Dr. Irving K. Barber, the principal donor for the Irving K. Barber Learning Centre and a passionate supporter of education and research in British Columbia, passed away on April 13, 2012.
Dr. Barber was a visionary thinker with a strong commitment to strengthening BC, improving the quality of life for its residents, and providing an enriched university experience for students. His gift of $20 million was largely responsible for the development and construction of the Learning Centre and the realization of its mission: a facility dedicated to the intellectual, social, cultural and economic development of the people of British Columbia and beyond.
Ike and Jean Barber with students. Photo: Martin Dee
Dr. Barber’s generosity has been instrumental in establishing programs to promote research, including the creation of the I.K. Barber Enhanced Forestry Laboratory at the University of Northern British Columbia, the Irving K. Barber Diabetes Research Endowment Fund at UBC and the Ike Barber Human Islet Transplant Laboratory at Vancouver Hospital in partnership with UBC.
“We are ever grateful for the generosity of Ike and his wife Jean,” says Ingrid Parent, UBC’s University Librarian. “Their support was crucial to the success of the Learning Centre, which has connected with lifelong learners and students at UBC and beyond. And his support for, and belief in, the transformative role of libraries was inspiring. He will be greatly missed, but his legacy will live on at the Learning Centre, and in the other worthy projects that he backed. Thank you, Ike, for your vision, passion, humour and dedication.”
To read the rest of this article, please visit: http://about.library.ubc.ca/2012/04/17/remembering-dr-irving-k-barber/
Did you know?
Both UBC Vancouver and UBC Okanagan campuses have their own IKBLC communities and corresponding collections in cIRcle. These communities and collections are comprised of scholarly research such as faculty and student work, theses and dissertations and include conferences, podcasts, webcasts and other significant events which benefit the UBC community and the general public at large. For UBC Vancouver, be sure to visit: https://circle.ubc.ca/handle/2429/24241. For UBC Okanagan, check out: https://circle.ubc.ca/handle/2429/2869.
Above partial excerpt in italics and images are courtesy of the Irving K. Barber Learning Centre website at The University of British Columbia.