Chronicle 2019

By Catharine Heddle 1989

R obin McLernon loves tradition. It might be because of the 14 years she spent at Havergal (JK to Grade 12), where she cherished the deep sense of community and school spirit. It could be her time at Queen’s University, whose traditions somehow felt familiar even when she first arrived as an undergraduate. Or possibly it was her years in Edinburgh, whose history captivated her during the years that she worked on her master’s degree there. It could be the longevity of these public spaces or the sense of place that they create – there’s something about long-established buildings that touches her spirit. So it makes sense that, years later, she has built a career around enabling the construction of public edifices. Mind you, this is her second career. Her first was working in health economics research – at SickKids, Mount Sinai Hospital and the University of Toronto – and she relished the challenge of academics and policy- making. But at age 30, she found she wanted to work in business while still contributing to community well- being. She accepted a position at a firm called P1 Consulting, where she soon rose to become senior director of facilities advisory services. Today, she helps governments and hospitals procure and build infrastructure that will last for centuries. She advises on public-private partnerships to create courthouses, hospitals, jails, highways and transportation networks and helps to craft the contracts that will ensure their enduring performance and safe, efficient operation. She

also counsels on the placement and design of these important buildings, viewing such decisions as enablers of social justice. “A hospital or courthouse that’s built near transit provides better access to health or justice,” she explains. “Accessibility and a look and feel that is open and friendly makes a building easy to navigate, less intimidating. We seek to understand what a facility is meant to do for the community, and then situate and design it to make that possible.” One of her favourite buildings is St. Paul’s Bloor Street, the Anglican church used for Havergal’s Founder’s Days. “It sits so nicely at the intersection,” she explains, “and the old architecture with a modern façade is a very ‘Toronto’ approach. It feels very grand.” Robin’s work demands considerable travel, but she still makes time for friends, concerts, travel (recently visiting a former classmate in Nairobi) and a summer “beer league” soccer team. She and a group of 10-12 Havergal friends gather monthly. She’s also a devoted volunteer, offering her time at a restorative youth justice group called Peacebuilders, Women’s College Hospital, and Dr. Jay’s Children’s Grief Centre, where for eight years she has volunteered at a monthly event for children who have lost a parent. What advice would she give young Havergal graduates or her own youthful self? “I’d tell them that it’s not scary to be an adult,” she says. “You can do more than you think you can. And life – like a well-designed building – gets better with age.”

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PHOTO: NIAMH BARRY 2009