The only way to reach your destination on your own terms is to get behind the wheel.SHIVA JAHANSHAH (OYA ’11)

Lead by example to help

others be the best they can be.

It is natural for people to want

to do their best, so take

responsibility and show them

the way.

KEN KING (DA ’89)

Learn from your mistakes as

well as from your successes.

ED TICKLES (DA ’94)

Gas

Write down your goals, tell everyone and then go out and accomplish them.DESMOND NWAERONDU (OYA ’12)

Be patient. Success comes to those who work hard everyday.

DESMOND NWAERONDU (OYA ’12)

Never stop learning.

SYD LOEPPKY (DA ’93)If you have a b

old idea and

want to pursue it, no matter

what your age, keep in mind

it's never too late to have a

happy childhood.

PAT MORROW (DA ’10)

To be successful, surround yourself with people who think differently than you do.ED TICKLES (DA ’94)

Live life creatively;

constantly improving it for

yourself, your children and

those around you. We have

the power and responsibility

to sculpt the world around

us into a better place for

everyone. Find your voice,

be loud, and create change -

then use your voice to help

those who may have not

found their own.

CRISTI BIRCH (OYA ’13)

What gets you there is drive

and ambition, but it never

comes easy. Try, try again.

STAN GRAD (DA ‘95 )

You don’t have to know everything, just be the person to contact because you know the people that do.ERICH BINDER (DA ’00)

The difference between successful people and people not as successful is where they spent their most precious asset – their time.

JAY WESTMAN (DA ’98)

My parents always told me to work hard, be on time and treat people the way you’d like to be treated. It’s simple advice but it works.JOANNE JOHNSON (DA ’13)

Don't be content to stay with

the status quo. Challenge

yourself, your life and society

as a whole.

CRISTI BIRCH (OYA ’13)

Your business is located in

the community, so become

involved in it. Be generous

with your time and talent.

SYD LOEPPKY (DA ’

93)

Outstanding leaders do not have followers. They perform as a team, moving forward in a horizontal line with the leader in the middle.

ED TICKLES (DA ’94)

Be remembered for what

you did in life, not what y

ou

planned to do.

DESMOND NWAER

ONDU

(OYA ’12)

See beyond yourself. Gi

ve

generously of your time

and

work with passion, purp

ose

and integrity.

KEN KING (DA ’89

)

Always do more than is expected and spend less than you make.AL SHORT (DA ’04)

Remember that it may not be your fault but it is your problem, so fix it.AL SHORT (DA ’04)

Get out of your comfort zone. It’s okay to be a bit fearful but don't let that stop you.AL SHORT (DA ’04)

Behave with integrity and treat people with integrity. If you do this, people will treat you with integrity in return.AL BROWNE (DA ‘08)

16

25

Set personal high standards

and adhere to them. In other

words, shoot for the moon.

Even if you miss, in all

likelihood, you will hit a star!

ED TICKLES (DA ’94)

When I was starting my career I told myself, ‘Work harder than everyone else and you’ll be a success.’ If most people worked eight hours a day, I worked 16. It worked.AL BROWNE (DA ‘08)

YEARS

on the

ROADDISTINCTION

of

25 years ago, SAIT launched

its Distinguished Alumni

Awards program. In honour of

this silver anniversary, we’ve

asked some of these award

recipients to share advice that

has guided them on their road

to distinction.

Don’t be afraid to talk with

senior members of your

profession. They won’t bite

and you might just learn

something.

SYD LOEPPKY (DA ’93))))))))

Drive is the key. The only way to reach your destination on your own terms is to get behind the wheel.SHIVA JAHANSHAH (OYA ’11)

Lead by example to help

others be the best they can be.

It is natural for people to want

to do their best, so take

responsibility and show them

the way.

KEN KING (DA ’89)

Learn from your mistakes as

well as from your successes.

ED TICKLES (DA ’94)

Gas

Write down your goals, tell everyone and then go out and accomplish them.DESMOND NWAERONDU (OYA ’12)

Be patient. Success comes to those who work hard everyday.

DESMOND NWAERONDU (OYA ’12)

Never stop learning.

SYD LOEPPKY (DA ’93)If you have a b

old idea and

want to pursue it, no matter

what your age, keep in mind

it's never too late to have a

happy childhood.

PAT MORROW (DA ’10)

To be successful, surround yourself with people who think differently than you do.ED TICKLES (DA ’94)

Live life creatively;

constantly improving it for

yourself, your children and

those around you. We have

the power and responsibility

to sculpt the world around

us into a better place for

everyone. Find your voice,

be loud, and create change -

then use your voice to help

those who may have not

found their own.

CRISTI BIRCH (OYA ’13)

What gets you there is drive

and ambition, but it never

comes easy. Try, try again.

STAN GRAD (DA ‘95 )

You don’t have to know everything, just be the person to contact because you know the people that do.ERICH BINDER (DA ’00)

The difference between successful people and people not as successful is where they spent their most precious asset – their time.

