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Ontario Agricultural College,
University of Guelph
Alumni Oral History
Angela Tellez
PhD 2009
Interviewed by Amelia Forstner
What year did you start at the OAC or the University of Guelph?
I arrived in Canada on September 15, 2003, and started the PhD program almost
immediately in October of 2003.
Where did you grow up?
I grew up in Colombia and lived there until I was 35 years old. Following that, I went to
the US to complete my master’s degree. After graduation, I returned to Colombia for two
more years and then moved to Canada as a PhD student at the University of Guelph.
What school did you attend for your undergraduate degree?
I studied Chemical Engineering at Universidad Industrial de Santander. My options were
limited as my parents wanted me to be either a physician or a dentist. Despite that, I
knew I loved math, physics, and chemistry, so I decided to become an engineer. It was
a five-year degree that required a thesis to graduate. I chose to work in a project
focused on solving a problem in the Petrochemical industry. At the time, there were not
very many women in the chemical engineering program, but it was an excellent school
and going there was the best decision.
When did you graduate from the OAC or the University of Guelph?
I finished all the program requirements in March 2009. As a PhD student, I was required
to publish papers based on my research and the topic of my thesis included lab work in
vivo and in vitro involving areas such as microbiology, chemistry, and immunology. The
group where I did my PhD was very good and my professor is a world known
researcher.
. ,...
15•
Will•
ONTARIO
AGRICULTURAL
COLLEGE
What made you decide to go to the OAC/University of Guelph for your
PhD?
That’s a very good question. When I started searching for research programs to
continue my education, one of the options was to go back to the US to do my PhD. I got
an offer to do a PhD in chemical engineering, but it was on skin research and
cosmetics, and I wasn’t really interested. I was already working in the food industry in
Colombia and wanted to do a PhD in food science. At the time, I was 39 and back home
the maximum age to do a PhD was 35. So, I started looking for other options, and I
found out that U of Guelph was the most prestigious university in food and agriculture,
and I decided to apply. I contacted Dr. Mansel Griffiths, and he offered me a scholarship
to come and work with him. His multiple publications and the topics of research were
very interesting. I was particularly interested in the studies he was conducting on
probiotics.
That’s really good you got a scholarship and were going to school for
something you’re passionate for.
Yes, it was a great opportunity, and he was very generous to accept me as it was a
highly competitive group of very talented people who were all very good at what they
were doing. I got accepted in May and was supposed to start in September so that’s
why I arrived a bit later. I was trying to start in 2004 but, the project was slated to start in
2003 so I had to move to Canada as soon as possible.
I can see how that would have been rushed.
Yes, I had two children, my daughter 15 and my son 9 years old. I had to look for
schools and a house in Guelph, prepare them for a new life in a new country. I was very
excited about the opportunity to get a PhD from the best food university in Canada, but
it was a very difficult decision to leave my family back home. We are a very close family
and moving far from them was not easy.
I can definitely see how that would have been hard.
The opportunities in Canada for my career were great and, equally importantly, so were
the prospects for my children. The idea was to study for a while and decide whether
applying for permanent residence was a good option. My family, and particularly my
mom, were very sad to see us leave, but she advised me to stay in Canada and give my
children stability and the opportunity to grow in one place. After the first winter and
seeing how my children adjusted, I made the life changing decision of applying for
permanent residency.
. ,...
15•
Will•
ONTARIO
AGRICULTURAL
COLLEGE
After you got accepted, did you visit the campus before you started?
I was in Colombia when I got accepted and I did a lot of research on the campus and
the size of the university, the programs, and the support for international students. I
researched the type of jobs available, the city, schools, housing and in general what it
was like to live in Guelph as student. I decided to live in the family housing complex for
international students at the University. It was a very nice surprise when I arrived and
saw the campus because my idea of a North American university was very different. I
did my master’s degree at Texas A&M, which has two 2 campuses and 50,000
international students. I was looking for a smaller university, a university which paid
closer attention to students. As a PhD student you work independently, but the research
group plays a big role in the type of experience that one has as graduate student. At the
time that I applied, Dr. Griffiths, had an open position for a PhD candidate at the
Canadian Research Institute for Food Safety. That was another factor in my decision. I
researched the center, the labs and all the resources and concluded that it was a great
opportunity. And the fact that U of Guelph was not such a big university, but it was
located close Toronto was also a positive.
Did you live in a graduate residence when you first moved to Guelph?
