2010
Read news and updates submitted by fellow alumni by date submitted, news category, faculty of graduation, decade or search for a name. Share your news here.
published his first book “The Golden Generation” in November 2025. The book tells the untold story of Canadian basketball, from Team Canada’s breakthrough at the 2000 Olympic Games to two decades of struggle and, controversy that ultimately lead to a bright future in professional sport.
and wife welcomed their second child. “We feel so blessed!”
joined Factorial, an HR software based in Barcelona, as the Head of Content in 2025.
begins the Dental Assisting program at the University of Alberta in fall 2025.
and Amar Gupta, MBA’17, founded the functional coffee company brüst in 2018 and have recently partnered with Denis Shapovalov. Read more here.
won the Margaret & John Savage First Book Award (Non-Fiction) for Hell of a Ride: Chasing Home and Survival on a Bicycle Voyage Across Canada. The book was also a runner-up for the Evelyn Richardson Award, Nova Scotia’s highest honour for non-fiction.
received the King Charles III Coronation Medal in recognition of his involvement in the planning and delivery of the Lieutenant Governor’s Medal of Distinction in Public Administration.
published Thornfield in July 2025.
has been admitted to the partnership at Siskinds LLP.
debut poetry collection Our Little Agonies is slated for publication by Montreal Publishing Company on May 1st, 2025.
started working as a clinical research coordinator for Axiom Real Time Metrics.
proudly received the gold medal and Provincial Champion title in the Silver Artistic Free Program event at the 2025 Skate Ontario Adult Championships in Kanata, ON. She looks forward to preparing for the 2025-26 competitive season!
welcomed Erin Isadora Shcherbakov, born September 2, 2024.
founded LOOP IT Group, a high-performance MSP saving new, existing, or transitioning businesses from tech mishaps. He’s there to give them the inside line on cost-effective technology solutions, grail products, locking down data and more.
was named one of 25 people to watch in 2025 from the Global Gaming Business magazine for leading the first North American research center focusing on sports wagering and gambling.
served as a director of community engagement for the Canadian Cancer Society’s flagship fundraising event, Run for the Cure. Her team raised over $100,000 for breast cancer research and organized an event with over 400 attendees.
celebrated 2024 Homecoming with her best friend Aloka Wijesooriya, BHSc’16, at Western’s Alumni Awards celebration.
Enjoying the fall campus weather in purple fashion with my best friend Daisy Gao, MEd’16.
purchased their childhood home in Ontario in 2024.
has published her second novel, Cicada Summer in June 2024. The book follows Husha, a young woman who discovers an unsettling short story collection penned by her late mother.
received the 2023 Civic Accessibility Award from the City of Pickering for significant contributions to the well-being and advancement of people with accessibility requirements.
Celebrated Homecoming 2017.
Paramvir Vassan, MPH’13, MPH’13
and family welcomed their first child, a baby boy on February 9, 2024.
welcomed Margaret “Maggie” Christen Siobhan Griffin, born December 29, 2023.
As a staff member, Homecoming has become so special to me. Seeing grads from 50+ years return to campus to relive their memories at the Golden Anniversary Brunch is always a favourite. Their stories remind me why Western and our alumni are so special.
helped the Texas Rangers win the 2023 MLB World Series championship as their manager of pitching analysis.
had a beautiful baby girl in March 2024.
was purple and proud in Antarctica this past December, completing her goal of travelling to all seven continents.
married Zoey Kapusinski in Toronto, ON, in April 2024.
