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  ShareMillion-Dollar Donation by Genereux Family Establishes Scholarship Endowment & Lacrosse Road to Excellence Fund2021-06-08
 Louis-Charles Généreux (C) celebrates McGill\'s national lacrosse championship in 2015 with his mother (Myriam Legault) and father (Claude Généreux). (Photo supplied by McGill)
Among the benefits created by a million-dollar donation to McGill University is the Genereux Lacrosse Road to Excellence Fund.Courtesy Earl Zukerman, McGill Athletics
Two McGill University graduates, Claude Généreux (B.Eng. '85) and his wife Myriam Legault (B.Ed. '85), have announced a $1 million gift to McGill Athletics and Recreation to enhance varsity scholarships, the men's lacrosse program and community service initiatives.
"I had much pride during my brief experience as a varsity athlete and had a chance relive it decades later through my son with the lacrosse team," said Généreux, a native Montrealer who was a former McGill football linebacker and special teams player in the early 1980s. His son Louis-Charles Généreux (B.Com. '18) played for the McGill lacrosse team, a mostly self-financed program, when it won a national championship with an undefeated season in 2015.
"A university is not only a classroom with a professor – it's much more than that. Being a good student is important but so is participation in student life and athletics," noted Généreux, who currently serves as executive vice-president for Power Corporation of Canada. "Our son's lacrosse experience at McGill was transformative for a young adult and that made it even more important for us to support sports. During his time with the team, he served as a volunteer coach in the lacrosse community. Our daughters Margot and Madeleine, who have played varsity rugby in the U.S., have also joined teammates in public service. Giving back to the community is important to us as a family and we believe that we need to encourage people to do more of that. This philanthropic notion of supporting a team and trying to encourage others to do more community service is very important to our family.
"When we were thinking about making this gift, people asked, 'Why are you supporting athletics?' and our response was 'Why not athletics?'. The formative aspect of participation in sports is something that we deeply believe in. It builds time-management skills, teamwork, and resilience, forcing us to confront challenges and master fears. The importance of supporting teams and developing athletes has a value in society and is just the perfect complement to studying at a great school. We are hoping that this gift will prompt the current and next generation towards philanthropy."
The Claude Généreux and Myriam Legault Excellence Award, has been created as an $800,000 endowment fund, which will generate between two and six annual Athletic Financial Awards, presented on the basis of high academic performance and leadership.
Also, the Généreux Lacrosse Road to Excellence Fund has been established with $125,000 spread over the next five years, to enhance the men's lacrosse team operations. Believed to be the largest gift for a university lacrosse program in Canada, it was designed to buttress everyday operations for the McGill team, to help offset travel expenses, improved scheduling, coaching, nutritional and medical support, purchase specialized equipment and aid recruiting efforts, as well as enhancing both practice and game conditions.
Finally, the Généreux Family Community Service Award, a $75,000 endowment, will be utilized to create prizes at the year-end McGill athletics gala, to a male and female varsity athlete who demonstrated exceptional community service. A unique twist to encourage the development of this program, the varsity team for each of the winning recipients will also receive a financial incentive to support operational needs.
"I am extremely grateful to the Généreux family for their tremendous support. Their generous gift will ensure an enriched student-athlete experience for years to come," said Geoffrey Phillips, executive director of McGill Athletics and Recreation. "Claude and his family understand the importance varsity sport can play in developing the character of future leaders. Thanks to their philanthropy, we will continue our tradition of supporting athletes on and off the field of play."
Généreux currently serves as vice-chair of the University's board of governors and as a co-chair of "Made by McGill; the Campaign for our Third Century", the University's ambitious plan to raise $2 billion to support its bold aspirations for research, discovery and learning. Généreux was a civil engineering major during his undergraduate years. A prestigious Greville Smith entrance scholarship holder at McGill, he further pursued his education as a Rhodes Scholar at the University of Oxford, where he received a master's degree in politics and economics.
Legault received an undergraduate degree in education from McGill, where she was recognized as a faculty scholar. She also earned a master's in education at the University of Toronto and a Diplôme d'Etudes Approfondies (DEA) at La Sorbonne in France.
This is not the first time the family has created an endowment at McGill. In 2012, the Claude Généreux and Myriam Legault Athletic Awards were established for outstanding student-athletes who qualify to be members of a varsity team while demonstrating exceptional leadership and mentoring, both on an off the field.
A strong supporter of multiple philanthropic educational organizations in Canada, Généreux was awarded the Queen Elizabeth II Golden Jubilee Medal in 2002 for outstanding and exemplary contributions to his community. He is also a board member of the Sauvé Foundation, the Loran Scholars Foundation and the Rhodes Scholarships in Canada Corporation.
This gift marks the 10th time in history that the McGill Athletics and Recreation unit has received a single donation reaching the million-dollar plateau, the seventh from an individual family.
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