Yes, my first house in Canada was in U of Guelph family housing complex for
international students on College Avenue. It was a small house with two bedrooms, a
very small living room, dining room and a tiny kitchen. It was a big change. Back home
my children and I were living in a large house and had everything we needed.
Overnight I was an international student in another country with two children and no
friends or family. It was not an easy adjustment.
What did you study when you were here?
I did my PhD in food science and my project was in food microbiology. The research
was focused on extracting small proteins from fermented milk that had the ability to
stimulate the immune system to fight Salmonella infection. I extracted the small
proteins, did in vitro research with cell culture and then in vivo. I gave mice the proteins
to make their immune system stronger and then infected them with Salmonella.
My research was part of a large project in which Dr. Griffiths had to develop these
compounds that had the ability to stimulate the immune system to fight these pathogens
in animals that ultimately get transmitted to people.
Was Dr. Griffiths your supervisor?
Yes, he was my supervisor and the director of the center when I did my research. He did
a lot of international work. He’s retired from the University and has patents from his work
on probiotics. He’s an Emeritus Professor at University of Guelph. He is the scientific
. ,...
15•
Will•
ONTARIO
AGRICULTURAL
COLLEGE
director in a private company that commercializes proteins that prevent infections in
pigs and chickens.
Were there lots of other students in the lab?
Yes, we were a very large group because his research group was focusing in different
areas of food microbiology. We had about 40 people in the labs. It was a centre with
many labs, we had about 8 or 9 labs. We used to have meetings to share data and
ideas. It was a very productive group in terms of publications.
What was the lab atmosphere like?
It was very focused on the projects and the ideas behind the projects. It was very
international, there were only maybe one or two Canadian-born students, the rest were
all international so there were people from many different countries. It was very
interesting because we learned from different cultures, and they bring different ideas
and points of view. We also used to do a lot of potlucks, and everybody would bring
food from different countries. It was a very culturally enriching experience, and we learnt
a lot from each other. The centre used to have visiting scientists, so there were also
people with very good research experience that were professors and researchers in
other countries.
That definitely does seem like a really good experience, especially
since you’re not just learning from the other people around you, but
also working in an environment that’s supportive and where you have
those people there to help.
Yes, it was. It was easier because we shared the challenges of living in a different
country. We were all PhD and master students, mainly PhD so we were not teenagers,
everybody was over 30. We talked about our problems getting adjusted to the system
and where to get information and help. Things that are easy for people who have lived
in the country forever are not so easy or obvious for new commers. I remember chatting
about our experience of getting our drivers’ licenses and how some of us failed. It was
hard. The winter was cold and getting the driver’s license to drive was essential.
Sharing the different experiences of adjusting to another country was good. It was
important to feel that the people around you understood what you’re going through. For
most of us English was not the first language, and it took time to understand how the
system works. We also talked about the challenges we faced with our own children and
getting adjusted to a new school. It is important for an international student to be in
contact with other newcomers because it helps to overcome the feeling of loneliness.
Was there a lot of pressure in the lab?
. ,...
15•
Will•
ONTARIO
AGRICULTURAL
COLLEGE
There was a lot of pressure because Dr. Griffiths is a world-class researcher. He has
ideas that would blow your mind. The way he thinks; I haven’t seen anybody else who
thought like that. He’s a very nice person, but as a professor, he is not the type of
person who is going to be holding your hand. You’re a PhD student, you’re going to find
your own path and get to the other side eventually not without facing many
disappointments. Dr. Griffiths had high expectations of his students, so it was very
difficult to get good results to publish. My thesis had a component of chemistry,
microbiology, and immunology. I had to do the purification of the compounds before I
used them, and it has cell culture, which isn’t easy for someone that had never worked
with cell culture before. I had to learn a lot of different skills and went into territory that
was completely unknown. It was an interdisciplinary project and the idea of working in
vivo was terrifying. One of my best memories was from the first animal trial I did. The
mice did not react like I expected, they died, and I had to explain to the Director of the
Ethics Committee why they died and what I did to prevent that. It was a very difficult
moment and I felt that he allowed me to handle the problems on my own, which was
hard but rewarding in the end.
The members of my PhD committee like Dr. Milena Corredig and Dr. Shayan Sharif
played a paramount role in my success. I went through very different areas that allowed
me to develop different types of skills and I think the fact that I didn’t have my professor
holding my hand made me a very strong person who learned how to analyze problems
and that’s the main skill you get with a PhD.