JAY WESTMAN (DA ’98)

My parents always told me to work hard, be on time and treat people the way you’d like to be treated. It’s simple advice but it works.JOANNE JOHNSON (DA ’13)

Don't be content to stay with

the status quo. Challenge

yourself, your life and society

as a whole.

CRISTI BIRCH (OYA ’13)

Your business is located in

the community, so become

involved in it. Be generous

with your time and talent.

SYD LOEPPKY (DA ’

93)

Outstanding leaders do not have followers. They perform as a team, moving forward in a horizontal line with the leader in the middle.

ED TICKLES (DA ’94)

Be remembered for what

you did in life, not what y

ou

planned to do.

DESMOND NWAER

ONDU

(OYA ’12)

See beyond yourself. Gi

ve

generously of your time

and

work with passion, purp

ose

and integrity.

KEN KING (DA ’89

)

Always do more than is expected and spend less than you make.AL SHORT (DA ’04)

Remember that it may not be your fault but it is your problem, so fix it.AL SHORT (DA ’04)

Get out of your comfort zone. It’s okay to be a bit fearful but don't let that stop you.AL SHORT (DA ’04)

Behave with integrity and treat people with integrity. If you do this, people will treat you with integrity in return.AL BROWNE (DA ‘08)

link 17

18

FEATURE

“HOW TO START YOUR OWN BUSINESS.” Type those six words into any search engine and you’ll get a seemingly endless list of business ideas, books, articles and websites. But what does it really take to become a bona fide entrepreneur? For most, it’s about taking a risk. For some, it’s about turning your passion into your livelihood. And for others, it’s both.Meet four SAIT alumni who are using their heads, their hands and their hearts to draw in customers with craftsmanship and a personal touch.WRITTEN BY | MICHELLE WOODARD

SMALL BUSINESS SNAPSHOT: 50.3 number of small/medium business per 1,000 population in Alberta, making it the most entrepreneurial province.

1.08 million number of small businesses in Canada with employees in 2012.

56 percentage drop in the number of business bankruptcies between 2000 and 2010 in Canada.

7.7 million number of people employed in Canadian small businesses in 2012. That’s 69.7 percent of the total private labour force.

100,000 number of jobs created by small business between 2002 and 2012, 78 per cent of all private jobs created on average.

41 per cent of Canada’s total value of exports netted by small businesses in 2011, about $150 billion.

14 per cent of small businesses owned solely by females. 18 per cent were owned in equal partnerships between male and female owners.

Source – Industry Canada: Key small business statistics 2013

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KEY THING SHE’S LEARNED: “Be organized. If you’re not organized – whether it’s your banking, your processes or your inventory – then you can’t see the problems or the opportunities. And if you can’t see the opportunities, you’ll stay small.”

Originally trained as a graphic artist, Karen Humphrey opened Canada’s first “paint-it-yourself” ceramic studio in 1992. “I’ve never been afraid of a challenge. I didn’t know anything about ceramics before I opened my store. I like learning how something works and figuring out how to make it successful.”

About eight years into running her first business, Humphrey’s brother, a veteri-narian, approached her with an idea. He wanted to give his clients something they could cherish after their pets were eutha-nized. So Humphrey created a clay kit for her brother’s veterinary office to collect paw prints with and send back to her to paint.

The word quickly spread and now Humphrey’s business is known for matching an animal’s fur from a sample or a picture, and customizing the clay and paint for each piece. Today, she employs eight full-time artists and serves 300 veterinary clinics across North America.

“Surrounding yourself with a really great team is so important. A large company has a board of directors, but if your company is small, like mine, you need to surround yourself with your own sounding boards — people who can give you advice and support.”

Even with a successful product and continental distribution, Humphrey isn’t taking a break. She launched a new kit last year, putting in 12 to 14 hours a day, seven days a week. “Our product looks great and our efficiencies are at their peak, but I’m always looking at where we can go next. You need to have a game plan, but you also need to know that it’s going to change.”

Humphrey says while her company is ready for really big orders, getting them won’t make or break her. “The size we are now is efficient and scalable — it’s perfect. I get to live my passion, to work as an artist and be surrounded by other artists. It’s just wonderful.”

Karen Humphrey PEARTREE IMPRESSIONS (VC ‘85)

Humphrey started her business in 1992 with a plan to create something for pet owners to cherish. Today, she employs eight artists and creates custom impressions for parent clients as well as for 300 veterinary clinics across North America.

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KEY THING SHE’S LEARNED: “Always be honest with yourself and with your clients about what you can handle. It’s hard to say no to business – I want to do it all – but I’m only one person and I have to be realistic. I’m careful not to bite off more than I can chew and my clients appreciate it.”

With her background in travel, marketing and administration, Melanie Gukert was perfectly poised to help a variety of businesses keep things on track. She says she always knew she wanted to work for herself, but it was five years ago, when she found herself supporting a company’s directors across Western Canada as a virtual assistant, that she knew she found her niche.

