Students grateful for philanthropist’s support – TRU Newsroom
Receiving a Ken Lepin Award has become synonymous with excellence at TRU and the most recent recipients are no exception.
TRU Honorary Doctorate recipient and donor Ken Lepin (left) presents Master of Science student Tay Powrie with a Ken Lepin Research and Graduate Studies Award.
“It’s incredible how many people have benefited from Ken Lepin’s generous donations,” says Master of Science student Tay Powrie, who was among 10 graduate students recently awarded $60,500 in financial awards from Dr. Lepin.
“Upon receiving the Ken Lepin Research and Graduate Studies Award, I read some of the bios of the past recipients and was in awe by the quality and quantity of research that has been produced by these recipients. All these folks shared the same sentiment that receiving this award reaffirmed the importance of their work and motivated them to continue to pursue their passion for research,” he says.
“I would like to reiterate this sentiment and would also like to acknowledge the cascading effect of Ken Lepin’s contributions, as all the research supported by this award will have far reaching benefits to the community and the environment.
“Ken’s message and life story of overcoming obstacles through hard work and persistence is very inspiring and has helped many people achieve their goals. It’s an honour to join the amazing list of folks that have received a Ken Lepin award.”
Recipients were honoured on Oct. 18 with TRU Honorary Doctorate Lepin in attendance. He has been supporting TRU students since 2006. He is one of TRU’s most generous contributors, with his lifetime donations totalling more than $3.9 million. To date, 368 students have received a total of $1,140,850.
“The award is life changing and I am overwhelmed by the incredible support to finance my education and achieve my dreams,” says another Master of Science student, Olivia McLennan.
“When I graduate, I plan to attend medical school and practice in my home province of BC, and I am now all the more motivated to do so. Meeting Dr. Ken Lepin was a privilege — he is an inspiration, and I hope that I can pay his generosity forward to another student in need one day,” she says.
The Fall 2023 recipients of the Ken Lepin Research and Graduate Studies Award:
- Gabe Carpendale
- Olivier Jumeau
- Calli Lawrence
- Erin Marchio
- Olivia McLennan
- Tay Powrie
- Jacqueline Schoen
- Kara Nickerson Wright
The Fall 2023 recipients of the Ken Lepin Prize of Excellence Entrepreneur and Communication Master of Business Administration Award:
- Isabella Ferster
- Hiten Patel