Branksome Receives Historic $5-Million Gift: iCAST Building to Be Named for Karen Jurjevich
Branksome Hall News
Fondness and Friendship: Thirty-year alum donor establishes financial assistance award
A great believer in student financial assistance, Carolyn HELBRONNER'79 established an endowed fund to help deserving students attend Branksome and benefit from all the opportunities and life-changing experiences she had as a student. She credits Branksome with allowing her to believe she could do anything, including thrive as a Bay Street lawyer.
Carolyn HELBRONNER'79 is flying out to Nova Scotia in late summer for a road-trip reunion with her Branksome classmates, a trip that will include picturesque stops in Lunenburg and other South Shore towns.
“Branksome set me up with the tools to feel I could accomplish anything, and while I’ve made many new friends, nothing replaces those friendships from my Branksome days,” says Carolyn, currently a Partner at Blake, Cassels & Graydon, where she practices in the areas of pensions, benefits and executive compensation.
A great believer in student financial assistance, Carolyn recently established an endowed fund to provide financial support to help students access a Branksome education, so they can benefit from all the opportunities and life-changing experiences Carolyn had as a student.
“I’m fortunate to be in a position to give back,” says Carolyn. “I’ve gone on to a happy, productive and fulfilling life, and survived and thrived on Bay Street in a male-dominated profession.”
It’s just the latest act in more than three decades of generosity towards her alma mater. Carolyn is also a member of the 10 Elm Society, having left a gift in her will to Branksome Hall. She frequently volunteers with the school, having served most recently on an alum panel to discuss careers in the legal sector.
“One of the elements that really sets Branksome apart is its focus on the value of caring and the ‘whole girl’ approach to education,” says Carolyn, who has a niece in Grade 10 and another who graduated last year. “That feeling really still sets it apart.”
Born in Montreal and raised in Toronto, Carolyn was enrolled at Branksome as a Kindergarten student in 1965. It was the beginning of 14 happy and formative years, and many supportive relationships. An enthusiastic participant in basketball, volleyball and debating, she was a Clan Chieftain in the Junior School and a Prefect in her graduating year.
Married now, with two adult sons, she’s looking forward to stepping away from work to keep her lifelong Branksome friendships going with a refreshing road trip. “I’m so excited,” she says.
Thanks to Carolyn, the gift of a Branksome opportunity may allow its recipients to look back with similar fulfillment one day.
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LAND ACKNOWLEDGMENT
We wish to acknowledge this land on which Branksome operates. For thousands of years, it has been the traditional land of the Huron-Wendat, the Seneca, and most recently, the Mississaugas of the Credit River. Today, this meeting place is still the home to many Indigenous peoples from across Turtle Island and we are grateful to have the opportunity to work and go to school on this land.
Setting the new standard for girls' education everywhere takes collective action. From all of us.