I look back and I see that everything I learned during my PhD made me very strong and
prepared me to face complex problems in my job and make assertive decisions.
Throughout your time in the OAC, were you involved in any extra
curriculars on campus throughout your education?
Not during my PhD. During the PhD, I didn’t have time for anything aside from my
studies, work and my children. I worked for the OAC while I was doing my PhD. I
worked as a teaching assistant one semester, and then I got a work study with the
Department of Food Science. I was very grateful for that because, at that time,
international students were not allowed to work off-campus. Later, they allowed me to
work 20 hours a week, but not when I originally arrived. So, for me it was very important
that the university gave me the opportunity to work while studying. When I finished my
doctorate, I was employed by the university for about four years. In 2013 I left the
University to work for a large manufacturing company and came back to work for the
University for another three years. It has been a very long relationship and it started
when I was a student. I was very involved in the OAC activities and in 2013 I became
the president of the OAC alumni association.
. ,...
15•
Will•
ONTARIO
AGRICULTURAL
COLLEGE
I may already know the answer to this next question, but did you feel
a part of the OAC?
One of my objectives as President of the OAC alumni association was to get food
science students motivated to participate in the OAC events. All the other schools of the
OAC were more integrated and the students in food science did not understand the
traditions and the events were not very well promoted amongst us.
Later on, when I was president of the association, things were different. I felt more
integrated and learned a lot about the college. I found out that one of the objectives of
all those activities, in addition to promoting the college and the University, was to
motivate donors to contribute with scholarships and sponsor laboratories and projects. I
got a scholarship twice. In that way, I felt very close to the university and appreciated
everything that they gave me.
Do you remember taking part in any OAC traditions at all?
Yes, I went to the College Royal once, and I also went to the Good Times banquet. It
was very interesting. I learned more about the Canadian culture and the OAC traditions.
What are your favourite memories of your time at the University of
Guelph or the OAC?
The day that I defended my thesis. That was an amazing feeling of achievement. You
work so hard to get to that moment!
Another fond memory was when we celebrated Dr. Griffith’s 60th birthday and we made
this huge cake that was a soccer field because he’s a soccer fanatic. We had a lot of fun
organizing the party. But probably the best, is my graduation day. I thought it was
amazing, I graduated from Texas A&M, I graduated back home from the university that I
did my undergrad at. I went to the University of Toronto, my daughter’s graduation, and
the University of Waterloo, my son’s graduation. But I thought that the university did an
amazing job with the graduation, and it was very special. Something I remembered is
that the person who was calling the names of the students who were graduating went
around and asked every one of us how to pronounce our names correctly. Everyone got
their name pronounced correctly. Everything that they did was amazing.
Are you still friends with people that you went to graduate school
with?
Yes, I keep in touch with some of them. I keep in touch with Dr. Griffiths and with some
of the other professors in my committee like Doctor Corredig. I’m also in touch with
some of the people that were in food science, some of the people who were students
. ,...
15•
Will•
ONTARIO
AGRICULTURAL
COLLEGE
there. We email each other sometimes. We haven’t been able to get together because
when you finish the PhD, many people go and move to another country, particularly to
the US.
The next question is a little more personal, you don’t need to answer
this at all if you don’t feel comfortable, but did you go through any
tough times during your university years? And if so what caused the
difficulties and how did you deal with them?
The tough times were the first two years in Canada. I was trying to balance my time and
do my best as a PhD student and as a mom. I came to Canada as a single mom
recently divorced. So being with two children, working on my PhD, and having a part
time job was not easy. Dr. Griffiths gave me the opportunity to come to Canada and the
Department of Food Science gave me my first Canadian job. In that way, I think the
university was amazing to me. And the most important part, God helped me and gave
me two fantastic children, considerate and great students. I was determined to succeed
and take advantage of all the opportunities for me and my children. There were
moments when I thought that it would’ve been easier to just say I cannot finish my PhD.
I’m going to do a master’s only, but I was committed, my objective was clear, and I went
for it. You need to have people who are willing to help you in that moment. Many people
helped. I could not name all of them. I hope one day I can give back in the same way I
got from them.
Would you be willing to share any photos of your years at the
OAC/University of Guelph?
I will have to look if I have photos, it has been such a long, long time but I think I have a
couple of photos of that time. I will try to find it and send it to you.
. ,...
