There are many remarkable individuals and organizations who help ensure SAIT's success. We are pleased to share their stories with you. 
 | "The best thing I've done for myself was to go back to school and prove that I could do it"
- Denise Paré-Watson, Baking and Pastry Arts, '02 | Many Ways to Give Denise Paré-Watson is thrilled. She’s just put in a long day making a VIP dessert for former Prime Minister Jean Crétien: a Michel Cluizel dark chocolate tart with gold leaf garnish, homemade sweet cherry vanilla bean ice cream, an almond tuile cookie, sour caramel sauce and 24-carat gold Alberta honey syrup. “I love my job,” she enthuses. Paré-Watson got her start as a baker in the baking and pastry arts program, from which she graduated with honours in 2002. “I am totally committed to SAIT,” Paré-Watson says emphatically. “It gave me something I never thought I possessed.” She never considered herself to be a very good student. But that changed at SAIT. “The best thing I’ve ever done for myself was to go back to school and prove that I could do it,” she says. “I don’t know what I would have done without the support and guidance of the instructors. They were so encouraging and I needed that.” Paré-Watson’s connection with SAIT began as an employee. She was an assistant to the dean in the Department of Energy (now the MacPhail School of Energy). After four years in her position Paré-Watson followed her heart and in 2000 she enrolled in SAIT’s one-year professional cooking program. To her great surprise, she received a scholarship for outstanding academic achievement. Buoyed by her success and having found her passion, Paré-Watson then made the decision to enroll in the baking and pastry arts program. Now, established in her career, she sits on an advisory board, has established a scholarship and is a donor to the Opportunities Fund. Helping other students Already having established a scholarship for the MacPhail School of Energy, Paré-Watson and her husband, Harold, set up two others, one for students in the professional cooking program and the other for students in the baking and pastry arts program. Unlike many scholarships that are based on financial need or academic achievement, Paré-Watson’s is based on the students’ positive attitude. It’s a trait that she herself possesses, according to Michael Dekker, sous-chef at the Calgary Golf and Country Club, where Paré-Watson works as a pastry chef. “She’s not only incredibly innovative as a pastry chef,” he says. “She always puts out the extra effort at work and she’s always bright and cheery.” Paré-Watson wants to reward hard work and a good attitude among students. “It’s not that financial need or academic achievement aren’t important, but these kids are amazing with their colleagues and convey a positive attitude, leadership and commitment,” she explains. “That’s important for their success in the future.” Paré-Watson says it’s empowering for her to see how she directly affects the future of the students. “It’s kind of cool. There are amazing kids in every classroom. They shine.” she says. “I get to meet them and I love them all. I would have liked to adopt several dozen over the years.“ Unrestricted Giving Paré-Watson also donates to the SAIT Opportunities Fund. “I think about the bakery and pastry labs and how much that equipment helped the department and me as a student,” she says. “I know it makes a big difference to students’ achievement and efficiency of learning.” Representing Industry Paré-Watson doesn’t limit her contribution to SAIT to donating money. She devotes her time as well, sitting on the baking and pastry arts advisory committee. “It’s extremely important for industry to be heard at SAIT and for me to know what students are going through,” she says. “I want to help make sure they are getting the top skills they need to get out there and succeed in our industry.” She takes on practicuum students at the Calgary Golf and Country Club. “I see a lot of leadership from SAIT students and that’s an inspiration for me,” she says. “I’m so proud to be involved and to give students an opportunity. I’m glad I still have a strong connection to SAIT.”
 | "It's extremely generous of the donors to make this money available and I hope that I can do the same at some point for future students."
- Amber Hamp, Welding Engineering Technology, '08 | Gen-Y Alumnus committed to Trades She’s only 28 years old, but Amanda Beatty (Welding Engineering Technology, ‘01) is committed to giving back to the school that has allowed her to pursue a career she loves. “I like building things and understanding how they work, how everything fits together and what it becomes when it is finished,” she says of her job as a welding technologist at Edmonton-based CESSCO Fabrication and Engineering Ltd. Training paved the way to success Beatty says her SAIT training was invaluable in many ways. For one it taught her quality control, a skill she requires to perform tasks like writing welding procedures, reviewing customer specifications and creating inspection and quality control documents. And she met her future employer at a SAIT alumni reunion. Lindsay Baker, Quality Control Manager at CESSCO, is glad he met Beatty, who he hired as a part-time summer student. He immediately recognized her positive attitude and keen intelligence and offered her a permanent position. “We created a position for her,” he says, explaining that the quality control function was always an issue. “Since she has been hired, we’re always ahead of the game. She can do the work without constant supervision and it’s a blessing having her in the mix.” Baker adds Beatty’s effervescent personality is also good for the workplace. “She makes this a friendly and jovial work environment,” he says. “And is generally fun to have around.” Beatty is moving on to study materials engineering at university but she acknowledges the importance of her SAIT training, donating to two separate funds: the SAIT Opportunities Fund and student awards. “I like to give back to SAIT because it’s why I have my career and because I’d like to see more people have the opportunities I’m having,” she explains. It’s important to Beatty that more people enter the trades, especially women. And while Beatty recognizes the importance of doctors and lawyers, she also points out that “you need someone to build the hospitals and the courtrooms.” More than anything Beatty is fiercely proud of her alma mater. “I want to help SAIT remain one of the top schools for trades.”
