Humber alumni unite to support students in crisis

Donor support has a powerful impact on the Humber community. When that support comes from our own alumni, it means much more – it shows that alumni have confidence in their education, their experiences at Humber and the impact that education helps them make on the world. 

This spring, Humber put out a call to our alumni community to support students affected by COVID-19, and their response was unprecedented. Because of the pandemic, many students found themselves without any support and faced the uncertainty of not knowing how they would continue their education, pay their rent or buy food. Humber set a goal to raise $500,000 for emergency bursaries through the Support Our Students (SOS) Fund and thanks in large part to our alumni, that goal was surpassed.

More than 43 per cent of donors to the SOS Fund were alumni, many of whom decided to give to Humber for the first time. That includes alumni like Vickie Campbell (Business Marketing, ‘76), who credited her Humber experience with changing her life and hopes that her gift will find its way to a student who needs it and will help Humber change their life too.

When Campbell joined the Business Marketing program at Humber, she found a place to move forward in her education and end up with a successful career. “Many of my instructors came directly from the business world, so the teaching was practical,” she said. “I loved what I did from graduation, and I had opportunities to choose from upon graduating. After a few years of working successfully and receiving awards, an opportunity opened up to start a business from the ground up. It started with me and an answering machine in 1982, and today that company is one of the largest moving companies in Canada.”

Campbell credits her Humber education with giving her the lessons she needed to succeed. “Marketing was a man’s world back then, and I was inspired to go after positions even when it got tough. I found ways to change the game and work smarter. The results gained me respect and earned me new opportunities.”

Proud Humber alumna Amilia Cooray (Immigration Consultant, ‘15) was happy to know that “I had been able to somewhat help make a difference in someone’s life.“

Alumnus Eduardo Pinto-Morante (Insurance Management – Property and Casualty, ‘19), was happy to support students during these difficult times. “I am so proud of being a Humber alumnus and I will always be thankful to the Insurance Management program for all their support and for providing me with the tools I needed to find a role in the insurance industry,” he said. 

“Everything I learned at Humber has been so useful for me that just thinking about students dropping out of college because of financial reasons during exceptional circumstances seemed totally unfair. When you decide to study – or in my case, study abroad – you have very specific goals. I think no one could have foreseen a pandemic being an obstacle for students trying to achieve those goals. When I found out Humber had this SOS Fund, I felt proud to be an alumnus of such a great college that sincerely cares for their students.”

Humber alumni continue to set the example for what an exceptional education can bring and what community really means. They have come together like never before to ensure that current students feel the strength of the alumni community around them. Because of their support, many students can rest easy knowing that they have a safety net, and alumni are rooting for them to complete their education in the face of today’s extraordinary challenges.