The Reminder is making its archives back to 2003 available on our website. Please note that, due to technical limitations, archive articles are presented without the usual formatting.
The older Andy Szocs gets, the better it feels to give. So those who know the wealthy former Flin Flonner could not have been surprised by his recent decision to donate $1 million to a cause close to his heart. 'I just felt that I've done reasonably well in my life and I wanted to make a difference,' says Szocs, 73, whose seven-figure gift went to Enough is Enough, a campaign to erase the stigma around mental illness. Now living in Whistler, B.C., Szocs presented the donation to friends Ginny and Kerry Dennehy, who cycled across Canada to raise money for their foundation. Never one to seek the spotlight, Szocs and his family discussed keeping the source of the donation anonymous. But Szocs, a successful real estate investor and former business owner, felt there was power in putting a face to the gift. 'People want to see leadership,' he says. Szocs is passionate about mental health, specifically depression, a condition that has touched the lives of family and friends. 'You don't have to spend a lot of money (to tackle) depression,' he says. 'You just to have to change the public's attitude towards it.' Szocs says many resources exist to treat depression, but the stigma created by both society and sufferers themselves must be overcome. He has donated much of his time to this cause, including five years as a board member with the Dennehys' foundation, set up in memory of a son who committed suicide. Szocs has given back in a multitude of other ways, his generosity bringing him a level of fulfillment that words cannot capture. 'It's better to give than to receive _ it just takes you about 50 years to figure that out,' he says. Asked about his desire to contribute in such meaningful ways, Szocs says he was raised by a generous mother in the late Mary Szocs. 'You just watched her by example. She gave back,' he says. Szocs, an engineer by profession, left Flin Flon in 1957 to attend the University of Saskatchewan. He encourages people to learn more about depression by Googling the subject. Everyone, he says, can help erase the stigma. Szocs invites anyone who wishes to learn more about the subject, or how to make a difference in this area, to contact him at [email protected].