15•
Will•
ONTARIO
AGRICULTURAL
COLLEGE
University of Guelph
Alumni Oral History
Angela Tellez
PhD 2009
Interviewed by Amelia Forstner
What year did you start at the OAC or the University of Guelph?
I arrived in Canada on September 15, 2003, and started the PhD program almost
immediately in October of 2003.
Where did you grow up?
I grew up in Colombia and lived there until I was 35 years old. Following that, I went to
the US to complete my master’s degree. After graduation, I returned to Colombia for two
more years and then moved to Canada as a PhD student at the University of Guelph.
What school did you attend for your undergraduate degree?
I studied Chemical Engineering at Universidad Industrial de Santander. My options were
limited as my parents wanted me to be either a physician or a dentist. Despite that, I
knew I loved math, physics, and chemistry, so I decided to become an engineer. It was
a five-year degree that required a thesis to graduate. I chose to work in a project
focused on solving a problem in the Petrochemical industry. At the time, there were not
very many women in the chemical engineering program, but it was an excellent school
and going there was the best decision.
When did you graduate from the OAC or the University of Guelph?
I finished all the program requirements in March 2009. As a PhD student, I was required
to publish papers based on my research and the topic of my thesis included lab work in
vivo and in vitro involving areas such as microbiology, chemistry, and immunology. The
group where I did my PhD was very good and my professor is a world known
researcher.
. ,...
15•
Will•
ONTARIO
AGRICULTURAL
COLLEGE
What made you decide to go to the OAC/University of Guelph for your
PhD?
That’s a very good question. When I started searching for research programs to
continue my education, one of the options was to go back to the US to do my PhD. I got
an offer to do a PhD in chemical engineering, but it was on skin research and
cosmetics, and I wasn’t really interested. I was already working in the food industry in
Colombia and wanted to do a PhD in food science. At the time, I was 39 and back home
the maximum age to do a PhD was 35. So, I started looking for other options, and I
found out that U of Guelph was the most prestigious university in food and agriculture,
and I decided to apply. I contacted Dr. Mansel Griffiths, and he offered me a scholarship
to come and work with him. His multiple publications and the topics of research were
very interesting. I was particularly interested in the studies he was conducting on
probiotics.
That’s really good you got a scholarship and were going to school for
something you’re passionate for.
Yes, it was a great opportunity, and he was very generous to accept me as it was a
highly competitive group of very talented people who were all very good at what they
were doing. I got accepted in May and was supposed to start in September so that’s
why I arrived a bit later. I was trying to start in 2004 but, the project was slated to start in
2003 so I had to move to Canada as soon as possible.
I can see how that would have been rushed.
Yes, I had two children, my daughter 15 and my son 9 years old. I had to look for
schools and a house in Guelph, prepare them for a new life in a new country. I was very
excited about the opportunity to get a PhD from the best food university in Canada, but
it was a very difficult decision to leave my family back home. We are a very close family
and moving far from them was not easy.
I can definitely see how that would have been hard.
The opportunities in Canada for my career were great and, equally importantly, so were
the prospects for my children. The idea was to study for a while and decide whether
applying for permanent residence was a good option. My family, and particularly my
mom, were very sad to see us leave, but she advised me to stay in Canada and give my
children stability and the opportunity to grow in one place. After the first winter and
seeing how my children adjusted, I made the life changing decision of applying for
permanent residency.
. ,...
15•
Will•
ONTARIO
AGRICULTURAL
COLLEGE
After you got accepted, did you visit the campus before you started?
I was in Colombia when I got accepted and I did a lot of research on the campus and
the size of the university, the programs, and the support for international students. I
researched the type of jobs available, the city, schools, housing and in general what it
was like to live in Guelph as student. I decided to live in the family housing complex for
international students at the University. It was a very nice surprise when I arrived and
saw the campus because my idea of a North American university was very different. I
did my master’s degree at Texas A&M, which has two 2 campuses and 50,000
international students. I was looking for a smaller university, a university which paid
closer attention to students. As a PhD student you work independently, but the research
group plays a big role in the type of experience that one has as graduate student. At the
time that I applied, Dr. Griffiths, had an open position for a PhD candidate at the
Canadian Research Institute for Food Safety. That was another factor in my decision. I
researched the center, the labs and all the resources and concluded that it was a great
opportunity. And the fact that U of Guelph was not such a big university, but it was
located close Toronto was also a positive.
