Legacy Society: Julie

AMPLIFYING INFLUENCE

Alumna and family hope to create a lasting impact through philanthropy

Julie Schindeler ’82 and Dr. Ben Chan care. As parents and professionals, the duo place huge importance on the environment, their community, and their family. They care for the planet. They’ve retrofitted their 100-year-old home in central Toronto to put in geothermal heating and cooling. They’ve transformed their yard into a native species bee- and butterfly-friendly organic garden. They drive an electric car. They care about community and fostering good relationships with their neighbours. They support local events and host sing-along gatherings in their neighbourhood, work at understanding different languages and cultures, and have enjoyed family trips to Central Asia, Central America, and Scandinavia. They care about church and connecting with their congregation. They support the work of their church in the city and around the world. They care about the health of vulnerable populations, as evidenced by Ben’s work with the World Bank, advising governments in low-income countries on how to strengthen their healthcare systems. And they care for their alma maters. They have both given to the universities they attended because they value higher education.

A Trent Journey

Alumna Julie found much to value during her time at Trent. “Located not too far down the highway from our family’s recreational farm in Lanark County, I found Trent to be a place of belonging and becoming,” she recalls. “I liked how the main campus was situated apart from Peterborough, like an island or an oasis. Certainly, it was the right place for me at the right time as I was adjusting to being back in Canada after doing most of my secondary schooling in Botswana.

“I was intimidated by the larger universities, afraid that my identity would get lost within their impersonal institutions. I was immediately attracted to Trent’s personal approach and the human-scale size of how the university was structured. I liked the intimacy of the tutorials. I liked the family feel of the colleges. Trent is a university where you can find your place and flourish; it gives you the opportunity to explore who you are and who you want to be.”

Julie lived in South Wing at Lady Eaton College back when it was still an all-female residence. She loved every aspect of student life and took full advantage of what the university offered, joining intramural sports teams, enjoying symposiums, and being introduced to guest lecturers and cultural leaders. She was a member of LEC student council and a member of Trent Student Union (TSU). During her time at Trent, Julie appreciated the University’s involvement in international development, and was a founding member of the Trent International Program (TIP). Trent permitted her to complete her third year of studies in Nigeria. Not only that, but the future media producer got to co-produce and co-host her first radio show on Trent Radio.

She graduated with an Honours B.Sc. in Geography and Economics with an emphasis on human geography and development studies.

Producing Faith

After graduating, Julie pursued studies in theology at Regent College in Vancouver and landed her first job: coordinator for the Environmentally Sound Packaging Coalition. “After a couple of years of perpetual rain,” she moved to Toronto and did a research project with COSTI Immigrant Services. This started her along the path of working in refugee resettlement at World Relief Canada, and then as the executive director at the Working Group On Refugee Resettlement (now AURA, the Anglican United Refugee Alliance).

“But media was always my first love,” she notes. “And so I completed my M.A. (Journalism) at Western and worked at CBC as a producer.”

When her two sons, Adin and Ethan, were born, she stayed home for several years.

She later worked as a producer for Context Beyond the Headlines, a TV current affairs program, and recently joined Trans World Radio Canada, a global Christian media organization.

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