Russel Orcutt (BSc ’94) credits his parents and the University of Lethbridge for helping him succeed in life. As a way to give back, Orcutt made a donation to create the Orcutt Family Lounge within the Department of Chemistry & Biochemistry in Science Commons.
“I’ve always felt pretty fortunate to have had a great upbringing,” says Orcutt. “My parents, Darrel and Dana, encouraged me to go to school and get a post-secondary education so I chose the University of Lethbridge with their support. I had a good experience there and throughout the years afterwards, I kept in touch with certain people who were a highlight for me, like Dr. Andy Hakin (vice-president academic and provost), who was instrumental to my success in school. The whole process of going to university helped set me up for life.”
Orcutt grew up on a farm east of Coaldale. His father worked as a seismologist, then owned and operated an Esso/Engro dealership in Picture Butte before taking over and acquiring the family farm. Orcutt thought he would follow a similar path and enrolled at the U of L with the idea of becoming a geophysicist.
“I got the hang of chemistry, math and stats but when it came to the physics side, I struggled. I struggled with physics to the point where I thought it wasn’t going to work out,” says Orcutt. “I’d met Andy by then and, with his teaching and leadership style and encouragement from my parents, I realigned my objectives and went on to complete my degree, finishing much stronger than I started.”
Jobs were hard to find in the early ‘90s so Orcutt joined some friends for a three-month backpacking trip to Australia. When he returned to Canada, he got serious about looking for work and joined a job-finding club.
“I must have sent out over 100 resumes and received 100 thanks-but-no-thanks letters in return,” he says. “I still have that binder as a reminder of how hard it can be. Later in ’94 I got a job with a company in Medicine Hat. That was the beginning of my career.”
Orcutt worked for a series of environmental companies before he and four colleagues co-founded Summit in 2005, a privately held environmental consulting and service company based in Calgary. When he learned about the new Science Commons building, he saw a chance to give back to the institution that helped set him — and others — up for success.
“When this opportunity came up, I discussed it with my wife, Lisa, and we decided it would be pretty cool to donate and give back to the people and the institution that helped me create a foundation from which to develop my future on,” he says. “Canada has outstanding scientists and the new Science Commons will help train the next generation. I want to see more U of L graduates and professors on the world stage because we’re some of the best.”
His father passed away earlier this year from a hard-fought battle with cancer but Russel figures he’d be proud of the decision to name the Orcutt Family Lounge.
“It saddens me that he’s not able to be a part of this,” he says. “We’re a pretty humble family but, at the end of the day, I thought it was a good thing. My dad was always a big supporter so I think he’d be pleased.”