From first-year student in 2014 to alum and employee Ñ 11 years of Western Homecoming memories! Grateful to keep celebrating with purple pride, then and now. HereÕs to many more!
became a partner of Metcalfe, Blainey & Burns LLP (MBB Law) in February 2024 and was elected as a Bencher of the Law Society of Ontario.
published a book on the crisis of meaning in society amid several chaotic world issues.
released her first children’s novel Maya Plays the Part, featuring autism representation in a story with musical flair.
was appointed to the University of Calgary’s Board of Governors in March 2023.
was awarded the silver medal at the 2024 Skate Ontario Adult Figure Skating Championships in Kanata, Ontario in the Silver Artistic event. Emily also achieved a season-best score in the Silver Freeskate event and is looking forward to training again for the 2024-25 season.
won the Pottersfield Prize for Creative Nonfiction for his debut memoir, Hell of a Ride, about a 7,000-kilometre solo bicycle trek across Canada in support of mental health initiatives. The book comes out March 15, 2024.
published a children’s book in February 2024. With This Note is a story about listening to your body and trusting your gut feelings.
will celebrate the release of her debut picture book in March 2024. Published by Amicus Ink, Was It a Cat I Saw? is the story of a lost cat, a found friend and a girl who speaks only in palindromes.
celebrated her wedding in Sanya, China with other Western alumni in January 2024.
will marry Andrew Pople in June 2024.
is the artist and internationally recognized calligrapher behind @peakpaperco. Her guided grief journal titled Forget You Not from Blue Star Press & Penguin Random House releases in February 2024.
and Amar Gupta, MBA’17, founded brüst protein coffee and were featured on CBC’s Dragons’ Den in January 2024. They received three offers and closed one deal with Arlene Dickinson to fund their functional coffee business. brüst is now available at Costco, Loblaws, and through retailers across Canada.
is the Executive Director at Level, a national justice education and human rights nonprofit. Shelan is leading Level in building a future of equity and justice through innovative programs focused on youth, law students and the legal sector.
is the president of SXULTRASONIC Group, an innovative research and development enterprise based in Shenzhen, China. In 2023, the company was named Top Drug Discovery and Solutions Provider in Asia-Pacific, awarded by Pharma Tech Outlook magazine.
and Brandon Harvey, MD’18, purchased their first home together in Carp, ON in November 2023.
and Brandon Harvey, MD’18, welcomed their son, Ellis, in July 2022.
purchased their first home in Glen Cairn, London, ON.
is a senior advisor at the Association of Municipalities of Ontario Policy Centre.
published his first book The Book of Benjamin from Palimpsest Press in October 2023. This literary essay on names, birth and grief is the testament of both a son and a father, contrasting genealogy with larger communal narratives.
published Museums and Societal Collapse: The Museum as Lifeboat in September 2023. This book presents evidence and theories around collapse and extinction while highlighting the responsibility of museums in our changing world.
won a Cannes Lions award for the second year in a row with OLG. The program celebrates creative campaigns in the lottery and gaming sector.
passed away in June 2023 after 27 years of achievements. She was a dedicated environmental, social and governance analyst, a climate action promoter, a mentor to and supporter of youth, and a graceful, silent cancer fighter.
Reshel Perera, BSc’16, MMASc’17, MPH’19
and Jason Knapp, BSc’17, MSc’19, met through Western University during a study-abroad semester in Uganda in 2017. Jason proposed on campus in September 2021 and they were married in March 2023.
was elected as a member of Parliament for Oxford, Ontario in June 2023.
Andrea Wishart, BSc’10, MSc’14
defended her Ph.D. in August, and married Steven Denis in September 2023 in Saskatoon, SK.
an assistant professor of history at Saint Mary’s University, published her first book, The American Liberty Pole: Popular Politics and the Struggle for Democracy in the Early Republic with UVA Press in October 2023.
partner John, and enthusiastic big brother Rory welcomed baby Isaac Edward to the world in May 2023.
was hired as an assistant professor of instrumental music education at the University of Saskatchewan.
is a proud first-time homeowner after a nine-year search.
operates four businesses in science and health-care fields, as well as manufacturing industries in China.
and family welcomed baby Cole in May 2023.
married the love of her life, Jake Hindley, in Mexico in May 2023.
is a first-time home buyer in 2023.
published his first book of poems, Insomnio de Fogones.
published her first book, Eight Bears: Mythic Past and Imperiled Future, in July 2023 through W.W. Norton. The book is a global exploration of the eight remaining species of bears and the dangers they face, from polar bears in the Arctic to the spectacled bear of the Andes.
recently was married.
