After two years of virtual festivities, this year’s McGill Homecoming marked a triumphant return to in-person celebrations. Friends and classmates reconnected for a full lineup of activities, including signature events such as the Beatty Lecture, the Leacock Lecture, and the McGill Redbirds Homecoming football game. And the weekend of events had an extra festive feature as McGill closed off its Bicentennial celebrations.
“I think anyone who attended would be sure to agree that Homecoming 2022 was a great success,” said Vice-Principal (University Advancement) Marc Weinstein, “Our first in-person Homecoming in three years was a terrific occasion to re-engage and celebrate with our alumni ‘in real life’.”
A Homecoming highlight each year, the 68th Beatty Lecture was delivered by journalist, author, freedom advocate and 2021 Nobel Peace Prize Laureate Maria Ressa. She warned of the dangers of weaponizing social media and its growing threat to democracy, and shared her personal struggles in her fight against misinformation and fake news.
Canadian comic genius Rick Mercer presided over the Leacock Lecture to a sold-out crowd, sharing anecdotes of his personal journey to fame, nurtured through countless conversations with fellow citizens to uncover what it means to be Canadian. Later that evening, following a family-friendly pre-game party in the Tomlinson Fieldhouse, the Redbirds took on the Concordia Stingers at Percival Molson Stadium; the game went into overtime, with McGill narrowly missing out on the annual Shaughnessy Cup.
McGill’s alumni groups offered an extensive range of fun and fascinating opportunities: Montreal’s own DJ Royce&Tan provided the soundtrack to the McGill Young Alumni Dance Party. The McGill Queer Alum Association co-hosted the Return of the Rainbow, and the McGill Black Alumni Association featured associate professor Debra Thompson discussing her newly released and much-praised memoir, The Long Road Home: On Blackness and Belonging.
Chancellor John McCall MacBain and New York-based alumnus Santo Manna led the first of what will likely become a regular SSMU reunion at Homecoming, with nearly 40 former executive members attending and reminiscing about their days as agents of social change. The McGill Latino Alumni Society hosted a fireside chat on entrepreneurship and innovation, and the McGill Sports Hall of Fame luncheon honoured six of Athletics’ latest inductees from McGill hockey, football and basketball, including the 2009 national champion women’s hockey team and the 2012 national champion men’s hockey team.
Faculty and class reunion events took place throughout the week, with Interim Principal Christopher Manfredi and Vice-Principal Marc Weinstein welcoming members of the Class of 1972 and earlier to the Golden Jubilee Dinner. It was the first in-person event of its kind held in two years, with guests travelling from as far as San Francisco to attend. A day-long celebration was held on the Macdonald Campus, where staff offered tours of the changes on campus, including its new state-of-the-art Clinical Nutrition Research Unit, among a return to traditional events.
In the midst of all the excitement, McGill announced the launch of the Victor Phillip Dahdaleh Institute of Genomic Medicine, thanks to gifts from alumnus Dr. Victor Dahdaleh. The Institute will harness the interdisciplinary expertise and research infrastructure across McGill’s faculties for a full-spectrum approach to genomic medicine. Its training program will have a particular focus on welcoming students from lower- and middle-income countries, a goal that is especially important for Dr. Dahdaleh.
Homecoming Celebration Weekend went out on a literal high note with a Bicentennial Closing concert featuring the McGill Symphony Orchestra, McGill Concert Choir, McGill University Chorus, and Schulich Singers. Their performance of Beethoven’s Symphony No. 9 – culminating in a stunning rendition of Ode to Joy – capped off not just Homecoming, but also more than a year of celebrations honouring the University’s 200th anniversary.
Combined with Montreal’s spectacular weather and peak fall colours, it was a wonderful weekend for all in attendance.
Virtual recordings are available for several events: a discussion with McGill researchers about the impact of COVID-19 on society, the environment, and our future</a>; a talk about chaplaincy and faith-guided counselling in universities hosted by the McGill Muslim Alumni Society; and a conversation with a renowned space scholar by the McGill Women’s Alumnae Association.
Homecoming Celebration Weekend dates for 2023 are October 19-21.