“I thought ‘why can’t I do this for myself?’ and I realized there really wasn’t any reason,” says Gukert. “It clicked that I didn’t need to sit in a com-pany’s office. I could support businesses

and help them virtually.”What began as a few little con-

tracts here and there has turned into a full-blown business. Today, Gukert works with a range of organizations — from small offices to large corporations — sometimes helping a specific person and other times a whole office. “The concept of having a virtual assistant is completely foreign to some people. Teaching my clients about what I can do for them is a part of the process. I often describe myself as the partner in their business that they didn’t even know they needed.”

Gukert says her business is all about discovering what services her clients are missing and filling that void.

Sometimes it’s handling a company’s social media, researching travel require-ments, or creating internal newsletters. Other times it’s organizing a confer-ence or developing employee manuals.

“I do the things that often get brushed under the rug, but are important for a business to function. They are things that are easy for me, but tend to bog my clients down.”

Gukert says that the most reward-ing part of her own business is helping others get to the next level. “I’m pas-sionate and proud about what I do. It’s wonderful helping my clients get orga-nized and thinking clearer. I’ve done better than I ever could have imagined.”

Melanie Gukert MODERN EVOLUTION (TC ’00, MKT ’04)

IN GOOD COMPANY

“ IT CLICKED THAT I DIDN’T NEED TO SIT IN A COMPANY’S OFFICE. I COULD SUPPORT BUSINESSES AND HELP THEM VIRTUALLY.”

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KEY THING HE’S LEARNED: “Starting your own business isn’t an easy ride. It takes a heck of a lot of commitment and you won’t be successful overnight.”

Need a larger-than-life, anatomi-cally correct heart that’s also a punching bag? How about microscopic furniture for a tiny architectural model?

If you need a custom model of just about anything, Paul Hern’s company, Replicate Designs, can build it. “People come to us with their off-the-wall ideas and we figure them out,” says Hern. “We’re a high-tech shop — right up there with Nike and NASA as far as development and the machines we use.”

Now in its ninth year of business, this is Replicate Designs’ best year yet. Hern’s 10,000 square-foot shop is jam-packed and 10 employees — professional model makers from all over the world — are busy working on everything from six-foot-tall architectural models to a life-sized concrete waterfall.

It wasn’t always that way. In the early days, Hern and his two business partners struggled to make ends meet — working full-time to fund their projects and spending

evenings scouring the phone book to figure out who they could sell their products to. “In the end, we realized we were selling a new idea, not an off-the-shelf product at a lower price. We could sell our products to anyone, but getting people to really see the value in using models took time.”

Time is also one of Hern’s huge per-sonal investments. He hasn’t taken more than a long weekend off in three-and-a-half years and works an average of 13 hours a day. “I believe in my company and I want to see it be successful. One day when I do get a vacation, I want to make sure it can run on its own.”

What keeps Hern going when he’s exhausted? “It’s great when we deliver a model and the client is happy. It always comes down to customer service. We bend over backwards for our clients because we want them to come back again. When you deliver on time and everyone is ooh-ing and ahh-ing, it’s a great feeling.”

Paul Hern REPLICATE DESIGNS (CID ‘04)

Paul Hern’s modeling company Replicate Designs has been in business for nine years and now employs 10 professional model makers, recruited from Scotland, England and Turkey where post secondary schools offer model making programs.

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KEY THING SHE’S LEARNED: “Determination. If you really want something, you can’t give up. You have to put everything on the line and hope it works out.”

When Kerry Bennett found out she was allergic to wheat six months before she started SAIT’s Professional Cooking program, she felt like her dream of opening her own restaurant was falling apart.

“Food is my passion, so it was devastat-ing. Six years ago, eating gluten free was completely under the radar,” says Bennett. But instead of changing her career path, she began looking at her food restriction as a challenge.

When she received SAIT’s first culinary applied research grant, it set the wheels in motion for the professional chef to open her own bakery. In 2009, with some help from her entrepreneur dad, she incorpo-rated Care Bakery and built a kitchen in the back of what was once a mechanic’s shop.

“For the first year-and-a-half I didn’t get paid and I worked anywhere between 17 and 21 hours a day,” says Bennett. “I had part-time serving jobs...and there was still really only money for ingredients and rent.”

Bennett says that while food is pas-sion-driven for her, she had to change her outlook to be a successful. “If it had been up to me, I would probably have had a little bakery on the corner selling cupcakes — and I would have been out of business three years ago. Wholesale was definitely the way to go, but when you’re distributing a product on a large scale, it comes down to logistics and numbers. That was a learning curve for me.”

Four years later, Bennett’s gluten-free products are available in 100 Calgary restaurants, at restaurants in other parts of Alberta, in B.C., and for retail customers at Calgary Co-op.

Even with all of this success, Bennett says her work isn’t done. “My business is my life. I’m really happy with where I am, but I’m not finished. My goal is to serve quality gluten-free breads from coast-to-coast.”

Kerry Bennett CARE BAKERY (PKC ’08)

IN GOOD COMPANY

Bennett’s gluten free bread products can be found in 100 Calgary restaurants and a major Calgary grocery retailer. To achieve this success, she worked long hours, lived on a paltry income and curtailed her romanticized notions about owning a corner cupcake bakery.

