March 27, 2009
GEE-GEES GREAT ESTABLISHES ANNUAL ENTRANCE SCHOLARSHIP FOR FOOTBALL PROGRAM
OTTAWA, Ont. - A gift from alumnus Doug Falconer to the University of Ottawa Gee-Gees football program establishes the first entrance scholarship in the program's 109-year history.
The Gilbert-Fraser-Morrison Scholarship will support an entrance bursary of $2,000 and will be awarded annually to LaSalle Secondary School and/or a Kingston area high school student-athletes planning to attend and play football at the University of Ottawa.
The scholarship has been named after three coaches who were an inspiration to Falconer throughout high school and university.
They are Don Gilbert, Falconer's former Gee-Gees head coach, along with Doug Fraser and Bob Morrison, Falconer's basketball and football coaches at La Salle Secondary in Kingston.
"In 1972 my father, a lifetime member of the Canadian Armed Forces, passed away unexpectedly in Fort Henry Heights, Kingston. He was 47," reflected Falconer. "My mother and my family were forced to leave Kingston to be close to other family members in western Canada. Living the life of a typical army brat, I had been on the move my whole life, five public schools and two high schools."
"I did not want to leave Kingston so I chose to stay. I was on my own. If not for the support and inspiration of these coaches, friends and teammates along the way, I'm not sure where I would have ended up."
Falconer, a former Gee-Gees defensive back (1973-75) and one of eight Gee-Gees to win both a Vanier Cup and Grey Cup, has also established the scholarship in memory of his father, Sergeant Major Donald Falconer, who served Canada during World War II and in the Korean War.
"Hopefully this scholarship, in some small way, will help other young men from the Kingston area as they move through both their athletic and personal lives," said Falconer, a member of the undefeated 1975 Vanier Cup championship team, who went on to a CFL career with the Ottawa Rough Riders and the Calgary Stampeders. Doug was a member of the 1976 Grey Cup Champion Ottawa Rough Riders.
"We are thrilled Doug has chosen to support us in such a substantial way," said Gee-Gees head coach Denis Piché.
The scholarship will be awarded to a La Salle Secondary or Kingston and district football player who has a greater than 80 percent academic average and will be used to augment tuition and fees.
"The scholarship will also help us recruit top student-athletes in Kingston and have first shot at La Salle Secondary kids as well," said Piché.
Falconer is currently the Chairman and President of Pacific Media & Entertainment, a film production company in Los Angeles.
Source: Ottawa Gee-Gees
The Gilbert-Fraser-Morrison Scholarship will support an entrance bursary of $2,000 and will be awarded annually to LaSalle Secondary School and/or a Kingston area high school student-athletes planning to attend and play football at the University of Ottawa.
The scholarship has been named after three coaches who were an inspiration to Falconer throughout high school and university.
They are Don Gilbert, Falconer's former Gee-Gees head coach, along with Doug Fraser and Bob Morrison, Falconer's basketball and football coaches at La Salle Secondary in Kingston.
"In 1972 my father, a lifetime member of the Canadian Armed Forces, passed away unexpectedly in Fort Henry Heights, Kingston. He was 47," reflected Falconer. "My mother and my family were forced to leave Kingston to be close to other family members in western Canada. Living the life of a typical army brat, I had been on the move my whole life, five public schools and two high schools."
"I did not want to leave Kingston so I chose to stay. I was on my own. If not for the support and inspiration of these coaches, friends and teammates along the way, I'm not sure where I would have ended up."
Falconer, a former Gee-Gees defensive back (1973-75) and one of eight Gee-Gees to win both a Vanier Cup and Grey Cup, has also established the scholarship in memory of his father, Sergeant Major Donald Falconer, who served Canada during World War II and in the Korean War.
"Hopefully this scholarship, in some small way, will help other young men from the Kingston area as they move through both their athletic and personal lives," said Falconer, a member of the undefeated 1975 Vanier Cup championship team, who went on to a CFL career with the Ottawa Rough Riders and the Calgary Stampeders. Doug was a member of the 1976 Grey Cup Champion Ottawa Rough Riders.
"We are thrilled Doug has chosen to support us in such a substantial way," said Gee-Gees head coach Denis Piché.
The scholarship will be awarded to a La Salle Secondary or Kingston and district football player who has a greater than 80 percent academic average and will be used to augment tuition and fees.
"The scholarship will also help us recruit top student-athletes in Kingston and have first shot at La Salle Secondary kids as well," said Piché.
Falconer is currently the Chairman and President of Pacific Media & Entertainment, a film production company in Los Angeles.
Source: Ottawa Gee-Gees
