BU celebrating alumni during Homecoming

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This article was published 11/10/2022 (1226 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

Brandon University’s Homecoming is back in full swing, with a trio of alumni scheduled to receive some public recognition during an awards ceremony taking place this Saturday.

The recipients of this year’s Brandon University Alumni Association awards are James McAllister, Lisa Ormann and Lorraine Pompana, according to a BU media release that was circulated last week.

McAllister, for example, will receive the Distinguished Alumni Award for Career Achievement, since he has served as a public policy analyst, manager and university instructor throughout his life.

After attending BU when it was still known as Brandon College, and obtaining a political science and history degree, McAllister would go on to obtain his master’s degree and PhD from Carleton University.

McAllister also worked for the provincial government in the Department of the Executive Council and taught at the universities of Manitoba and Winnipeg before moving to Toronto in 1979.

Once there, he worked for the Council of Ontario Universities, where he published dozens of reports and articles on university finances. He also taught at Ryerson University and Trent University.

He later joined the Ontario Ministry of Finance in 1998 and became its manager of federal-provincial relations.

After retiring in 2009, McAllister continued to teach at several universities and conduct academic research, most recently getting published in the Journal of Canadian Studies.

Meanwhile, Ormann will receive the Distinguished Alumni Award for Community Service for her work in the realm of mental health advocacy, having kick-started the “You Matter” movement following her son Todd’s death by suicide in 2018.

For four years now, she has given numerous talks and has raised tens of thousands of dollars for this cause, all the while remaining active with her volunteer work in the community of Olds, Alta.

Finally, Pompana is also receiving the BUAA’s Distinguished Alumni Award for Community Service, since she has served as a counsellor and educator in the region for more than 40 years.

Being a survivor of the residential school system, Pompana’s goal is to assist Indigenous individuals achieving their personal lifetime pursuits, as she did by obtaining a bachelor of arts, a graduate diploma in education and a master’s in education with a counselling specialization.

Despite retiring in 2008, Pompana has remained active in the community by becoming a co-ordinator of BU’s Indigenous Peoples’ Centre and serving as a member of groups such as the Brandon Police Board.

All three alumni will receive their awards during a BU Homecoming dinner that’s taking place Saturday at Harvest Hall, with the ceremony scheduled to begin around 7 p.m.

In addition to this event, BU’s 2022 Homecoming will be taking place throughout the week, from Tuesday through Sunday, and will feature Bobcat games, a concert, a trivia night, an alumni book fair and several other attractions.

To view the full schedule for BU’s 2022 Homecoming, please visit BrandonU.ca/Homecoming/Schedule.

» The Brandon Sun