24

The steel door buzzes openThe steel door buzzes open

FEATURE

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building HOPE on SPY HILL SAIT’s prison carpentry shop delivers help to community groups and offers hope to inmates who work there. WRITTEN BY | CAROLYNN SEMENIUK

The steel door buzzes openThe steel door buzzes open and slams heavily behind him. He walks down a long corridor lined with barred windows and pauses at the iron bar gate to wait for clearance. It slides open and clangs behind him and he heads down the next corridor to the next gate, where he waits again. CORRIDOR, GATE, CLEARANCE, BUZZ, CLANG.

The drill has been the same most mornings for years. That’s the way it is in prisons; routines are entrenched for security’s sake. Gordon Lloyd (ACPP ‘85) knows this drill intimately. He has spent decades in this prison, though he’s never been convicted of a crime.

For almost 30 years, Lloyd, a SAIT Polytechnic carpentry instructor, has been teaching his trade to inmates in a dusty shop on the east wing of the Calgary Correctional Centre. It’s a class that sees inmates building wooden toys for children’s charities and picnic tables for Boy Scout jamborees, among other things.

The classes exist as part of the Offender Educational Program operated by the Calgary Correctional Educational Consortium, which delivers academic, personal development and employment courses for provincial inmates. The goal is to do something good for the community while reducing recidi-vism rates by addressing the risk factors that contribute to the offense cycle.

But topics like recidivism and offense cycles are a bit heavy for Lloyd’s shop. He likes to keep things light.

“Welcome to the big house,” says Lloyd, grinning, as the door to his carpentry shop slams shut. “IT’S THE SPY HILTON.”

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26

IT’S AS UNLIKELY A PLACE FOR A CHRISTMAS TOY WORKSHOP as one could imagine. Hard looking men in green coveralls lean tattooed arms on workbenches as they sand wooden toys.

Each December, Lloyd loads his pick-up truck with the spoils of this workshop — wooden cradles, riding cars, motorbikes and monster trucks — and delivers them to the Children’s Cottage, the Aspen Family and Community Network Society, Sheriff King Home, the Mustard Seed, the Salvation Army and Toy Mountain. A few years ago, the guards and

staff got in on the action, donating dolls and stuffed animals for Lloyd to add to his Christmas haul.

Lloyd started the Christmas deliveries about 15 years ago and he squirms at the thought of recognition. All he wants is a letter from the organization to show the guys in the shop so that they know their work got to the kids. Lloyd says this

matters to the guys. “There’s a sense of pride in doing something good. Toys for kids at Christmas? What better therapy?”

Scharlotte McLeod, the aboriginal coordinator for Aspen, an organiza-tion aimed at breaking the cycle of poverty, is one of the grateful recipients of

the inmate’s work. Last year, Aspen received a rocking car from Lloyd’s crew. They were able to fund the children’s Christmas gift give away at their Round Dance event through the sale of raffle tickets for the car. McLeod is happy to be expecting a donation again this year. “Christmas is…especially tough this year since a lot of people’s funds went to flood relief, so having these donations to raffle off will make a huge difference…” says McLeod. “We’re so grateful for their generosity.”

Lloyd believes it’s the inmates in the carpentry program who are getting the real gift. “There’s a kind of psychological amnesty that happens here,” he says, philosophically.

“It’s hard to give back to the community…when you’re locked up. This work gives them an opportunity to forgive themselves.”

BUILDING HOPE

(Top) SAIT instructor, Gordon Lloyd teaches this student about working with a table saw during carpentry class at the Calgary Corrections Centre.

(Below) A motorbike crafted from scrap wood in Lloyd’s classroom. (Right) An inmate works on a personal project — a jewelry box for a family member.

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“ There’s a kind of psychological amnesty that happens here. It’s hard to give back to the community… when you’re locked up. This work gives them an opportunity to forgive themselves.”

— GORDON LLOYD (ACPP ‘85)

28

‘‘Take that two-by-ten over there and cut it up into 26 inch planks,” Lloyd shouts over the hum of the mitre saw. Today, most of his students — that’s what he prefers to call them — are using scrap wood to craft gifts for their family at Christmas. Four out of five days each week, the inmates in Lloyd’s carpentry program build things for the Correctional Centre or for community organizations. Projects range from desks for the juvenile offenders centre, to kiosks and picnic tables for provincial parks, to the wooden toys that they give away to children’s charities.

While they’re building these items, Lloyd is teaching his students about the proper use of tools and shop safety, about craftsmanship and joinery. On average, he has the same six students in his class for up to two months each. It’s not nearly long enough for the 160 hours needed for a carpentry certificate, but Lloyd imparts what he can and provides each inmate with an official letter on SAIT letterhead stating their skills and their hours logged in the shop. “They can give this to a potential employer and it shows that they have some skills,” says Lloyd.

The number of students in Lloyd’s class is variable. “If they’ve gotten in trouble and gone to the digger (disciplinary segregation range) I might not see them again.” On rare occasions, when the guards have put whole units on lockdown, he gets no students at all.

