from the op/ed pages of today's paper

Well said Ms. Snyder, we could all take a lesson from you.

No matter the roadblocks, you will find a way

 
Editor’s note: Philanthropist Joan Snyder will receive an honorary degree Thursday from the University of Calgary. The following is an edited version of the speech she’ll deliver to graduates.


Although I never went to university myself, I hold education in the highest regard. So today is doubly special for me. I never imagined being given such an honour. Thank you all.
I grew up in a small Prairie town in Saskatchewan during the Depression and the war, and then moved to Calgary.
The lessons I learned from my family and my community have been a foundation for me throughout my life. Lessons like caring for others, being a go-getter and a can-doer, going where life takes you, and not forgetting to have fun along the way.
Sharing what you had and caring for others was something that everyone did as a matter of course back then. Whether it was helping an elderly person with dementia find their way home, or caring for my cousin Roy, who had polio, we all pitched in to help one another.
These early lessons in kindness and acceptance, and keeping my feet on the ground, have been guiding principles for my life. They also helped me develop a lifelong understanding of the importance of medical care and research. Polio was a debilitating disease back then, but thanks to research, there is now a vaccine to prevent it, and I know research is the key to breakthroughs like this in the future.
My parents also instilled in me the importance of sports, work, play and humour. My mother, Phoebe, was a great sportswoman. She used to borrow her brother’s hockey stick and play street hockey using a frozen road apple for a puck.
Through sports, you learn about self-discipline, collaboration, team play and camaraderie that lasts a lifetime.
I think my parents were probably wishing I’d learned self-discipline a little bit earlier than I did, because when I was about 13, my family and I were driving to a cousin’s wedding in Edmonton when the road ran out — a complete washout.
My father took a detour across the hard, open prairie, hoping the ground would be frozen enough to hold the car.
When even that became dubious, my father stopped the car and both he and my mother got out and walked ahead to see if our route was passable — and then shook their heads.
In the back seat, I said, “Gram, I think I can do it.”
“Sure you can, Joan!” she replied, always the booster.
So I scrambled over the front seat, took the wheel and went full speed ahead. I can still see the startled look on my parents’ faces as I came barrelling down on them, and then thinking, “Oh my gosh, I’m in trouble now.”
But then they started yelling, “Keep ‘er going, don’t stop now,” and motioned me to keep going.
Well, we made it to the wedding on time, and I believe that can-do spirit they encouraged in me has been a key to any successes I may have had along the way. No matter the roadblocks in your life, you will find a way.
When I was your age, there wasn’t a road map as to where my life would take me. My father passed away suddenly of cancer in 1961, leaving my mother and me to run the family affairs. I hadn’t attended university, but little did I know they had been preparing me for the responsibilities to come.
I can remember being up on a rig when I was only four or five, watching them pull pipe, and my mother’s dismay at the mud on my dress.
Around the dinner table, my family would discuss business plans and world events. These dinner-table discussions taught me how to debate and be an independent thinker. They were always conducted with respect and trust, which is how I hope I still operate today.
I’m so glad I’m now in a position to give back to the community. You can always give back and share, in good times and in bad, in ways both big and small. Every gift or act of kindness makes a difference.
I know that your generation is already doing this, and I encourage you to make this your way of life — it will reward you tremendously.
Whenever I’ve taken on a project, it’s because I see a need and thoroughly believe in it, and it is done from my heart. I’m excited by the wonderful things that are being accomplished at the Calvin, Phoebe & Joan Snyder Institute for Infection, Immunity and Inflammation — a U of C medical research body close to my heart.
It was because of my mother’s passion for sports that I set up the Program of Excellence in Women’s Hockey at U of C.
I’m also pleased that I’ve been able to help assure the future of women’s hockey at Canada Olympic Park under president Dan O’Neill at WinSport Canada.
I am choosing to support these projects now because of the great pleasure it gives me to see the results of my gifts. In conclusion, I’d like to say this to the graduating class of 2011, who have worked so hard to accomplish their goals and be here today:
* Never stop learning and exploring new ideas. If one door closes, another one will open, and you never know what new and exciting things will emerge.
* Don’t be afraid to be different and don’t let the roadblocks or naysayers hold you back.
* Remember, sharing your successes with others and giving back to the community will give you great pleasure.
* Finally, and most importantly, live a well-rounded life with your feet on the ground and with a sense of humour and fun.

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