Allow me to introduce myself. My name is Leanna Nightingale and I have recently taken on the role of Alumni Association President. I have been passionate about Redeemer ever since attending Sibling Weekend more than 10 years ago. I graduated in 2018 and jumped at the chance to stay involved. What an exciting opportunity to now serve as a voice for alumni! 

One area to point your attention to is the exciting new Rebrand. The fresh new look comes at the perfect time with the Redeemer University name change. Thank you to some of the alumni who contributed their thoughts in this process! I know what you are all thinking: “how can I get my hands on some new Redeemer swag?” Well, stay tuned, as Alumni Week is coming up on the first week of November and there will be giveaways! Redeemer is also rebranding the Bookstore and online purchasing will soon be available, so you’ll be able to order all your new Redeemer U apparel online. 

We are incredibly proud to present Angela Bick with the Distinguished Alumni Award this year. The Distinguished Alumni Award recognizes alumni who have made significant contributions in their field of enterprise while demonstrating Christian commitment in their work and the community. While working for the Christian Courier, Angela has demonstrated exemplary leadership by challenging its readers to think deeply about what it means to live for Christ. A virtual reception will be held in her honour during Alumni Week. We are excited to celebrate you, Angela!

This brings me to alumni events in general. With COVID-19 restrictions still in place, visitors are unable to meet on campus at this time. And while we can book off-campus locations for events, with the provincial guidelines to socially distance and wear masks – well, we just felt like that wasn’t the atmosphere we want to create for you to gather. So, for this year, most of our alumni events will be virtual or pushed to next year. This includes the DAA reception, the 10/20/30 reunion and the Class to Career: Alumni + Student Mentoring Night. 

Alumni Council will continue to meet virtually into the fall as per the guidelines set out by Redeemer. We look forward to when we can reunite again, but for now the Zoom calls will have to do! I encourage you to continue to stay updated on what’s happening at Redeemer, share the exciting things happening here and share your stories with us! 

As I begin to take on this new leadership role, I would love to hear from you! How would you like Redeemer to stay engaged with the alumni community? Please feel free to email me anytime with comments or ideas about Redeemer Alumni or Redeemer in general at alumnicouncil@redeemer.ca.

Leanna Nightingale ’18

President, Alumni Association