“Curiosity is, in great and generous minds, the first passion and the last.”
― Samuel Johnson
On September 26, 2021, the Trinity community lost one of its greatest supporters, Dr. Anne E. H. Steacy ’76. In everything she did, Steacy led with curiosity, passion and a love of life.
Although she was expected to attend one of her parents’ alma maters, she chose Trinity College, following in her grandfather, Colonel the Reverend R.H. Steacy (Divinity class of 1899)’s, footsteps. She would, however, forge her own distinct path.
After earning an English degree, she embarked on a career as a print journalist. Her curiosity led her to learn all aspects of the business in small community papers and the hectic newsrooms of The Globe and Mail and Maclean’s magazine, where she was science writer. She once described science writing as “fascinating and calming.” She also loved to travel and to paint, and she explored her many interests by taking classes throughout her life.
Although Steacy had always intended to support Trinity in her will, her cancer diagnosis in 2011 spurred her to want to “accomplish something special and unusual” with her legacy. That legacy began in 2014 with the creation of two new streams in the Margaret MacMillan Trinity One Program: the Anne Steacy Biomedical Health Stream, through which life sciences students examine the process of scientific discovery from initial idea to public dissemination of the results; and the Anne Steacy Medicine & Global Health Stream, which helps arts and life sciences students gain a broader understanding of the impact that progress in the health sciences is having on society. Steacy also believed, through her personal and professional experience and through discussions with her own doctors, the value of equipping scientists with strong communication skills. She understood the crucial importance of human connection and information-sharing that is often lacking in a discipline focused intently on discovery. That belief led to her founding the Anne Steacy Program in Science Writing, also in 2014.
In 2015, Steacy received a Doctor of Sacred Letters from Trinity College in recognition of her dedication to the College, her love for the arts, and her support for advancing science, medical and public education and communication.
Later that year, Trinity announced what would become, according to her family, the most cherished part of Steacy’s legacy with the College: the Anne Steacy Counselling Initiative. Part of Trinity’s Mental Health Program, the Initiative supports core staffing in mental health, including on-site counselling for students.
Steacy’s impact on incorporating science students into a college dominated by liberal arts and humanities leaders was significant and unprecedented. At the same time, she understood how important it was to support students’ overall wellness. Over the past five years, Steacy’s visionary gift has built a key foundational element of the mental health supports Trinity offers its students, which include a full-time Associate Director of Community Wellness. Those supports have been needed more than ever over the past 20 months, as students deal with the many impacts of the COVID-19 pandemic.
In Trinity magazine’s fall 2014 issue, Steacy shared, in her own words, the story of how she arrived at Trinity as a student, and the life events that inspired her to create her unique legacy with the College as an alumna. That brief piece offers a glimpse of the intelligence, charm, courage and curiosity and that characterized Anne Steacy. Through her legacy, generations of students will be better communicators, better investigators, better equipped to meet the challenges and opportunities that lie ahead. And for that, the Trinity community will always be grateful.