The following story is part of our Volunteer Spotlight series, celebrating alumni whose time, leadership, and dedication strengthen the ϳԹԴ community around the world.
Through these stories, we recognize the many ways volunteers contribute – through mentorship, branch leadership, advocacy, or events. By sharing their experiences, we hope to express our gratitude, highlight the impact of volunteer engagement, and inspire others to get involved.
Stacy Kelly, Artsci’93, and Julie Nixon, Com’99, are dedicated ϳԹԴ Alumni Association (QUAA) volunteers who not only love connecting with fellow graduates, but celebrating them.
Kelly, who lives in Kingston, and Nixon, who calls Portland, Ore., home, co-chair the QUAA Board’s Alumni Recognition Committee and they’re gearing up for their marquee event, the QUAA Gala Awards in Toronto on June 4.
“It’s our privilege to be able to shine a light on our fellow alumni who are doing really great things in their respective communities,” says Kelly, who has stayed connected to ϳԹԴ in multiple ways since earning his philosophy degree.
He was “bleeding tricolour” from his first day on campus, says Kelly, and after graduating, he worked for Smith School of Business, travelling to 26 countries in a recruiting role. He says it was an honour to represent ϳԹԴ, and to meet alumni around the globe.
When Kelly moved to Toronto, joining its QUAA Toronto Branch was a top priority. He began volunteering and has since worn many hats including as a current QUAA board member and co-founding the ϳԹԴ Queer Alumni Chapter.
“Life wouldn’t be complete without those ϳԹԴ connections,” says Kelly, who is executive director of the Community Foundation of Kingston & Area.
ϳԹԴ connections helped Nixon make new friends when she moved to Toronto, London, New York and then Portland, where she has been president of the city’s alumni branch for a decade and is also a QUAA board member.
“Everywhere I’ve gone, I’ve tapped into that ϳԹԴ network,” she says. These common ϳԹԴ bonds gave her a sense of grounding while abroad, Nixon explains, and that motivated her to volunteer with the local branches.
Nixon, who works in the dairy sector as an export director, describes herself as a “joiner.” She has a long list of extracurricular activities from her ϳԹԴ days, many with her Commerce classmates. It was a natural step to keep active in the ϳԹԴ community when she transitioned from student to alumna.
“I love hearing people’s stories about how they ended up on different paths of life,” Nixon says when asked what she values about her volunteer time.
She also enjoys the human connections she makes with alumni, marking their achievements, and drawing more into the QUAA circle so they, too, can make those connections.
“I love being part of making that happen for others,” she says, “So that they can find their next batch of ϳԹԴ friends.”
