Lindsay Gordon, who served as UBC’s chancellor from 2014 to 2020, passed away on August 26 and is being remembered for his philanthropic contributions.
UBC President Benoit-Antoine Bacon shared the news of Gordon’s death in an online statement on Wednesday.
Gordon leaves behind his wife Elizabeth — also an established leader in the UBC community — and his two sons and two daughters.
In 1970, Gordon moved to BC from the UK to attend UBC to study economics, and later got an MBA. During this time, he met Elizabeth.
Gordon and Elizabeth are known for their philanthropic and advocating commitment to supporting sustainability, education accessibility and reconciliation in their community.
They founded the Centre for Excellence in Indigenous Health's Lindsay and Elizabeth Gordon Award in Health Sciences, an award to support Indigenous students pursuing a degree in health sciences.
“Lindsay advocated for those who had experienced barriers to education and access to healthcare,” Bacon wrote.
Bacon also said Gordon was a strong supporter of the UBC Indigenous Strategic Plan.
But before his time as chancellor, Gordon worked for HSBC Bank Canada for 26 years and was the bank’s president and CEO for 10 of them. In that time, he co-founded Children with Intestinal and Liver Disorders (CHILD), a foundation that would go on to raise $27 million for research and establish a lab, as well as an endowed chair at UBC and at BC Children’s Hospital.
Gordon also held positions with the Business Council of BC, Junior Achievement Canada, the Ministry of Social Development and Social Innovation of British Columbia and the United Way.
His active and continuous leadership led him to receive a Queen Elizabeth II Diamond Jubilee Medal in 2012.
In 2014, Gordon returned to UBC where he worked alongside UBC’s Board of Governors and the president to manage convocation, participate in the university’s governing bodies, act as an ambassador for the university and became an advisor for the president.
To Gordon, being a leader for the university meant advocating and fundraising for student aid. He co-chaired UBCO’s start an evolution campaign and was a driving force behind the Blue and Gold campaign. His lifelong contributions were recognized when Gordon received an honorary degree from UBCO last year, as well as the Alumni UBC Volunteer Leadership Award.
Gordon said it himself — his work as a leader at UBC was delivered through a “passion for the institution.” In May 2020, The Ubyssey met with the emeritus chancellor as his six-year position was coming to a close. He candidly referred to his senior role as being the “volunteer-in-chief.”
“I feel I owe a great debt of gratitude to UBC,” Gordon said in 2020. “Anything I’ve managed to achieve in life, I credit [to] my time at UBC.”
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