Lloyd knows well words like “digger” and the language of prison life. He’s been working as a SAIT carpentry instructor at the Correctional Centre since 1985.

Today, he’s one of several civilian instructors who teach at the prison as part of the Educational Consortium. SAIT, Mount Royal University and Bow Valley College all participate in the program funded by Alberta Advanced Education and have instructors working at the Correctional Centre. SAIT operates the carpentry program with one part-time and one full-time instructor (Lloyd) working out of two shops. Students are selected for the program based on their perceived ability to fit into the class, meaning they’ll get something out of it and won’t be a safety risk.

Each morning at 9 am, guards escort up to six inmates from their units to a holding room for the carpentry lab, where they change from their blue coveralls to green ones

— a security measure to ensure items from the shop don’t end up as weapons on the unit, transported in the coveralls after class.

Lloyd is practically blasé about the dangers of working with inmates in a shop full of potential weapons. Part of this ease comes from his knowledge that participating in programs at the Correctional Centre is a privilege that provides a break from long, monotonous days in the unit. Lloyd also believes his role at the Centre means the inmates don’t see him in an adversarial light. “I keep telling the guys, ‘I’m just a civilian here. I have to enforce the rules of the institute, but I’m not here to rejudge you. I’m here to help you get skills.’”

FEATURE

SAIT is one of a number of Calgary post secondary institutions that offer courses to inmates at the Calgary Correctional Centre. Classes range from life skills to trades and are all aimed at impacting the offense cycle.

IT’S OCTOBER AND GRAHAM, A STUDENT IN LLOYD’S CARPENTRY PROGRAM, has been working on Christmas presents for his family for weeks. It’s one of many ways he’s been preparing for his Dec. 1 release from the Correctional Centre. “It’s nice,” he says, “because I wouldn’t have time to get working, pay expenses and buy gifts before Christmas.”

If there’s a poster inmate for programs offered through the Consortium, it’s Graham. He’s taken addictions counseling, anger management, academic upgrading and carpentry.

“I’m going to turn this thing around,” he says. It’s the kind of reaction program planners dream of, but those in the corrections system are realists. “We try to create opportunities, but we’re aware of what they’re up against when they get out,” says Emery Ewanshyn, the deputy director of programs at the CCC. “Things here are really structured. Sometimes they’re used to that structure and going back is hard.”

Corrie, another of Lloyd’s students, knows first hand about the challenges of life after incarceration. He did a stint on Spy Hill in the 90s. He half smiles and sheepishly says he’s “not coming back to see Gord (Lloyd) again.” Corrie, a journeyman welder, thinks the program is good for the young guys who don’t have any skills. “No one has taught them how to do anything... this is their first time learning to do something useful.”

Many inmates have literacy issues, some can’t read a clock or even a street sign, which means training and the opportunity to be productive, can be pivotal for them. Correctional Services Canada says 57 per cent of inmates have no high school diploma.

“These guys need moments to be proud of in their lives,” says Lorell Thoms, the coordinator for the consortium. “Finishing a project or a gift for a family member can do that.”

Lloyd agrees that the opportunity to do something good for their families is perhaps one of the most salient parts of the program. “It gives them a sense of well-being to be able to give something to their families.” says Lloyd. “It’s such a powerful part of the program. You can’t help but win with that.”

BUILDING HOPE

CALGARY CORRECTIONAL CENTRE (CCC) PRIMER:• CCC opened in 1958 and was

called Spy Hill prison for many years because, well… it’s on Spy Hill.

• CCC accommodates 394 sentenced male adult inmates, though Lloyd says it averages about 270. It includes 38 beds for inmates serving their sentences on the weekend and 56 beds for inmates in protective custody.

• CCC is a provincial medium security facility, which means inmates serve two years or less. The focus is on rehabilitation and preparing offenders for release or transfer to a minimum security facility.

SAY HELLO TO OUR STUDENTSWhen you get a call from SAIT Polytechnic, its actual SAIT student fund raisers on the line. Thanks for taking time to share your news and hear what they have to say.

Funds raised by student callers go directly to programs that benefit SAIT students. For more information on the Student Calling Program, contact Debby Deniset at 403-774-5214

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Hot Rod careerJournalism grad builds a career of passion for cars

The car that got away from Terry Denomme (JA ‘96) was a 1962 Chevy Bel Air Bubble Top. Painted azure aqua and with less than 50,000 miles, he bought it in 1987 from a Scarborough, Ont. police officer. “The interior was pristine; it had original paint and very little rust,” he remembers. “I said I would never sell it.”

Circumstances, however, forced Denomme to sell the car in 1994. It haunts him to this day. But the sale played a major role in his story: it set him on course to launch Canada’s only hot rod magazine, Canadian Hot Rods.

Denomme headed west after completing a Bachelors in English Literature at Wilfrid Laurier University. A string of unsatisfying jobs in his 20s led him to rekindle his interest in journalism.

“By the time I got to SAIT, I was ready to be in journalism,” he says. “I had job offers before I was done the program.”

