Three graduates of the University of Northern British Columbia and a long-time employee who was instrumental in the establishment of the University’s bioenergy program will be honoured at this year’s 5th Alumni Awards and Wine Tasting Reception as part of Homecoming 2011. They include Aidan Kelly, the CEO of Tourism Prince George; Sarah de Leeuw, an award-winning author and a professor in the Northern Medical Program; Virginia Russell, an outstanding student and researcher; and Doug Carter, UNBC’s former Assistant Director of Facilities. 

Each September, UNBC invites its graduates to "Homecoming," an opportunity to celebrate their achievements and reconnect with UNBC. Activities include the awards reception, an Alumni vs. Timberwolves basketball game, and the Homecoming Golf Tournament.

This year’s honourees were chosen last month by the Alumni Association of UNBC:

• Sarah de Leeuw is a human geographer and creative writer who grew up on Haida Gwaii and graduated from high school in Terrace. She is an assistant professor in the Northern Medical Program and a two-time recipient of a CBC Literary Award in Creative Non-Fiction. She is the author of two books of essays, Unmarked: Landscapes Along Highway 16 and Front Lines: Portraits of Care Givers in Northern British Columbia, as well as a forthcoming collection of poetry. Dr. de Leeuw is the current president of the Two Rivers Gallery Board of Trustees and a director with the Prince George Elizabeth Fry Society Board of Directors.

• Aidan Kelly was born in Northern Ireland, but grew up in Chilliwack. He came to UNBC in 2002 as a recruit for the Timberwolves basketball team. In addition to being named CEO of Tourism Prince George in 2010, Kelly is a member of Board of Directors for Northern British Columbia Tourism Association, and the founder of Respekt Entertainment, a local events and promotion company. He is also a former member of the Board of Directors for the Alumni Association of UNBC, the Board of Directors for Two Rivers Crime Prevention Society, and the President’s Task Force on Athletics and Recreation. Kelly also provides an ongoing annual scholarship to UNBC Athletics.

• Virginia Russell is a Métis woman who grew up in Terrace and completed her undergraduate honours degree in Psychology and, recently, her MSc. in Community Health Sciences, also with a high degree of academic success. All the while, Russell has been raising two children and working for agencies focused on social justice, Indigenous health, and women’s issues. Prior to graduation, Russell secured a position with a research program dedicated to understanding HIV and AIDS in northern communities such as Prince George.

• Doug Carter was among the original employees at UNBC’s Prince George campus, first as a maintenance assistant. Just two years later, Carter was named UNBC’s Chief Engineer, a position he held until 2007, when he became the University’s Assistant Director of Facilities. Carter was the technical lead of UNBC’s awarding-winning Bioenergy Project from the outset and oversaw the construction of the Bioenergy Plant. Recently, after nearly seventeen years of service to UNBC, Carter moved to the BC Safety Authority. In recognition of his achievements for UNBC, he is being named an honorary member of the Alumni Association.

UNBC Homecoming 2011 will be held on September 23 and 24 at UNBC. The awards reception is on Friday, September 23rd. For more information or to reserve your tickets please contact us at: 250.960.5873, toll free 1.866.937.8622 or alumni@unbc.ca

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UNBC grad, award-winning author, and professor in the Northern Medical Program, Sarah de Leeuw



UNBC grad and CEO of Tourism Prince George, Aidan Kelly



UNBC grad Virginia Russell in her convocation regalia

Honorary Member of the Alumni Association, Doug Carter shows off the wood pellets that fuel the combustion system (background) that is part of UNBC's Bioenergy Program