Finding something bigger than yourself: How Laurier shaped Jacquelyn Morton's commitment to community

Jacquelyn Morton (BA '10) can still picture her first day at Laurier. 

Long before she stepped into a classroom, she knew something felt different. At an Ontario university fair, the conversations she had with Laurier representatives stood apart from every other booth she visited. They didn't just talk about academics; they talked about community. 

That feeling became reality on move-in day. 

Surrounded by orientation leaders, cheering students and volunteers eager to help complete strangers settle into university life, Morton immediately felt she belonged. 

"I felt community. I felt that I was part of a team," she says. "It didn't matter who you were, your background or what you stood for. It was, 'Laurier has your back.'" 

More than 15 years after graduating, that lesson continues to shape how Morton approaches both her personal and professional life. 

"I think the biggest lesson Laurier taught me wasn't just academics," she says. "It was about doing something bigger than yourself." 

Today, Morton is AVP of HR Technology for Sun Life, but her commitment to community extends far beyond her career. Together with her husband, she recently became a billet family for a Colts player, opening their home to a young athlete pursuing his dream. 

The decision began unexpectedly after neighbours invited the family to a Colts game. 

"Our son completely fell in love with the Barrie Colts," Morton says. "When your child finds something they're passionate about, you become passionate too because that's your connection point with them." 

As the family became regular supporters of the team, they also learned about the experience of billeting through friends in their neighbourhood. What began as curiosity soon became an opportunity to give back. 

"We're not doing it for money or recognition," she says. "It's about giving back to your community, helping someone from a younger generation and being able to guide them through all the complexities of life." 

Her seven-year-old son even helped nudge the decision along. 

"He told us, 'Mom, Dad, we either need to get a billet or a dog.'" 

The family still laughs about the ultimatum, but the experience has reinforced values Morton first discovered as a Laurier student. 

"We believe what you give to your community is what you ultimately get out of it," she says. "That's the lesson I learned at Laurier." 

That belief traces back to her earliest days on campus. 

"I remember move-in day more vividly than graduating," she says. "That was the moment I knew I had made the right decision." 

Although naturally shy, Morton found herself transformed during Orientation Week (O-Week). The student who never imagined introducing herself to strangers was suddenly cheering alongside hundreds of classmates. 

"They show you a side of yourself that you may not have ever seen before," she says. "I never expected to be the person coming out of my residence room, going to O-Week events and cheering at the top of my lungs. But there I was."

It wasn't long before she became an O-Week volunteer herself, eager to help new students experience the same sense of belonging she had found. 

Morton chose Laurier because of its culture, and she has spent her career searching for that same feeling. 

"I've spent over fifteen years chasing that same feeling in every job I've taken," she says. 

After graduating, she wasn't ready to leave Waterloo. She stayed to complete a certificate in human resources while beginning her career with an internship at Research in Motion (RIM), where she gained her first experience helping build HR within a fast-growing technology company. 

A move to Toronto followed, along with a role at a startup that demanded adaptability and resilience. 

"It was a crash course in doing ten jobs at once with none of the safety net," she says. 

In 2012, she joined BMO, where she spent years building her HR career before making an unconventional move – out of the profession entirely. 

For three years, Morton served as Chief of Staff to the Senior Vice-President of Data and AI, gaining technical expertise that complemented her background in people strategy. 

"It wasn't a detour," she says. "It was the foundation for everything I do now." 

The combination of HR and technology eventually gave her the confidence to launch her own consulting firm, where she quickly learned to wear every hat imaginable: strategist, salesperson and consultant, often all within the same hour. 

Today, she continues to measure success not simply by professional achievements, but by the impact she can have on others. Morton credits Laurier with helping her discover that outlook. 

"I don't know if I would have learned that lesson anywhere else," she says. "For me, Laurier was always about community and belonging. It taught me that you're part of something bigger than yourself." 

Years later, whether she's supporting a junior hockey player, raising her own children or helping build community through her work, she continues to invest in something bigger than herself.  

"I've never forgotten that," she says. "And I don't think I ever will."