Suzanne Trudel (GA ‘84), former publications manager for SAIT’s student newspaper and now executive director of Alberta Magazine Publishers Association, worked with Denomme at the paper, one of the three jobs Denomme held while studying. “[He] was excited to put what he was learning in the classroom into practice and was not afraid to take risks.”

In 2005, after a decade in newspapers in Alberta and British Columbia, he launched Canadian Hot Rods while working as the editor of the Harbour City Star in Nanaimo. The magazine spun out of a syndicated car column he wrote for four Vancouver Island newspapers.

“Writing the column turned a passion for all things automotive into an obsession,” he says. “A single weekly column would never do justice to how huge [hot rod hobbies are] in Canada.”

For a year and a half, he worked full time at the newspaper and full time on the magazine.

“I was on fire for the magazine. Passion kept me going,” says Denomme, who does writing, photography, and layout, as well as manages the magazine. His wife, Patty, helps with subscriptions.

The 100-page, glossy magazine is published six times a year. This year, a seventh Collector’s issue was released in the summer. Denomme and his wife manage close to 3000 subscriptions of the 18,000 print-run; the remainder is sold in retail stores in Canada and the U.S.

Denomme travels to car shows across the country to identify cars with great stories, to show off project cars he’s built, and to attract subscribers. The magazine thrives despite cut backs in the print media industry, which Denomme attributes to the healthy culture of car lovers in Canada.

So what role did his beloved Bel Air Bubble Top play in launching Canadian Hot Rods? Denomme laughs. “I sold it to study journalism at SAIT.”

JESSICA NATALE WOOLLARD

Terry Denomme, publisher of Canadian Hot Rods magazine, prepares to drag race the car he built in tribute to his dad’s 1957 Ford Sedan Delivery.

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Fund raising in the land of fire and ice

Fording rivers and crossing glaciers may seem like an unlikely method of raising funds to support a well development program in Sub-Saharan Africa, but last summer, a father-daughter team of SAIT graduates did just that.Brad Diggens (Plumbing and Gas-fitting ‘79) and his daughter Jennifer

Diggens (HRA ’06) paid for, planned and executed a 90 kilometer trek across Iceland, raising over $10,000 for Operation Eyesight, an organization dedicated to eliminating avoidable blindness. One of Operation Eyesight’s areas of focus is combating blindness and even deaths caused by water-born illnesses. They work with local governments and citizens in countries like Zambia to make clean, potable water accessible.

The Diggens’ connection with Operation Eyesight began in 2008 when Jennifer started working there and Brad, as the upcoming chair of the Mechanical Contractors Association of Canada, was looking for a “charity of choice” for the association to support during his tenure. “We wanted to find something that related to our industry... and when we heard about the Africa wells program, that piqued our interest because wells and the need for clean water are something we understand,” says Brad.

Jennifer and her dad, both seasoned hikers, chose the hike because of their Icelandic heritage and because it posed a good challenge. They began making plans and reaching out to others to generate support. Friends and family, connections through Facebook, colleagues and strangers all stepped up and by the time they left in July 2013, the pair had amassed nearly $11,000, all of which ultimately went to Operation Eyesight.

During their 90-plus kilometer hike from Landmannalaugar, which is about 180 kilometers east of Reykjavik, to Thórsmörk then Skógar, the Diggens wove their way through volcanic mountains and glaciers, across rivers and through tiny forests. They got to experience new lava fields and craters created from the eruption of Eyjafjallajökull in spring of 2010. It was, they both agree, difficult, exhausting, at times scary, but more than anything, spectacularly beautiful.

“I almost started crying when it ended because it was that great,” says Jennifer of the arduous, six-day trek. “Iceland feels like the beginning of earth. It’s really amazing. The earth felt so alive.”

“Wherever we went it was always spectacular. There was never a time when you went, ‘This is boring!’ It was never dull. Even when it got difficult it was spectacular – every inch of it,” says Brad.

One of the most amazing experiences the pair had, beyond testing the local sour sheep testicles and being offered rotten shark, was feeling the geothermal heat generated in the area. In some places, they say, the ground was so hot they couldn’t sit on it for very long. The whole experience was almost surreal, says Jennifer. Her Dad concurs.

“It was a great experience,” he says. “It gives you a real good sense that you’ve accomplished something, that you’re helping someone, somewhere, who’s in need of something you take for granted here every day.”

CHRISTIE SIMMONS

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SAIT alumni Brad Diggens and his daughter Jennifer spent six days last summer hiking 90 kilometers through the primordial, rugged terrain of Iceland to raise funds for Operation Eyesight.

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SAIT OFFERS JUST OVER 30 APPRENTICE PROGRAMS, but Dan Weinert, a SAIT carpentry instructor, estimates the average person could name just ten of them. His answer to this information gap? “We need to get some exposure in the high schools and junior highs about all the trades that are available.”

It’s precisely this thinking that helped Weinert secure the Cadmus Foundation Trades Teaching Chair, an award that honours excellence in trades. As the 2012-13 Cadmus award recipient, Weinert was provided $25,000 and four months leave from teaching duties to pursue a project he called Tailgate Trades.

