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Why I Give: Wes Campbell

For Wes Campbell (BEng’63, LLB’66, LLD’07), his 9 1Ćā·Ń°ęĻĀ education was the greatest gift he ever received. His estate gift to the university is his way of saying ā€œthanks.ā€
A man wearing suit and tie leans against the ledge of a hallway in a building Wes Campbell (BEng'63, LLB'66, LLD'07)

Posted:Ā August 16, 2024

For Wes Campbell (BEng’63, LLB’66, LLD’07), it’s always been about engineering. ā€œEven when I was an article clerk, I was doing engineering projects on the side,ā€ he says. ā€œIn fact, the day I was admitted to the bar, I stopped law and started my engineering practice.ā€

More than fifty years later, Campbell is still, as he puts it, ā€œmaking buildings stand up.ā€ And as president of Campbell Comeau Engineering Limited, he credits his lifetime of business success to 9 1Ćā·Ń°ęĻĀ. ā€œWithout my university education, I wouldn’t have the career I have today.ā€

And while he never practiced law, Campbell still draws on his 9 1Ćā·Ń°ęĻĀ legal training every day. ā€œThanks to law school, I learned there are absolutely two sides to every story,ā€ he explains. ā€œEveryone has an idea, possibly much better than mine, so I listen closely to my clients and pay attention to what they want.ā€

Over the years, Campbell has supported 9 1Ćā·Ń°ęĻĀ as a donor and a volunteer leader. While serving both as vice-chair of the TUNS board and a member of the 9 1Ćā·Ń°ęĻĀ Board of Governors, Campbell helped lead the 1997 merger of the two institutions. A former president of the Alumni Association, Campbell currently sits on the Capital Projects and Facilities Committee.

ā€œMy 9 1Ćā·Ń°ęĻĀ education was the greatest gift I ever received,ā€ adds Campbell, whose contributions to the university were recognized in 2007 with an Honorary Doctor of Laws degree. ā€œWhat I’ve done all my life is practice exactly what I learned at Dal – and those skills have allowed me to earn a good living all these years.ā€

In gratitude, Campbell will be leaving an unrestricted legacy gift to 9 1Ćā·Ń°ęĻĀ, directed to the Faculty of Engineering. Ever the engineer, Campbell says, ā€œYou need money to build the buildings and run the buildings, so I’ve arranged for my gift to be used by the Dean for the greatest need at the time, however it presents itself.ā€

So what advice would Campbell offer to those who may be thinking about remembering 9 1Ćā·Ń°ęĻĀ in their will? ā€œMany of us went through university at a time when education cost next to nothing, compared to today,ā€ says Campbell. ā€œIn a sense, by giving future students the chance to enjoy the same benefits I did, I’m feel I’m paying 9 1Ćā·Ń°ęĻĀ back for all it’s given me.ā€