Time, Treasure and Talent
There isn't a defining moment, but somewhere between the Pucks for Purpose cheque presentation (our students have now raised over $300,000 for the Special Olympics and the Canadian Cancer Society) and watching my nieces cross the stage at the convocation where I gave my last spring address, I started thinking about what it means to be a Xaverian.
Three years of connecting with students and alumni has taught me that to get the most out of a lifelong relationship with X, you have to give it something. That something comes in three forms: time, talent and treasure.
Giving back is not something Xaverians have to be asked to do. They just do it. I said it over and over in that convocation speech: this is who we are. I use the line constantly now, usually right after seeing something our students or alumni have done.
I see it every time the Alumni Association Council meets. Twenty-one volunteers from various parts of the world who show up to give the time, treasure and talent supporting a lot of what you will read about in these pages. Nobody asked them either.
Alumni Association Council, 2026.
Mike Gillis ’87 President, StFX Alumni Association
Three people set the standard for me years ago. Here are their stories.
Time
Diker Campbell '58 and his wife Anne welcomed me into their home for alumni dinners, and over the years I watched him mentor students, serve on Alumni Association Council, and turn up at seemingly every X event in Nova Scotia. No matter who Diker was talking to, or listening to, that person felt like the most important one in the room. He never looked for recognition. Fittingly, Diker was inducted into the StFX Alumni Hall of Honour in 1996 and Anne was presented with the Friend of StFX Award in 2018.
Diker Campbell '58
Anne Campbell
John Caplice '87
Talent
I never played football at X. John Caplice '87 did, and he knew what the program does for the people in it. When it needed help, he built the Point After Club, and his pitch was so compelling that my wife Heather and I joined without a second thought. The result is a sustainable program and a locker room rebuilt to a professional standard that impresses everyone who walks through it.
Treasure
Don and Jeff Munroe '58 and '86 created the Flourish fund together. The fund exists because for a lot of students the money problem does not show up in first year. It shows up in second or third, and that is when they sadly and quietly leave. Jeff led the way and made sure his father was part of it. Don has since passed, but the fund carries his name and his values. Jeff is a friend I admire, and seeing him reach a significant lifetime giving milestone in the pages of the Alumni News pushed me to give more. I am still working toward that milestone.
Jeff Munroe '86
Three alumni. Three ways of showing who we are.
You do not need to do all three. If you have time, volunteer. We have just launched an Alumni Ambassador program, and your local Alumni Chapter would be glad to have you. If you have a skill, share it. We are always looking for new talent on the Alumni Association Council. If you can give financially, please do. Big or small, it all gets used.
It is a cliché to say it has been an honour to serve. I am typing it anyway, because there is a ton of emotion baked into every word. The Alumni Association Council has a number of initiatives launching this year, and I intend to spend my final year on them. This is who we are.
Hail and Health,
Mike Gillis '87 President, StFX Alumni Association
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StFX is located in Mi’kma’ki, the ancestral and unceded territory of the Mi’kmaw People.