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Gerry Turcotte

Turcotte is President and Vice-Chancellor at St. Mark’s and Corpus Christi College, University of British Columbia.

Web Archive

Gerry Turcotte: Class virtually in session

September 19, 2020

Every year, as my children got older, the return-to-school routine got less exciting.

Gerry Turcotte: The garden of the soul

August 28, 2020

I am not a gardener. In fact, I moved into a house with a large garden a decade ago and I joke that I have killed off one species of plant each year. Except that it’s not a joke.

Gerry Turcotte: ‘Duck and cover’ isn’t an option

August 1, 2020

When I was growing up it was popular to mock a film made in the 1950s to prepare children to survive a nuclear war. Older folks will remember this odd cross between animated and live action footage featuring a bow-tied Bert the Turtle who could “duck and cover” at the sign of danger.

Gerry Turcotte: Racism protests are a sign of hope

June 25, 2020

It wasn’t so long ago that many of us were using the COVID-19 virus to argue that our world was more interconnected than we care to admit. Divisions are commonplace and people move through their lives erecting barriers between the haves and have-nots, between the East and the West, between the good and the bad.

Gerry Turcotte: Scratching the surface of cat psychology

June 13, 2020

I have been plagued by cats almost my entire adult life. (OK, maybe I like them just a little.) Dogs, I feel I understand. They’re reasonably straightforward. You know when they’re happy, when they’re guilty of chewing your favourite shoe and when they’re sulking.

Gerry Turcotte: This is a fight for our shared humanity

May 13, 2020

I had promised myself that I wouldn’t write a COVID-19 column.

Gerry Turcotte: The vital art of dance

April 17, 2020

In June we celebrate St. Vitus’ Day, a time that honours an unusual saint whose influence was seen throughout Europe generally and in Germany in particular.

Gerry Turcotte: The Wiki and wacky world of St. Isidore

March 13, 2020

As I was driving to work this week, I saw a sign outside a neighbourhood church. It read: “Prayer is the original wireless form of communication.”

Gerry Turcotte: Always room for prayer in life’s overflowing jar

February 14, 2020

A good friend of mine, a fellow scotch aficionado, sent me a story which is an adaptation of a well-known leadership story, popularized by Stephen Covey in The 7 Habits of Highly Effective People.

Gerry Turcotte: Some timely advice that’s never too early

January 10, 2020

This new year my resolution was to be less punctual. Why? Because punctuality has always been both my obsession and my curse.