Did you live in a graduate residence when you first moved to Guelph?
Yes, my first house in Canada was in U of Guelph family housing complex for
international students on College Avenue. It was a small house with two bedrooms, a
very small living room, dining room and a tiny kitchen. It was a big change. Back home
my children and I were living in a large house and had everything we needed.
Overnight I was an international student in another country with two children and no
friends or family. It was not an easy adjustment.
What did you study when you were here?
I did my PhD in food science and my project was in food microbiology. The research
was focused on extracting small proteins from fermented milk that had the ability to
stimulate the immune system to fight Salmonella infection. I extracted the small
proteins, did in vitro research with cell culture and then in vivo. I gave mice the proteins
to make their immune system stronger and then infected them with Salmonella.
My research was part of a large project in which Dr. Griffiths had to develop these
compounds that had the ability to stimulate the immune system to fight these pathogens
in animals that ultimately get transmitted to people.
Was Dr. Griffiths your supervisor?
Yes, he was my supervisor and the director of the center when I did my research. He did
a lot of international work. He’s retired from the University and has patents from his work
on probiotics. He’s an Emeritus Professor at University of Guelph. He is the scientific
. ,...
15•
Will•
ONTARIO
AGRICULTURAL
COLLEGE
director in a private company that commercializes proteins that prevent infections in
pigs and chickens.
Were there lots of other students in the lab?
Yes, we were a very large group because his research group was focusing in different
areas of food microbiology. We had about 40 people in the labs. It was a centre with
many labs, we had about 8 or 9 labs. We used to have meetings to share data and
ideas. It was a very productive group in terms of publications.
What was the lab atmosphere like?
It was very focused on the projects and the ideas behind the projects. It was very
international, there were only maybe one or two Canadian-born students, the rest were
all international so there were people from many different countries. It was very
interesting because we learned from different cultures, and they bring different ideas
and points of view. We also used to do a lot of potlucks, and everybody would bring
food from different countries. It was a very culturally enriching experience, and we learnt
a lot from each other. The centre used to have visiting scientists, so there were also
people with very good research experience that were professors and researchers in
other countries.
That definitely does seem like a really good experience, especially
since you’re not just learning from the other people around you, but
also working in an environment that’s supportive and where you have
those people there to help.
Yes, it was. It was easier because we shared the challenges of living in a different
country. We were all PhD and master students, mainly PhD so we were not teenagers,
everybody was over 30. We talked about our problems getting adjusted to the system
and where to get information and help. Things that are easy for people who have lived
in the country forever are not so easy or obvious for new commers. I remember chatting
about our experience of getting our drivers’ licenses and how some of us failed. It was
hard. The winter was cold and getting the driver’s license to drive was essential.
Sharing the different experiences of adjusting to another country was good. It was
important to feel that the people around you understood what you’re going through. For
most of us English was not the first language, and it took time to understand how the
system works. We also talked about the challenges we faced with our own children and
getting adjusted to a new school. It is important for an international student to be in
contact with other newcomers because it helps to overcome the feeling of loneliness.
Was there a lot of pressure in the lab?
. ,...
15•
Will•
ONTARIO
AGRICULTURAL
COLLEGE
There was a lot of pressure because Dr. Griffiths is a world-class researcher. He has
ideas that would blow your mind. The way he thinks; I haven’t seen anybody else who
thought like that. He’s a very nice person, but as a professor, he is not the type of
person who is going to be holding your hand. You’re a PhD student, you’re going to find
your own path and get to the other side eventually not without facing many
disappointments. Dr. Griffiths had high expectations of his students, so it was very
difficult to get good results to publish. My thesis had a component of chemistry,
microbiology, and immunology. I had to do the purification of the compounds before I
used them, and it has cell culture, which isn’t easy for someone that had never worked
with cell culture before. I had to learn a lot of different skills and went into territory that
was completely unknown. It was an interdisciplinary project and the idea of working in
vivo was terrifying. One of my best memories was from the first animal trial I did. The
mice did not react like I expected, they died, and I had to explain to the Director of the
Ethics Committee why they died and what I did to prevent that. It was a very difficult
moment and I felt that he allowed me to handle the problems on my own, which was
hard but rewarding in the end.
The members of my PhD committee like Dr. Milena Corredig and Dr. Shayan Sharif
played a paramount role in my success. I went through very different areas that allowed
me to develop different types of skills and I think the fact that I didn’t have my professor
holding my hand made me a very strong person who learned how to analyze problems
and that’s the main skill you get with a PhD.
