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Alumni Notes

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1978

maria_bonnie_duncan
Maria (Bonnie) Duncan, BCom, tells us that she was recently appointed as a New Jersey state commissioner for the 2020 New Jersey Complete Count Commission, which is responsible for convening New Jersey's efforts for the 2020 census.
Published in: Summer 2019
Karen Gregory and Peter Webster (both BComs) met at Queen’s and married in 1980 in the Queen’s chapel with Padre Laverty presiding. The couple went out to Calgary to work in Employee Relations in the oil patch for six years before taking an extended bicycle trip in Europe and sleeping in a two-man tent every single night for 16 months. They knew they could work and do anything together after that. Wanting to work for themselves, they decided to study at LaVarenne cooking school in Paris. They were the first married couple to graduate with Grands Diplomes Culinaires. They returned to Karen’s home stompin’ grounds in a suburb of Montréal and opened their own catering business in Ste-Annede-Bellevue, called Bouquet Garni. The business is now celebrating its 20-year anniversary. Karen and Gregory have been married nearly 28 years and have three daughters, BrieAnn (18), Keesha (15) and Tareya (11).
Published in: Summer 2008

Graham E. Jones, MBA, moved to the South Island of New Zealand in 2012. Graham taught business at the local technical institute and worked for the federal government, advising on retirement planning. He and his wife, Elle, live in Tuatapere, adjacent to Fiordland and within 100 km of four of the Great Walks. Before COVID-19, the two walked from Paris to Finisterre in Spain, following the Camino de Santiago. “My passion still remains long-distance solo tramping,” Graham writes.

Published in: Spring 2021
James Kofman (BCom, Law’82) has been appointed Vice Chairman of Cormark Securities. He has operated an independent advisory firm since leaving UBS Securities Canada Inc., where he was Vice Chairman and Managing Director. James lives in Toronto.
Published in: Summer 2012

Stephen Martin, BCom’78, died on Oct. 11, 2023 in Victoria. He was 68 years old. Stephen spent his career as a chartered accountant, working at PricewaterhouseCoopers in Toronto before moving to Victoria. There, he was a CFO for several businesses and applied his skills in volunteer positions. He is survived by his wife, three sons and eight grandchildren.

Published in: Spring 2024
louis_obrien,_mba
Louis O’Brien, MBA, and his wife Sharon celebrated their 35th wedding anniversary and the recent marriage of their son Cameron to Andrew Warren. All four marked these milestones by taking a cruise from New Zealand to Sydney, Australia. The photo was taken in San Francisco, a stop on their journey to NZ.
Published in: Winter 2016
John McIntyre
John McIntyre, BCom, received the Queen’s University Alumni Association’s (QUAA) Alumni Humanitarian Award on April 8 in recognition of his work with Aboriginal youth and various charities. The award is given to a Queen’s alumnus/alumna for distinguished work or volunteer service that has made a difference to the well-being of others. (See p. 6 of the summer 2016 issue to read more about John’s philanthropy.)
Published in: Summer 2017
David Murray
David Murray (MBA) recently returned from a trip with Habitat for Humanity to Indonesia, where he helped build two houses and then present them to their new homeowners. It was a very emotional experience, reports David. He has parted company with KPMG and is now consulting with PwC. David says that he still plans to semi-retire in 2015 in order to spend more time traveling, fishing and diving.
Published in: Summer 2015
Louis O’Brien (MBA)
Louis O’Brien (MBA), having retired from Canada Post, tried to live the relaxed life of a pensioner. “That worked for about three months,” he reports. “Now, I am President of my eponymous consulting company, and on four governing bodies. Between my roles as Vice Chair of Waste Diversion Ontario, board member of the Peterborough Regional Health Center, advisory board member of Delivery Net, and member of the Audit Committee of Canada Border Services Agency, I can barely fit in two to three cruises and vacations a year!”
Published in: Summer 2013
Louis O’Brien (MBA) has been appointed the Chief Customer Officer for Canada Post Corporation, responsible for the overall customer experience. He also has line responsibility for the retail network of some 6,600 postal outlets across Canada, the Customer Service team and its call centres, and for canadapost.ca – the 8th busiest Canadian web site. “Just to make sure I have something to do in my spare time,” Louis adds, “our CEO has also given me and two of my colleagues the task of finding significant new sources of revenue to help offset the decline in our letter-mail revenues.”
Published in: Spring 2010