Community engagement was on the menu at the McGill Alumni Association’s annual awards ceremony where civic leader, corporate governance expert and philanthropist David Laidley, BCom’67, received the MAA’s highest honour.
A Montreal native who enjoyed an illustrious 40-year career at Deloitte LLP, Laidley has shared his remarkable talents with community organizations and institutions, including McGill as a volunteer and visionary benefactor. He notably paved the way for the Laidley Centre for Business Ethics and Equity at the Desautels Faculty of Management and served as president of the McGill Alumni Association.
“It’s a privilege and an honour to be able to give back, and one often receives, in return, more than one actually gives,” Laidley said as he received the Award of Merit.
The 122 McGillians who attended the MAA Honours and Awards Celebration on May 5 at Maison Alcan in downtown Montreal heard many inspiring stories during the cocktail and presentation ceremony that recognized exceptional alumni, students, faculty, staff and friends of the University for their service to McGill, the MAA and beyond.
“McGill is truly fortunate to have such an engaged group of alumni as we have here this evening,” President Deep Saini said in his opening remarks. “As a public university, we truly could not do what we do without our dedicated volunteers, generous supporters, and champions of McGill’s academic mission.”
“When I look at the list of honourees this evening, I see the global reach of our alumni network, with recipients based in London, New York, Jordan, different parts of Canada, and of course, here in Quebec,” Saini added.
John Blachford, BEng’59, PhD’63, DSc’09, received the Distinguished Service Award for his longtime support of the Faculty of Science and the Libraries, while Benoit Lacoste Bienvenue, BCL/LLB’00, earned the E.P. Taylor Award for his commitment to McGill’s success and community engagement.
Brian Fetherstonhaugh, BCom’79, a global leader in marketing and leadership development and an engaged alumnus with generational ties to McGill, was honoured with the D. Lorne Gales Special Recognition Award.
Service to others was a running theme among the honourees’ achievements, including the three recipients of the Chancellor Gretta Chambers Student Leadership Award: medical student Meygan Brody, law student Faith Dehghan and Lea Carouba, who is pursuing a Bachelor of Science in nutrition.
Dr. Michelle Kwok, BASc’10, MedResident’24, received the James G. Wright Award for her dedication to providing specialized health care, especially in underserved communities.
Dr. Helen Smeja, BSc’81, MDCM’85, accepted the Charles H. Peters Alumni Group of the Year Award on behalf of the MDCM Class of 1985. The Class was honoured for its deep ties to McGill and its tremendous support of the Faculty of Medicine and Health Sciences having endowed four funds, including for their 40th reunion in 2025, a research bursary in neuroscience in memory of their late classmate Dr. Blair Ford.
The McGill Alumni Association of Jordan earned the Alumni Event of the Year Award for their event on “Orthopedic Surgery in Conflict Zones & Austere Environments.” It featured a talk by Dr. Ghassan Alami, MDCM’03, about his work in conflict zones that resonated deeply with the audience.
Fifteen McGillians and groups were honoured during the ceremony hosted by Teresa Calandriello Fata, BSc’90, DipManTour’93, an MAA director and member of the Honours and Awards Committee, along with fellow committee member Abdaal Mazhar Shafi, BEng’14, himself a recipient of the Alumni Student Engagement Award in 2023.
Learn more about all the 2026 MAA Honours & Awards honourees, and browse the photos from the celebration.