Five new members named to Harold A.D. Roberts Circle

Membership in the Harold A.D. Roberts Circle is awarded annually in recognition of outstanding volunteer contributions, either through short- or long-term commitment. It celebrates those who go “above and beyond” to significantly improve the UCC Association and the College. 

Dan Andreae, Ed.D., attended UCC for 10 years before finishing his schooling in Switzerland, but he considers himself a member of the Class of 1972 and has remained strongly connected to the College.

 

Andreae, who has worked in the education, mental health and wellbeing sectors for more than 20 years, served as the lead sponsor for the SYNAPSE Conference hosted by UCC in 2018, an event that focused on mental health and neuroscience. In 2020, he joined the Association Council Wellbeing Committee. He was also a member of the New Grad Success Task Force.

 

He has been an award-winning professor at both the University of Waterloo and the University of Guelph-Humber and served as the inaugural Executive Director for the Alzheimer’s Society of Toronto and the longest serving president of the Ontario Association of Social Workers (OASW). His awards for volunteer contributions to the wellbeing  field include a Queen Elizabeth II Diamond Jubilee Medal, the June Callwood Outstanding Achievement Award for Volunteerism and the Governor General’s Caring Canadian Award.

 

He helped shape UCC’s New Grad Success Program, connecting Old Boys who are upper-year university students with those just entering university.  “We had the idea of building bridges,” he says. “The incoming student receives valuable support and emotional resources.”

 

Andreae was completely taken by surprise to be named a Harold A.D. Roberts honoree. When Dr. Amy Cheung, chair of the Wellbeing Committee, called to give him the news, he assumed it was a call about a committee meeting.

 

“I’m especially honoured, because school shapes who you are,” he says. “A student’s emotional and psychological health are as important as their intellectual development, and those skills acquired and lessons learned stay with you for a lifetime.”

 

Brendan Caldwell, president and CEO of Caldwell Investment Management Ltd., says he was “pleased, surprised and honoured” to be inducted into the Harold A.D. Roberts Circle.

“My teachers had a tremendous positive influence on me and prepared me both for academic life and ‘real’ life,” Brendan says. “My UCC friends remain some of my closest, even after 40 years or more. We have witnessed each other’s lives, contributed to each other’s successes and helped each other during tough times.”

Caldwell, whose son Ben is a member of the Class of 2016, has volunteered on UCC projects that matter to him personally, such as the College’s signature Founder’s Dinner event, the Wednesday Chapel Service and the Norval Outdoor School Centennial Planning Committee.

“I give my time to the College in ways that I hope can make a difference,” he says. “Founder’s Dinner is a way to reconnect with the people in our lives who knew us when we were young. Reconnecting with our past helps us better understand the present and sets ourselves up for the future.”

About the chapel service, which has been offered for more than 35 years, he says, “On the first Wednesday of each month, we meet in the Massey Chapel to pray for the boys and the College’s leadership and faculty. To develop boys fully, we need to recognize the spiritual component of their lives. All are welcome.” 

Caldwell’s work on the Norval committee was in service of optimally preserving the outdoor school for future generations. “It’s a living classroom,” he says, “and it’s why UCC has been at the forefront of environmental education for more than half a century. I’m so pleased that the College continues to expand the wonderful programming.” 

Simon Clarke-Okah has served as the volunteer assistant coach for UCC’s varsity football and rugby teams since 2015. A realtor by profession, his job provides him with the flexibility to arrange his schedule to fit his team commitments.

An avid high school athlete and three-sport university star, Clarke-Okah discovered after graduation that a back injury would prevent him from competing in high-contact sports. 

“I needed to do something,” he says, and coaching seemed like a good way to remain involved in sports. 

As a graduate of Ashbury College in Ottawa,  he contacted his high school coach to ask if he knew of any opportunities in Toronto. The coach connected Clarke-Okah with UCC rugby coach Andrew McCubbin and a partnership was born.

For the past nine years, Clarke-Okah has coached football, beginning with practices that start the last week in August and extending to games that take place until early November. During the winter, he works with the rugby team at their twice-weekly practices and throughout their daily training that begins after March Break.

“Initially, I coached because I couldn’t play and I needed to get that rush. But now, I enjoy fostering bonds between teammates and guiding them toward appreciating the ties and the experiences they have together.”

He’s delighted by his award. And even nicer was hearing about the abundance of recommendation letters. Students from Clarke-Okah’s first year of coaching through to last year’s graduates lent their voices to his nomination.

Natalie Davidson, who served as president of the UCC Parents’ Organization, says, “Volunteering at UCC gave me the opportunity to be part of the fabric of my sons’ lives. It was a special privilege.”

From the time her eldest son entered senior kindergarten to her younger son’s recent graduation, Davidson volunteered almost every year, serving as treasurer of the Prep Parents’ Organization, a library volunteer and a grade rep, among other positions. Some of her favourite volunteer opportunities include Grandparents’ and Special Friends’ Day (now Generations Day), and New to Blue.

“It was a great joy being an ambassador for the school and welcoming grandparents and special friends, and new families to the UCC community,” she says.

She is “very grateful for being recognized” as a Harold A.D. Roberts awardee, noting that volunteers are the heart of school communities.

“It's important to volunteer and I really wanted to give back. After working full time for 20 years, I had some useful skills to offer.” This included running the holiday season’s Festive Auction for two years and helping raise funds in support of refurbishing the Student Centre and Lower Dining Hall.

Now that her youngest son has graduated, Davidson recently re-entered the workforce, moving from her previous capital markets career to serving as an executive coach, but she treasures the years volunteering at UCC.

“Being part of such a wonderful, vibrant community was an honour,” she says.

Caroline Morgenstern felt a connection to UCC many years before she assumed a volunteer leadership role.

“UCC has been part of my life for a long time,” says Morgenstern, who is currently past president of the Parents’ Organization. “My husband attended as a boarding student and we dated while I was in Edmonton. I imagined the look of the campus long before I saw it.”

When Morgenstern’s children entered UCC, she was busy with her career in corporate pharma, but still found time to get involved: organizing events, serving as a class representative and later on as secretary for the Prep Parents’ Organization. She also supported Association Day, the Blues Booster Club and other annual initiatives.

Morgenstern’s commitments at the Upper School included year representative and, later, coordinator of the The Used Blues Shop (TUBS). She stepped away from full-time work to do healthcare consulting part-time, and simultaneously welcomed the opportunity to become president of the Parents’ Association. “It was a very rewarding year.” 

It was the first post-pandemic school year, and she was gratified to play a role in “restarting the engine and rebuilding our volunteer parent experience and knowledge base. I was very happy to facilitate ways for families to once again engage and re-establish traditional initiatives that signalled normalcy.”

As past president, she has dedicated time to new portfolio areas including boarding and pluralism, and led the return of the annual parent luncheon after a five-year hiatus. While she’s preparing to step away from a formal role within the Parents’ Organization, she anticipates involvement in other ways.

“I continue to be inspired by the energy, motivation, intelligence and thoughtfulness of the entire community. It’s played a role in my family’s history. I’ve come full circle and the award is such a pleasant surprise. It’s lovely to be acknowledged.”