Tailgate Trades, explains Weinert, is a hands-on carpentry project he designed to take to high-school students as a complimentary add on to their Career and Technology Studies. Weinert invested the award money in a cargo trailer outfitted with the necessary equipment and from October to December 2012 traveled to schools in the Calgary area to introduce up to 25 students at a time to carpentry by framing a house built at 1:10 scale with them.

Through the course of a week, students learned how to work with scale, read blueprints, cut to measure and do all the carpentry skills associated with framing a real house. Both teachers and students were enthusiastically receptive to the program.

“I wasn’t sure what to expect at the beginning,” says Weinert. “I knew it was going to be a popular idea, I just had no idea how popular!”

Out of all the students he worked with, he had only one or two that didn’t warm up to the project. The others – often the kids from whom he’d been warned to expect very little – were entirely engaged. Weinert worked with a student with a reputation for spending more time in the parking lot selling drugs than in the classroom. Not only did that student fully participate, he proved to have an aptitude for carpentry and for helping other students with the project.

At a school delivering a specialized curriculum for kids facing significant life challenges, Weinert worked with a girl who built the entire house on her

own. Her excitement, focus and pride in her accomplishment was, he says, one of the most gratifying experiences of the whole four months.

Some of the schools Weinert was in had shops and some kind of program, but in many they didn’t – a reflection of some of what’s behind the need for programs like Tailgate Trade.

“The emphasis in high schools for many years now has been academics and steering kids towards university and college so a lot of these programs have lost funding or have been in a steady decline. Consequently in a lot of cases the shops are poorly equipped. If you can’t get bodies into the programs you can’t get funding. But if you don’t get funding, how do you grow your program and attract kids?”

Through the course of the project Weinert says he discovered kids with strong aptitude and was able to kindle the desire to pursue carpentry in more than a handful of kids. And the Tailgate model, now established, is well positioned to push further into schools to expose more kids to the trades. The success of this project has not gone unnoticed.

“There is going to be a concerted effort to continue on with Tailgate Trades in the future, as early as the new year,” says Weinert. “The intent is to broaden it to encompass, first other programs within School of Construction, then beyond to other schools.”

CHRISTIE SIMMONS

Tailgate evangelistCadmus project takes trades to students

SAIT carpentry instructor Dan Weinert loaded a cargo trailer with materials to frame a 1:10 scale model of a house and took his Trades Tailgate project to high schools across Calgary.

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Degrees of a labour of loveTHERE’S SIX DEGREES OF KEVIN BACON. And on Calgary’s live folk music scene, there’s Six Degrees of Vic Close.

For more than 40 years, it’s been virtually impossible to swing a 12 string acoustic Fender in the Stampede City without hitting someone who knows a guy who knows Close — tireless promoter, relentless marketer, big-time booster.

He arrived in Calgary in 1969 directly from small town Champion, Alta., began booking live musical acts on the SAIT Polytechnic campus shortly thereafter, and has stayed within harmonizing distance of the city’s folk epicentre ever since.

“I’ve tried to explain to people that I sort of have a folk-music addiction,” says Close, 62. “On numerous occasions in my life, I’ve been in a position where, if there hasn’t been stuff happening, I have no aversion to making it happen.”

While Close is a passable percussionist and a self-described “safety-in-numbers” kind of vocalist, he’s “made it happen” over the years in areas immediately around the stage — the marquee, the ticket office, the beer garden.

Here in Calgary, Close is in his eighth year as promoter with the Fish Creek Concert and Cultural Society. He was one of the founders of the Nickelodeon Music Club back in 1980, and handled bookings for the Rocky Mountain Folk Club for half-a-dozen years in the 1990s.

In Edmonton, he owned the beer gardens in the early days of the Edmonton International Fringe Festival. He was a stage manager at Expo ‘86 in Vancouver, and has simply lost track of the number of Western Canadian folk festivals he’s worked as a stagehand, promoter, or security official.

And it all started on the SAIT campus in 1970 — pre-Campus Centre, pre-Spartacus Lounge — as bookings manager with the intriguingly named SAITan’s Den in the Student Activity Building.

“It was a very active building. During the day, the space we booked on Sunday nights was a room full of ping-pong tables, going flat-out,” he recalls

with a laugh. “But for me, it certainly planted a seed.”If that’s the case, Close’s career as a promoter arguably came into full

bloom in July 2013, when he helped organize the I (HEART) YYC benefit concert for victims of southern Alberta floods. With performances from Stephen Fearing and Andy White, Lucas Chiasson, Pear, and John Wort Hannam, the concert drew more than 400 listeners to the River Park Church and raised more than $25,000 — including a silent auction that generated $5,000 all on its own.

“We were overwhelmed. I’m still in shock at how well it went down,” says Close. “We literally put that flood benefit concert together in 10 days, and we were astonished at the response. There were so many people involved who were not directly affected by the floods, but wanted to do their part in some way.”

Just recently, Close wrapped up a stint on the local organizing committee as the Canadian Folk Music Awards came to Calgary from Nov. 8 to 10. Festivities included a special live broadcast of CKUA Radio’s Folk Routes at the Ironwood Stage and Grill.

