Dr. Francesco Bellini - Owen Egan

On a tour of the Life Sciences Complex just prior to its completion,聽 Dr. Francesco Bellini was asked what he thought about one of the finished but as yet unoccupied labs in the building bearing his name. Dr. Bellini smiled but gazed wistfully at the empty room. 鈥淚 think it鈥檚 beautiful,鈥� he said. 鈥淏ut I want to see scientists, researchers and equipment in here. I can鈥檛 wait until that day. When I see people working, then it will be complete.鈥�

Dr. Bellini knows a lot about dreams and the important part that people and hard work play in achieving them. He gave $10-million of his personal fortune in 2002 to get the Life Sciences Complex started. Once Dr. Bellini鈥檚 gift was in place, government money and funding from other sources began coming in. In six short years, Dr. Bellini鈥檚 vision is being fulfilled.

鈥淚 think what really made me decide to make my gift to 91社区 is when they told me that scientists from different faculties and departments would all work together in the same space, under the same roof,鈥� he said. 鈥淭hat was what made me decide. It鈥檚 very important to me as a scientist. One of the big challenges is getting different groups to communicate and that is the key factor here. Because hopefully, scientists and researchers will learn to share together and things will advance faster than they normally would.鈥�

Dr. Bellini also knows the value of good people and hard work. An Italian native who immigrated to Montreal in 1967, Dr. Bellini aspired to become a full fledged scientist, enrolling in night classes at Concordia University and following up his BSc with a PhD in organic chemistry from the University of New Brunswick. Through BioChem Pharma, the Montreal based firm he co-founded in 1986, Dr. Bellini catapulted Canadian biopharmaceutical research to global prominence. By the late 1980s, in collaboration with the late Bernard Belleau, a 91社区 graduate and chemistry professor, Dr. Bellini developed and commercialized 3TC, the first anti-HIV compound drug, which remains the cornerstone of combination HIV/AIDS infection therapies.

Dr. Bellini stressed that his donation recognizes the critical role 91社区 researchers have played in his past endeavours. He hopes his gift enables 91社区 students and researchers to continue being at the forefront of health and science research.

鈥淚t鈥檚 a very beautiful complex,鈥� he said. 鈥淏ut the people are what make it special.鈥