Cornelia (Corry) Janssen-Hendriksen, BA’13
wrote a young adult fiction novel titled Magic at the Rink, which explores grieving the loss of a loved one.
and Ben Robertson, BA’12, were purple and proud at their wedding on September 10, 2022, along with bridesmaids other King’s grads Rachel Sterling and Natasha Burtenshaw-deVries.
launched his AI business; Jackrabbit Ops.
released his latest album of original folk-rock music, Free Times.
and Jake Schindler, BMus’18, BSc’19, co-wrote and performed in a folk musical “Ursa” during the Watershed Festival in 2022.
moved to Pasadena, California with his wife, Nivin Nystrom, PHD’20, and joined KJMLAW Partners PLC. Nivin joined Caltech as a post-doctoral fellow.
has become a TikTok creator reporting on Chicago architecture and culture with a sprinkle of humour.
Alyssa Nicholls, BFA’11, BEd’12, MEd’13, BA’17
became engaged to Grant Dawson at Schloss Kronberg in Frankfurt, Germany.
published her first book Speak Kindly, You’re Listening, teaching high achievers to navigate their inner voice.
Erica McKeen, BA’17, BA’19, MA’20
published her debut novel, Tear, a layered, lyrical tale dealing with contemporary feminist issues set in London, Ontario.
won Season 10 of Big Brother Canada.
and family welcomed baby Hartley Muriella Rocco in June 2022.
Thalia Standish, BSc’14, PhD 2020
and Geoff Standish welcomed their first child, Eliana Ava Standish in May 2021.
married Scott Burton, HBA’13 in March 2022.
married Adam Miller in June 2022 near Elora, Ontario.
and Thomas Wong had a private wedding in August 2021 and renewed their vows with family and friends in August 2022.
and Kyle Tan, BSc’18, met at Western and were married in June 2022.
married Michael Van Vaals, in April 2022.
married Harjot Bhandal, BMOS’16, in May 2022 in Hamilton, On.
Deryn Rizzi, GDipPA’18, Jody Becker, BA’96, LLB’99, Karen Chan, EMBA’10, Rebecca Kacaba, BA’03, Priscilla Luna, EMBA’19, Erica Nielsen, MBA’02, Karen Peesker, HBA’92, MBA’97, Eva Salem, HBA’93, Oricia Smith, HBA’95, MBA ‘98, Nitsa Staikos, BA’97, and Nurin Thawer, HBA’05, were selected by the Women’s Executive Network (WXN) as some of the 2022 Canada’s Most Powerful Women. Read more here.
Nicole Baranowski, BA’19, MScM’21
Anthony Giugno, BSc’19, Paige Martin, BA’18, MMJC’19, Ian Rake, BMOS’16, and Justin Tiseo, BA’16 were recognized as trailblazers in the 2022 Business London’s Twenty in the 20s. Read more here.
joined the Department of Justice Canada as counsel.
Stacey Ann Allaster, LLD’14, MBA’00, BA’85
James Lloyd Cassels, LLB’80; Dr. William Foster Clark, MD’70; Dr. Zane Cohen, BA’65; and Guy Jacques Pratte, BA’78 all joined the prestigious Order of Canada roster in 2022. Read more here.
is re-imagining lending in India through his company Asset Direct of Canada Inc. Read more here.
won the prestigious MusiCounts Teacher of the Year Award in 2022. Read more here.
started a new position as the retail operations manager of Cannabis Xpress in July 2022.
celebrated five years travelling as a digital nomad, working with Waste Solutions Canada as a sustainability data analyst.
Joel, his wife Kim, and their son Samuel welcomed baby Isla Jade to their family in May 2022.