University of Toronto Magazine University of Toronto Magazine
Photo of Vera Tomkins.
Photo courtesy of Vera Tomkins

Boundless Promise

A long family history at the university encouraged this couple to create a new scholarship

Vera and Lawrence Tomkins have pledged $50,000 to create a “Boundless Promise” Scholarship for dentistry students. Their daughter Lynn earned a degree in dentistry from U of T, and Vera says family connections to the university going back generations – and her own love of continuing education – inspired their commitment to the university.

Vera: “Our daughter is the third generation of our family to graduate from U of T. My husband Lawrence has two uncles who graduated as dentists, and he graduated from forestry. I didn’t go to U of T as an undergrad, but I’m currently enrolled in Innis College in their later-life learning program, and I’ve attended that for the last 20 years. I just enjoy the courses and the atmosphere! They’re very interesting and informative.

We wanted to support a scholarship, in particular, because we believe in encouraging young people and in helping them achieve their goals. U of T has helped generations of our family realize our dreams and we hope this gift will inspire others to do likewise.”

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