In memoriam
The Concordia community mourned the loss of several prominent alumni, supporters and ambassadors in 2022:
Nalie Agustin, BA 12
The best-selling author, public speaker and cancer-awareness advocate passed away on March 22 at the age of 33. In 2017, Agustin published Chemo Secrets: Tips, Tricks and Real Life Experiences from a Young Breast Cancer Survivor as a guide for other women. “[This] is exactly what Concordia prepped me for,” she said in a 2019 interview.
Helen Bambic-Workman, BFA 79, MFA 86
A Concordia audiovisual department staff member from the mid-1970s until her retirement in 1995, Bambic-Workman was the innovator behind MITE AVISTA, a multimedia lab that facilitated access to new technology for students and staff from 1989 to 2003.
Ned Goodman, LLD 97
Major supporter of Concordia and architect of Canada’s modern investment management industry. “Ned was a remarkable businessman, philanthropist and friend of higher education,” says Concordia President Graham Carr. “He left an undeniable mark on our university and our country.” Goodman partnered with Concordia to create the world’s first joint MBA-CFA program in 2001 — the Goodman Institute of Investment Management.
Sean Gordon, BA 06
Former Concordia Stingers football star who enjoyed a long career at Concordia as a graduate program assistant. “I had the pleasure of coaching Sean in his student days,” says Paul Chesser, BA 94, GrDip 97, vice-president of Advancement and a former football defensive coordinator. “He was a tremendous athlete and a great Concordian.”
Mel Hoppenheim, LLD 09
Film-industry pioneer and namesake of Concordia’s cinema school. “Mel Hoppenheim was a visionary builder whose entrepreneurial spirit and generous support helped foster remarkable talent across the country,” says Graham Carr. “We are proud to have benefited from his passion.” In 1997, Hoppenheim gave $1 million to the Faculty of Fine Arts to support students in the Department of Cinema. The renamed Mel Hoppenheim School of Cinema has since become the largest university-based centre for the study of film in Canada.
