Showing how the SSBFF has balanced its commitments to Jewish charitable causes and to Canadian culture, Spirited Commitment explores how the Foundation dealt with the challenge of respecting the wishes of its famous founders while still making a difference in contemporary Canadian society. A detailed account of the Foundation’s numerous programs over three decades – including the Centre for Cultural Management and the Saidye Bronfman Centre – Spirited Commitment highlights the innovations that SSBFF grants have led to in the arts, community development, and scientific research. An illuminating and vibrant portrait of the personalities, motivations, and strategies behind the Samuel and Saidye Bronfman Family Foundation, Spirited Commitment is a revealing, insightful account of the inner workings of philanthropic foundations.

Rod Macleod, Professor Emeritus, was professor of History and Classics at the University of Alberta from 1969 until he retired in 2005. During his tenure he served as Chair of the Department of History and later as Association Dean of Arts. He has written extensively on the history of Western Canada as well as Canadian legal and military history. His books include The Mounties and Prairie Fire: The 1885 North West Rebellion as well as The North West Mounted Police and Law Enforcement 1873-1905. Rod is the official historian for the University of Alberta. In that capacity he researched and wrote All True Things: A History of the University of Alberta, 1908 - 2008, published by the University of Alberta Press. He served two terms as the Alberta representative on the Historic Sites and Monuments Board of Canada. Currently (2011) Rod serves on the Board of the Aid to Scholarly Publications Programme and he is the Curator of the Alberta Aviation Museum.

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