People are at the heart of Concordia University

By Marc Losier

Every year, the university recognizes the contribution of employees who have devoted many years to Concordia. This year’s celebration was held May 16 in a large tent on the Loyola Campus, but as University Archivist Nancy Marrelli wrote in a short history of the event (available in CTR online), the event has its own history.

Marrelli was one of those who is marking her 40th year as an employee of Concordia; in fact, she started at its predecessor, Sir George Williams University. Here are some excerpts of her address.

In 1974 Loyola College and Sir George Williams University were somewhat unlikely and reluctant partners, but Concordia University inherited the traditions of those two institutions, and it has built on them to grow into the dynamic university we know today.

Dedicated staff working in and out of the classroom have been an important part of our history, going back to our roots in the 19th century.

We’ve certainly had our high moments and our low points, but what matters to most of us are Concordia’s bedrock traditions: diversity, tolerance, academic freedom, and a fierce commitment to the education and development of the whole human being. We care about what we do – and it shows!

Concordia’s public face is changing. We are taking a more prominent place in the city landscape where we have been an important but subdued presence for over 100 years. But new buildings don’t disguise the institution we know and care about. This is a great place to get an education. We know Concordia’s a place that changes lives, and we all work together to make it so.

Photos by Luigi d’Astolfo

40 years

June S. Chaikelson • Michel Despland • Barry Frank • David Franklin • Nancy Marrelli • Balbir S. Sahni • Irene Sendek

35 years

Kevin Austin • Arthur Ayotte • Frederick A. Bode • Lise Brault • Ulrike De Brentani • Irvin Dudeck • Judith Herz • Joel Hillel • Sandra Lafontaine • Zeng-Rung Liu • Dennis Murphy • Harald W. Proppe • Amruthur Ramamurthy • Robert Raphael • Robert M. Roy • Harvey Shulman • Heather Thibaudeau • Marcell L. Trotman • Mary Vipond

30 years

S. Robert Aiken • Ralph Allison • Jacqueline Anderson • Boris Baran • Richard P. Bisaillon • Marie Bouchard • Virginia M. Bowker • Pansy Brown • Kevin G. Callaghan • Maureen Doheny • Lakshmi S. Dube • Geoffrey C. Fidler • Frederick Francis • Denis Gauthier • Ralph Germinario • Patricia J. Grant • Jane Hackett • Rosalyn Hailpern • Muriel Herrington • Marilyn Howell • Lucille Hreha Stanislas L. Klasa • Wendy Knechtel • Mary Judith Kornblatt • Mark Kwiatkowski • Clement W. Lam • Claude Lamarche • Yves Lanneville Loren Ruth Lerner • Deborah Macfadden • Elizabeth Maclean • Edward John Maly • Karen Mullett • Robert Murray • Alexander R. Olynyk • Olga Overbury • Diane Pagnuelo • Alfonsina Plenzich • William D. Raso • Elizabeth J. Sacca • Murielle Salari • Mahesh Sharma • Peter Shizgal • Thomas Simms • Gerald S. Vardon

25 years

Philip C. Abrami • Liselyn Adams • Gerry Barrette • Dorothy Bathelt • Jean Belisle • Annie Bergey • Donald Boisvert • Joyce Borenstein • Craig Buchanan • Philip Chambers • Jayne Claassen • Manuel Da Costa • Renée Desrosiers de Lanauze • Pauline Dubois • William Charles Ellison • Antonio Escaleira • Assunta Fargnoli • Santina Fazio • James F. Gavin • Sadegh Ghaderpanah • Kathryn Griffin • Marlene Gross • Ashoka Harichandan • Robert Hecht • Eldon Hill • Laurence Jourde • Ciaran Hopkins • Manmohan Rai Kapoor • Barbara Kordas • Juliette Laplante-L’Hérault • Abubakr Joel Lauzière • Vincent J. MacDougall • Elena Marsillo • Frank Maselli • Larry McGoldrick • Moin Kermani • Nikos Metallinos • Eric J. Mongerson • Halina Monkiewicz • Jennifer Moore • Stan Mroz • Khammo Oudomvilay • Anna Pagliuca • Maria-Clara Paradisis • Susan Parisella • Vladimir Pavlicik • Jean Yves Richard • Janice Robinson • Yaron Ross • Maurice Fernan Rossin-Arthiat • André Roy • Robby D. Saks • James L. Scribner • Diane Sole • Cathy Sowden • Terence Too • Lorraine A. Toscano • Linda Toy • Lorraine Tucker • Jurgen H. Werth • Barbara C. Woodside

20 years

Syed T. Ali • Raymonde April • Michael Babin • Brigeen M. Badour • Alessandro Berardelli • Claudie Boujaklian • Jean-René Campeau • Michel Choquette • Sandra Cochrane • Aldo Dissegna • Andrew Dutkewych • Paul T. Eifert • Marjorie Ewing • Louli Farah-Herbert • Rosaria Fazio • Bina Freiwald • Pierre Gauthier • Jeannot J. G. Girard • Pina Greco • Richard J. Hancox • Katherine Hedrich • Jack J. Hirschberg • Karen Irving Fiddler • Rajagopalan Jayakumar • Michael Kafenzakis • Dennis Kalogeropoulos • Rosalind Knitter • Barbara Kornas • Adam Krzyzak • Jean-Roch Laurence • Mia Lobel • Edith H. McCarthy • Mustafa K. Mehmet Ali • Osama Moselhi • Hany Moustapha • Virginia Nixon • Ruth Noble • Dan Oxley • Jacques Payer • Ross Perigoe • Marc Picard • Diane Poulin-Dubois • Subhash Rakheja • Sandra Robinson • Remigio Rodriguez • Daryl L. Ross • Joanabbey Sack • Daniel Salée • Joao Sanches • Lidia Santos • Satwant Sihota • Spyros Skalkogianis • Mary Tedd • Angelina Trubiano • Phyllis G. Webster • Arlene Wilson • Carole Zucker