Arbor Winner

October 19, 2016

U of T Mississauga Professor Emeritus Graham White has been busy. For more than half a decade on the first Tuesday of every month, he has been rising early to make it to Hart House for 8 a.m. so he could voluntarily chair the centre’s finance committee alongside a group of students, a role that was recently recognised by U of T’s Arbor Awards.

“There’s all kinds of things we do for which we’re not paid but it’s really part of being part of the profession and part of the university,” he says. “Everyone – faculty, students and staff get so much out of the place, it’s only reasonable to give something back.” White’s philosophy can be applied to the thousands of people who volunteer within the U of T community and while most volunteers prefer to do their work behind the scenes, there’s one night a year where they get to be in the spotlight. This year’s Arbor Awards event took place on September 15th at President Meric Gertler’s residence, with 102 volunteers receiving awards. Since 1989, the annual awards have celebrated students, alumni, faculty, staff and community members for their exceptional volunteer work. To read more about the event, visit the U of T website here.