Robert left Scotland for Canada in 1955. Nine years later he met Nonie, a UBC alumna working as a teacher in Prince George. The couple married a year later and shortly after moved to Vancouver.

Nonie’s ties to UBC remained strong throughout her life—the couple often attended performances at the Chan Centre, and Nonie would go to campus to have lunch with her friends.

The couple’s interest in UBC deepened when they attended the Class of 1946 reunion in 2006. Shortly after, they made their first gift.

“Nonie and I started thinking about how to make a more enduring impact, and we decided to create a bursary to provide financial assistance to students,” says Robert. “We both valued our educations and how they helped us live fulfilling and comfortable lives, and this was a way to help other students do the same.”

Shortly after Nonie’s passing, Robert completed the established of this bursary.

“Neither Nonie or I did anything famous, but we both tried to do something beneficial in our own way,” he says.