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Pierre Bertrand Makes Bequest with the Future of Students in Mind
Over the past five years, Pierre Bertrand took time away from his practice as a management consultant. “I needed to take stock,” he said. “My parents needed more help, COVID was changing everything, and I had some of my own health challenges.”
He helped to organize wrap-around health care for his parents, did some traveling, improved his own health, and, earlier this year, gave serious thought to how he wanted to go forward. As part of that, he revisited his will, contacting Toronto Metropolitan University (TMU) with the idea of supporting its future.
After some conversations and deliberations with Mira Claxton, TMU Director of Development, Planned Giving, Pierre decided to make a bequest in his will to endow bursaries for students enrolled in the Architectural Science program at TMU’s Faculty of Engineering and Architectural Science (FEAS).
Pierre Bertrand (Photo: Jae Yang)
“The bequest to TMU fit into a mindset of taking stock and thinking ahead about what I wanted to do,” says Pierre. “I realized that an underlying theme in my work and life in the community was simply that I like helping.”
“TMU is part of my community,” he adds. “I have lived in the downtown area for 23 years and walk everywhere - to work, to the Eaton Centre, to my gym. Those walks invariably took me through the Kerr Hall Quad, one of my favourite spaces, and past new buildings and green spaces, and hundreds of university students and staff. In that way, the university became part of my daily life. So I thought I might be able to do something for the university that would align with my interests and experiences in business, architecture and law.”
After contacting the university about planned giving and meeting Mira, he was introduced to Vincent Hui, professor and associate chair of Experiential Learning and Co-operative Education in Architectural Science.
“After a time, I missed working and volunteering, and the community connection that is part of that,” he notes. “I had served as general manager with an architecture firm for four years, and Vincent and I discussed a variety of ways I might become involved, including helping to develop an employment workshop for students.”
Pierre is also connecting with the Tri-Mentoring Program at TMU, bringing some of his professional experience to the benefit of graduating students as a career mentor.
“The work with students and my understanding of their situation from my own university years and from talking with Mira and Vincent, led me to shape my bequest in a way that would benefit students,” says Pierre. “As a gay person, I appreciate the challenges across different communities in our society, and that connects to my goal to help students in financial need get a university education.”