Personal gifts
Supporting the next generation
$325,000 gift honours brother's legacy
Karna and Jaydeep Gupta were born six years apart. Both graduated from Concordia — Karna, BComm 77, MBA 79, and Jaydeep, BA 82, MBA 84. Both went on to distinguished international careers — one in the tech sector and the other in banking.
Sadly, Jaydeep Gupta died suddenly in March 2020 at the age of 61. At the time, he was Standard Bank of U.K.’s regional head of banking for Africa and Middle East. His older brother said he was a well-respected banker who “left his fingerprint across several continents.”
To honour his brother’s legacy of supporting diversity and equality, Karna Gupta has given morethan $325,000 to the Campaign for Concordia. The Jaydeep Gupta Bursary for Women in Finance will fund two undergraduate bursaries at the John Molson School of Business in perpetuity.
As an advocate for gender parity in the workforce, especially in finance, his brother Jaydeep would have appreciated the endowment, Karna Gupta says.
“It’s something he would have loved. He always championed career opportunities for youth and particularly women.”
Anne-Marie Croteau, dean of John Molson, thanked Gupta for his contribution to both the success of women in finance and his brother’s legacy.
“These generous undergraduate bursaries will enableworthy recipients to focus on their studies rather than on financial constraints, and to maintain the academic excellence that will jump-start their careers in finance,” Croteau says.
Concordia Sports Hall of Famer George Lengvari, BA 63, gave $1 million to each of his alma maters, Concordia and McGill University, in support of men's and women's basketball.
Founder of BFL CANADA Barry F. Lorenzetti made a gift of $500,000 to establish the Barry F. Lorenzetti Centre for Women Entrepreneurship and Leadership at the John Molson School.
Dominic D’Alessandro, BSc 67, LLD 98, renewed his support for graduate students with a gift of $335,000 to the Dominic D’Alessandro Fellowship Fund.
Richard Paterson, BComm 64, made a gift of $322,750 toward the Indigenous bridging program, which helps remove barriers to postsecondary education and facilitate access to select programs, most notably in STEM (science, technology, engineering and mathematics). His gift was made via American Friends of Concordia, which allows graduates living in the United States to make tax deductible donations to the university.
George Lengvari and the Eric Weider Foundation gave $320,000 in support of the Joe and Ben Weider Athletic Leadership Award Endowment. The fund provides annual awards and medals for varsity student athletes based on athletic performance, academic excellence and community engagement.
An anonymous donor gave $179,000 to support students at Concordia’s Department of Journalism.
Neil Whitlock gave $150,000 to establish the Ed Whitlock Fellowship in memory of his father. The annual award will support graduate research at the PERFORM Centre focused on quality-of-life advancements for seniors. Ed Whitlock, a marathon runner from Milton, Ontario, who set age-group records until his death at the age of 86, was an advocate of PERFORM.
Richard Mackay, BA 58, honoured the late Mag Flynn, former coach of the Sir George Williams Georgians basketball team, with a gift of $100,000 in support of men's varsity basketball.
A total of $100,000 was raised, from four gifts of $25,000, toward the Concordia Hong Kong Foundation Entrance Scholarships.
A gift of $100,000 from Donald Poole, BSc 72, and Bonnie Poole, BComm 86, supported the Centre for Research on Aging (engAGE), the John Molson School Case Competition Program and students pursuing an MSc in chemistry.
Louise Rousselle Trottier, BA 76, renewed her support for undergraduate scholarships in the Faculty of Arts and Science with a gift of $100,000.
Dario Mazzarello, BComm 93, donated $100,000 to establish the Dario Mazzarello Bursary and Dario Mazzarello Scholarship to support John Molson finance students.
Leslie Raenden gave $60,000 in support of professional training offered by Art Volt. A Faculty of Fine Arts initiative, Art Volt equips creative practitioners for success after university.
Ruth and David Steinberg renewed their support of Department of English scholarships with a new gift of $60,000.
A gift of $50,000 from Viswanath Tata, BEng 81, MEng 88, a part-time faculty member in the Department of Mechanical, Industrial and Aerospace Engineering, established an award named in honour of his parents, L.K. Rao and Ramasita Tata. The award will support women from India completing their master’s degree at the Gina Cody School.
A gift of $50,000 from David P. O’Brien, BA 62, supports the Chancellor’s First Generation and Permanent Resident Bursary Fund.
A $50,000 gift from Jean-François Dion, BComm 02, established the Jean-François Dion Undergraduate Bursary in Finance to encourage and reward full-time finance students at John Molson.
Paris Arnopoulos, BSc 56, BA 58, professor emeritus of political science, donated $50,000 toward the Arnopoulos Endowment Fund for Political Science.
