Ed Lumley, the former Chancellor at the University of Windsor from 2006-2019, died Wednesday at the age of 85 after battling a short illness.
Prior to his UWindsor tenure, Lumley served as mayor of Cornwall from 1972-74, then was elected as MP to serve from 1974-84.
Former Ontario finance minister and deputy premier and soon to be University of Windsor Chancellor, Dwight Duncan, told AM800's Mornings with Mike and Meg that Lumley was a Windsor boy at heart.
"He grew up on Arthur Avenue in the east side, played with the AKO Fratmen, was quarterback, went on to a distinguished career in the public and private sectors, larger than life, he was one of those fellows that filled a room when we stepped into it," Duncan said.
Duncan says he first met Lumley as a student at UWindsor when Lumley was serving as industry minister under then Prime Minister Pierre Trudeau.
He says Lumley continued to have deep connections to the Windsor community.
"In those days, and in that government, there were three local Members of Parliament who were cabinet ministers, Eugene Whelan, Herb Gray, and Mark MacGuigan, but Ed was considered Windsor's fourth minister, which in a federal cabinet for one city to have four ministers, this is unheard of and has never been since," said Duncan.
In a social media post, the University of Windsor said Lumley, "played a pivotal role in raising over $100 million to support capital projects and student scholarships, most notably through the creation of the Ed Lumley Centre for Engineering Innovation."
Since 2015, 58 students have received up to $32,000 each in support during their studies through the Ed Lumley Bursary.