A Magazine for Alumni and Friends
To read past editions of Laurier Campus magazine is to immerse yourself in Laurier history. So it was a bittersweet experience doing just that in preparation for this, the magazine’s final edition.
Much has certainly changed since what was then known as “Waterloo Campus” magazine was first published in June 1962, the same year as the Cuban Missile Crisis, that Marvel’s Spider-Man made his first comic book appearance, and the Trans-Canada Highway was officially opened. But looking through past editions of the magazine, it becomes evident some things have stayed the same at Laurier, notably the pride and dedication of the university’s alumni community and its many supporters.
That’s why we’ve made the final edition of Laurier Campus all about you, Laurier’s community of alumni and friends. You can read about alumni volunteers helping create lifelong connections to Laurier around the world as part of the Global Ambassador Program; outstanding alumni who are leading by example and helping shape the next generation through volunteerism and philanthropy; and recent alumni who thrived while earning their degrees through the challenges of the COVID-19 pandemic.
Laurier Campus editor John Zronik
You can, of course, also read about the history of Laurier Campus magazine and its six-decade role as a Laurier community connector. In preparing the story “A storied history,” which begins on Page 12, we reviewed the complete collection of Laurier Campus and Waterloo Campus magazines dating back to Vol. 1, Edition 1, published in June 1962. (Special thanks to our friends at the Laurier Archives for their assistance.)
Looking through those past editions is watching the decades at Laurier unfold before your eyes, with stories highlighting new buildings and programs, academic milestones, significant events, and Laurier’s growth into a multi-campus institution. But beyond those “bricks and mortar” stories, at its core Campus magazine has always been about the outstanding people – alumni, faculty, staff, students and supporters – who have shaped Laurier over the years.
One of the great privileges of serving as editor of Laurier Campus has been meeting so many of those outstanding people. For this final edition, I had the opportunity to work with Ward L. Kaiser (BA ’45), the university’s 1967 alumnus of the year. Now 99 years old, Ward shares memories of his time studying in Waterloo – and the world that opened up to him while at university – in our final edition’s fitting closing column.
While this is the final edition of Laurier Campus, the magazine’s tradition will continue. Soon, an enhanced version of Purple & Gold, an online newsletter produced by Laurier’s Advancement team, will arrive in the inboxes of alumni and friends. Like Laurier Campus, Purple & Gold will include university news and alumni profiles, as well as Alumni Updates, In Memoriam and alumni events.
As Laurier makes this switch in favour of sustainability, and in response to rising costs and changing reader habits, we invite you to become a Purple & Gold subscriber. You can do so by emailing alumni@wlu.ca.
Just as Laurier Campus magazine has served to connect Laurier’s alumni community, Purple & Gold will continue the tradition. I look forward to working with the university’s Advancement team to continue sharing the inspiring stories of Laurier and its community of alumni and friends.
John Zronik
Editor, Laurier Campus