I look back and I see that everything I learned during my PhD made me very strong and
prepared me to face complex problems in my job and make assertive decisions.
Throughout your time in the OAC, were you involved in any extra
curriculars on campus throughout your education?
Not during my PhD. During the PhD, I didn’t have time for anything aside from my
studies, work and my children. I worked for the OAC while I was doing my PhD. I
worked as a teaching assistant one semester, and then I got a work study with the
Department of Food Science. I was very grateful for that because, at that time,
international students were not allowed to work off-campus. Later, they allowed me to
work 20 hours a week, but not when I originally arrived. So, for me it was very important
that the university gave me the opportunity to work while studying. When I finished my
doctorate, I was employed by the university for about four years. In 2013 I left the
University to work for a large manufacturing company and came back to work for the
University for another three years. It has been a very long relationship and it started
when I was a student. I was very involved in the OAC activities and in 2013 I became
the president of the OAC alumni association.
. ,...
15•
Will•
ONTARIO
AGRICULTURAL
COLLEGE
I may already know the answer to this next question, but did you feel
a part of the OAC?
One of my objectives as President of the OAC alumni association was to get food
science students motivated to participate in the OAC events. All the other schools of the
OAC were more integrated and the students in food science did not understand the
traditions and the events were not very well promoted amongst us.
Later on, when I was president of the association, things were different. I felt more
integrated and learned a lot about the college. I found out that one of the objectives of
all those activities, in addition to promoting the college and the University, was to
motivate donors to contribute with scholarships and sponsor laboratories and projects. I
got a scholarship twice. In that way, I felt very close to the university and appreciated
everything that they gave me.
Do you remember taking part in any OAC traditions at all?
Yes, I went to the College Royal once, and I also went to the Good Times banquet. It
was very interesting. I learned more about the Canadian culture and the OAC traditions.
What are your favourite memories of your time at the University of
Guelph or the OAC?
The day that I defended my thesis. That was an amazing feeling of achievement. You
work so hard to get to that moment!
Another fond memory was when we celebrated Dr. Griffith’s 60th birthday and we made
this huge cake that was a soccer field because he’s a soccer fanatic. We had a lot of fun
organizing the party. But probably the best, is my graduation day. I thought it was
amazing, I graduated from Texas A&M, I graduated back home from the university that I
did my undergrad at. I went to the University of Toronto, my daughter’s graduation, and
the University of Waterloo, my son’s graduation. But I thought that the university did an
amazing job with the graduation, and it was very special. Something I remembered is
that the person who was calling the names of the students who were graduating went
around and asked every one of us how to pronounce our names correctly. Everyone got
their name pronounced correctly. Everything that they did was amazing.
Are you still friends with people that you went to graduate school
with?
Yes, I keep in touch with some of them. I keep in touch with Dr. Griffiths and with some
of the other professors in my committee like Doctor Corredig. I’m also in touch with
some of the people that were in food science, some of the people who were students
. ,...
15•
Will•
ONTARIO
AGRICULTURAL
COLLEGE
there. We email each other sometimes. We haven’t been able to get together because
when you finish the PhD, many people go and move to another country, particularly to
the US.
The next question is a little more personal, you don’t need to answer
this at all if you don’t feel comfortable, but did you go through any
tough times during your university years? And if so what caused the
difficulties and how did you deal with them?
The tough times were the first two years in Canada. I was trying to balance my time and
do my best as a PhD student and as a mom. I came to Canada as a single mom
recently divorced. So being with two children, working on my PhD, and having a part
time job was not easy. Dr. Griffiths gave me the opportunity to come to Canada and the
Department of Food Science gave me my first Canadian job. In that way, I think the
university was amazing to me. And the most important part, God helped me and gave
me two fantastic children, considerate and great students. I was determined to succeed
and take advantage of all the opportunities for me and my children. There were
moments when I thought that it would’ve been easier to just say I cannot finish my PhD.
I’m going to do a master’s only, but I was committed, my objective was clear, and I went
for it. You need to have people who are willing to help you in that moment. Many people
helped. I could not name all of them. I hope one day I can give back in the same way I
got from them.
Would you be willing to share any photos of your years at the
OAC/University of Guelph?
I will have to look if I have photos, it has been such a long, long time but I think I have a
couple of photos of that time. I will try to find it and send it to you.
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