Suzanne's fight for equality, as one of the few women engineering students, fuelled her tenacity and determination to become an engineer.
Murray Cobbe
Murray was born and raised in central Manitoba before moving to Alberta to study Petroleum Engineering. He graduated from the Southern Alberta Institute of Technology with his Diploma in Petroleum Engineering (Reservoir) in 1970 and then began his career with Shell Canada developing Arctic and offshore exploration programs. He then joined Atwood Oceanics in 1974 to oversee the drilling of offshore exploration wells. This role took him to Australia, Singapore, Indonesia and Malaysia. Capitalizing on Murray’s solid experience, Nowsco invited him to join them in setting up their southeast Asia Business Unit, which he did in 1977. Until 1996, he continued with Nowsco where he held key roles in Operations, Sales and Engineering and managed several business units in the Middle East, Europe, Canada and the US as well as a producing oilfield in Siberia. The remainder of Murray’s career was spent with Trican Well Service Ltd. where he took the helm as Chief Executive Officer in 1996, served on the Company’s Board and realized one of his greatest accomplishments: building a formidable team that was successful in various parts of the world and cultivating opportunities for his young staff to succeed.
Although 2009 marked Murray’s retirement, he remains active in the industry imparting his expertise and guidance to several organizations. After being a past Director and Chairman of the Petroleum Services Association of Canada (PSAC), he continues as Chairman of the Board at Trican, a Director on the Board of Bellatrix Exploration Ltd., and as Lead Director at Secure Energy Services Ltd. Murray is also involved in various private ventures in the well service business.
Murray’s distinguished career has spanned almost 50 years and five continents, but he is most proud of his family. Beside him always was his wife and best friend, Connie. While travelling the globe, they made many memories with their three children – Gerald, Reece and Sheri – and continue making many more with their seven grandchildren.
Lorenzo Donadeo
Lorenzo is Co-Founder, current Chair, and the former Chief Executive Officer of Vermilion Energy Inc., an international oil and gas producer with assets in Canada, Europe, Australia and the United States. From inception in 1994, Vermilion has provided a compounded annual rate of return of 28% over the last 24 years and currently has a $5 Billion market capitalization. Since 2010, Vermilion has consistently been recognized as a Best Workplace by the Great Place to Work Institute. It has also been recognized as a sustainability leader by a number of independent sustainability organizations.
Lorenzo is currently the Managing Director of Casadona Group, a private family-owned diversified investment company. Casadona’s strategy is to develop the internal capacity and resources to generate competitive market returns while focusing on long term capital preservation.
In 2015, Lorenzo and his wife Donna and their family made a significant donation to the University of Alberta Faculty of Engineering to help fund the Donadeo Innovation Centre for Engineering. The Donadeo family understands that they have a responsibility to give back to the community, and they support a number of initiatives that are primarily focused on Education and Homelessness and Poverty. Vermilion is also recognized as a leader in community giving in areas where their employees work and live.
In 2015, Lorenzo was recognized for his outstanding service to France with his official appointment to the National Order of the Legion of Honour, France’s highest order of merit, at the rank of Chevalier. In 2016, he was named CEO of the Year by Alberta Oil Magazine, and received the SAIT Distinguished Alumni Award.
Prior to Vermilion, Lorenzo worked at Dome Petroleum and Amoco Canada, as well as a private oil and gas company. Lorenzo has a Diploma in Welding Engineering Technology (Honours), SAIT, 1977 and a B.Sc. Mechanical Engineering (Honours), University of Alberta, 1981.
Dr. T. Chen Fong
Chen was born and raised in Shanghai. He moved to Hongkong as a teenager where he completed high school. Chen attended the University of Manitoba, graduated with MD in 1977; the same year he became a Canadian citizen. After his radiology training, Chen joined the Foothills Hospital in 1981 as a junior doctor. He also taught at the University of Calgary School of Medicine. He chaired the Examination Board (Radiology) of the Royal College and served on the Academic Advisory Council of GE Medical. He retired in 2006 after serving as the Head of Diagnostic Imaging of the Calgary Health Region and the Head of Radiology at the University of Calgary. In 1999, he was honored by the American College of Radiology and elected as a Fellow. Dr Fong is Professor Emeritus of Radiology at the University of Calgary.
Chen has enjoyed investing early in his career. In 2006, he turned this passion into his vocation. His first foray outside of energy investing was a medical imaging start up. He helped to build Ultrasonix Medical Corporation which was sold in 2012. Chen has helped 11 groups of entrepreneurs to turn university based intellectual properties into successful companies. In addition, he seed funded and guided 43 start ups, mostly in medical technology.
Chen has been deeply engaged in Calgary in many ways. He contributes to and is a key fund raiser for healthcare and research, especially for the University of Calgary. He is in the Million Dollar Donor Circle of the United Way of Calgary and Area. Recognizing the need to bring new and specialized clinical skills to Southern Alberta, he funded the Helios Fellowship. This Fellowship has sent 38 young medical specialists to further their training around the world. These specialists are bringing their expertise back to our communities.
In 2015, Chen joined the Creative Destruction Lab (CDL) at the University of Toronto business school as a mentor. CDL helps young entrepreneurs to shape or pivot their nascent ideas. He is widely credited with launching CDL at the Haskayne School of Business at the University of Calgary, bringing together seasoned business leaders from Alberta, Canada and the US to grow budding companies. Chen is on the Strategic Advisroy Board of CDL and a Fellow of CDL in Toronto, Montreal, Calgary and Vancouver.
Currently, Chen is on four corporate boards and five philanthropic and research institution boards. He is a co-founder of Calgary Scientific Inc.
In 2017, Chen was invested into the Order of Canada for his contribution to medical technology innovation and philanthropy.