“It’s more a labour of love, this life,” says Close, “than it is a living.”

TODD KIMBERLEY

Self proclaimed folk music addict Vic Close has been booking bands since his days planning gigs for SAITan’s Den, SAIT’s 1970s campus bar. Lately, he’s used his proximity to the folk epicentre to help Calgarians in need.

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Stickley goes to Washington

Despite graduating almost 15 years ago, alumna Robin Stickley (CTSR ’98) can call the words of her SAIT professors to mind like it was yesterday. “Mr. Hooker scared the hell out of us. He said, ‘the news doesn’t start at 6:02, it starts at 6:00, so you’d better be on time for your classes and show me you respect it.’” She laughs at the memory.

“That’s the truth. Deadlines are deadlines in TV news, so that was a valuable lesson.”

Fast forward to the present and Stickley is probably more often the giver of advice than the receiver: in the years since she was a SAIT student, her career has soared past early gigs at local stations in Red Deer and Lethbridge all the way to the anchor desk at Global BC and most recently to Washington, DC at Global National’s Washington bureau.

Even Stickley’s early moves demonstrate a quick upward trajectory. Her internship turned into a part-time reporter position that saw her doing everything from shooting and editing to weather segments. By 2000, she joined Global Edmonton (then ITV) as a reporter and cohost of what is now known as the Morning News. She also helped launch Edmonton’s first live weekend morning newscast, First News Saturday. She became a reporter at Global BC in 2004, and by 2009 she was anchor of Global BC’s weekend News Hour. And then in 2012 she got the call to Washington.

Although she’s based in the capital, Stickley’s new gig as a correspondent has seen her cover everything from Hurricane Sandy to the Newtown, Connecticut shooting to the tornado in Oklahoma to the Boston Marathon bombings to the flooding in Colorado.

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She says the experience has been at points overwhelming, but also just the challenge she was looking for. “I hate to say it’s been a wonderful year, because a lot of stuff I’ve covered has been tragic and awful, but professionally this is everything I wanted it to be and more,” she says.

Of course, Stickley had been covering major news stories long before her US posting: she was one of the first on the scene in the Taber, Alberta high school shooting, and she also reported from Kelowna, BC during the devastating 2009 forest fires.

If Stickley knew she wanted to be a journalist from an early age (she recalls admiring Barbara Frum on CBC as a kid), she also realized pretty early that the competitive, hands-on SAIT Radio, Television and Broadcast News (in Stickley’s time called Cinema, TV, Stage and Radio) program would be her ideal training ground. “Many reporters that I was watching at the time were SAIT grads, and I knew those were the people whose footsteps I wanted to follow in,” she recalls.

While her busy position sees her hopping on planes regularly, being based in the glamour of Washington prompts even Stickley to take the occasional moment to appreciate how far she’s come. “I was at a dinner the other night that Obama spoke at and listening to him and being in the same room — I could have thrown a softball to him — at that moment I had to stop and say, ‘alright, do you get where you are and what you’re doing? It’s remarkable.’”

SUZANNE BOWNESS

“ I HATE TO SAY IT’S BEEN A WONDERFUL YEAR, BECAUSE A LOT OF STUFF I’VE COVERED HAS BEEN TRAGIC AND AWFUL, BUT PROFESSIONALLY THIS IS EVERYTHING I WANTED IT TO BE AND MORE.”

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Robin Stickley’s journey in broadcast news has taken her from small market stations in southern Alberta to dinners with dignitaries and one of the most coveted beats in the news business.

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CONGRATULATIONS to DOUG RAMSAY,

(PET ’77, Distinguished Alumni ‘12) on hisupcoming retirement as Chief Executive Officer

for 14 years at Calfrac Well Services Ltd.

A self-made leader in the oil and gas industry, Doug will be leaving a legacy of hard work,

vision, success and countless contributions to industry and the community.

Projet : Annonce MMI 2013

Client : TD Assurance

Dossier # : 31_MM9178-13_MMI.EN•sait (7x4.75)

Province : Alberta

Publication : SAIT Alumni Magazine

Format : 7x4.75

Couleur : Quad

Épreuve # : 3

Date de tombée : 30/10/2013

Graphiste : Yannick Decosse

Hamelin-Martineau Inc. • 505, boul. de Maisonneuve O, Bureau 300 • Montréal (Québec) H3A 3C2 • T : 514 842-4416 C : yannick.decosse@hamelin-martineau.ca

ATTENTION : MERCI DE VÉRIFIER ATTENTIVEMENT CETTE ÉPREUVE AFIN D’ÉVITER TOUTE ERREUR/PLEASE CHECK THIS PROOF FOR ERRORS

You’ve paid your dues. Start paying less with TD Insurance.

The TD Insurance Meloche Monnex home and auto insurance program is underwritten by SECURITY NATIONAL INSURANCE COMPANY. The program is distributed by Meloche Monnex Insurance and Financial Services Inc. in Quebec and by Meloche Monnex Financial Services Inc. in the rest of Canada