 | "Art was a tireless advocate on SAIT's behalf. Our students and their effect on society are significant benefactors of his exceptional capacity to give."
- Mike Begin, Chair, Board of Governors, SAIT Polytechnic | Philanthropy of Passion Art Smith had a passion for SAIT and its students. Smith's first time on the SAIT campus was as a trainer to the Air Gunners during the Second World War when the Royal Canadian Air Force used the Main Building (Heritage Hall) for training. It was the only training he received on campus, but nonetheless, when he was well into a successful business career and had served as a politician at every level of government, he returned to SAIT in his role as philanthropist. Art Smith Aero Centre When SAIT wanted to build a new facility near the Calgary International Airport, Smith led the charge to secure provincial funding to build the new aero centre, which bears his name. The Art Smith Aero Centre officially opened in 2004 and Smith was provided a corner office where, up until his death in June, 2008, he spent most Tuesday afternoons, and continued to work with donors to raise funds in support of the Aero Centre. Lunch with the president, chats with the students Smith had regular lunches with Irene Lewis, SAIT president and CEO. "My dear friend Arthur Smith had an abiding belief that people who take pride in their families, colleagues and their communities can achieve great things. He exemplifies this belief in his daily life and pushed us to stretch beyond our comfort zones to achieve breakthrough performance," Lewis says. "He had the courage to do and say what he believed to be right and strived each day to contribute to his community in some significant way." Smith also sat on the Chairman’s Circle, a select group of individuals from across the economic and social spectrum that help guide SAIT’s thinking on future development. Smith never tired of chatting with SAIt students during his Tuesday afternoons at the Aero Centre, always with a beaming smile on his face and genuine interest in the lives and education of the students he met.
 | "The Pow Wow is a valuable program we offer. It promotes cross-cultural learning between the SAIT campus and the Aboriginal community and it creates an environment for students to feel part of the institution."
- Doug Dokis, former manager, Chinook Lodge | Donations Make Sense When he’s asked about the importance of the Chinook Lodge Endowment Fund, Doug Dokis, former manager of Chinook Lodge, doesn’t miss a beat. “We have one student who has had a lot of personal life tragedy, including legal and addiction problems,” he explains. “He showed up in October and told us he really wanted to go to school but he couldn’t get financing. He assured us he was really committed.” Dokis and his colleagues welcomed this young man into Chinook Lodge, found the funding for him to complete one year of aboriginal oil and gas land administration and hired him for the Chinook Lodge Aboriginal Leadership Program. “Now he’s a highlight of the program,” Dokis says. “He works 15 hours a week, goes to school and is overcoming his lifelong challenges. He couldn’t have done this without the financial resources we could offer him.” SODEXO, a food services and facilities management company, donated $100,000 to the fund, to help students like this. “I look at it as giving back to SAIT and cultivating our future employees,” says Robert Gehlen, SODEXO general manager, Calgary and Lethbridge. He explains that much of the company’s work involves providing custodial and food services to mines and logging camps in remote sites in Canada’s North. Often over 40 per cent of the employees at those sites are aboriginal. Trust in SAIT SODEXO also contributed $50,000 to the SAIT Opportunities Fund, which gives SAIT the flexibility to direct funds where they best serve students. “There’s no question,” says Gehlen. “We have a lot of trust in SAIT.” A SAIT vendor, SODEXO attends SAIT career fairs to introduce students to the company and Gehlen is a member of the Hospitality 100 Club, a partnership with industry and the School of Hospitality and Tourism. As much as 75 per cent of the company’s business is in the food services, much of that in the education sector. SODEXO also actively participates in several of SAIT’s fundraising events like the Friends of SAIT Chuckwagon Hoedown and the President’s Reception. “It makes sense and it’s the right thing to do,” Gehlen concludes.
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