Faith in the Future

(PHOTO: CLAUDIO CALLIGARIS)

Robert Faith, BA’53, DDS’58, doesn’t think he deserves special praise for his tireless support of McGill. “I feel very fortunate for the education I received. I can’t comprehend people who, given the low fees they paid, feel they have no obligation to McGill.”

Loyal annual donors for many years, Dr. Faith and his wife, Heather Faith, have also chosen to remember McGill in their estate plans. “You do give annually, while you’re alive,” Dr. Faith says. “But really, what better time to help McGill than when you’re passing the torch to the next generation? It’s a painless way to make a real diΩerence,” he says, ever the thoughtful dentist.

Dr. Faith has made a difference indeed during his long association with McGill. He balanced his orthodontics practice with teaching in McGill’s Faculty of Dentistry, chairing its orthodontics department from 1962 to 1975. No doubt, generations of graduates will remember his wide smile, sense of humour and affable manner.

He has volunteered countless hours to McGill, serving as Chair of the Faculty of Dentistry’s Advisory Board, an alumni representative on McGill’s Board of Governors, President of the McGill Alumni Association, and Chair of Homecoming. In 2001, he earned the Alumni Association’s highest honour, the Award of Merit. He has also served as lead volunteer for such Montreal institutions as The Study, Batshaw Youth and Family Services, and the Montreal Association for the Blind.

One of Dr. Faith’s most challenging experiences as a volunteer came in the early 1990s when McGill announced plans to close the Faculty of Dentistry. Through his hard work and diplomacy, he helped marshal the community support that saved his Faculty.

In planning his legacy, Dr. Faith knew what his first priority was. “Dentistry has always been underfunded at McGill, relative to other Canadian universities. We’ve always had to do more with less. It’s only in the past 20 or 25 years that the Faculty has received bequests of any kind.”

He underlines the difference these bequests have made: “During my student days, we had just one full-time professor. Even the dean was part-time.” Nowadays, the Faculty is home to internationally recognized scientists and ambitious research programs that promise breakthroughs in pain management and materials research.

Despite his many contributions over the years, Dr. Faith prefers to remain low-key. “My main motivation is just to give a little back for everything that I was given.”

Vivian Lewin