Duff Roblin Award Dinner
Date: October 21, 2026
Time: 5:30 P.M. Reception | 6:30 P.M. Dinner
Location: Metropolitan Entertainment Centre
Tickets on Sale this Summer
Established by The University of Winnipeg and its Foundation in 2007, the Duff Roblin Award recognizes outstanding Manitobans who, like inaugural recipient The Honourable Duff Roblin, are patrons of education and have demonstrated exemplary citizenship and a lifelong commitment to their communities. On the 40th Anniversary of the signing of the Charter that established The University of Winnipeg as a degree-granting institution, The University of Winnipeg honoured and paid respect to Duff Roblin by establishing The Duff Roblin Scholars Fund and held the first ever Duff Roblin Award Dinner.
Our 2026 award recipient is Dr. H. Sanford (Sandy) Riley
The University of Winnipeg and University of Winnipeg Foundation owe a great deal to this year’s Duff Roblin Award recipient, Dr. H. Sanford Riley.
Dr. Riley has had a distinguished career in business, having served as CEO of Investors Group, Chairman to the North West Company, Founder and CEO of Richardson Financial Group and a director of many North American companies. He has also had extensive involvement in community activities having served, amongst other things, as Chairman of The Business Council of Manitoba, Chair of the 1999 Pan Am Games, principal fund raiser for the Qaumajuq, The Winnipeg Art Gallery’s Inuit Art Centre and Campaign Chair for the United Way of Winnipeg.
A graduate of Queen’s University and Osgoode Hall Law School in Ontario, Dr. Riley is a former Olympian and a member of the Manitoba Business Hall of Fame, the Manitoba Sports Hall of Fame, the Order of Manitoba and the Order of Canada. But it is his service to the University of Winnipeg which makes him an appropriate recipient of the Duff Roblin Award. Dr. Riley has left an indelible impression on both our campus and the lives of our students, faculty, and staff over the last 26 years.
Dr. Riley’s first experience with UWinnipeg came when he became Chancellor in 2000. During the first of his three terms as Chancellor, it became clear the University needed its own Foundation to help draw greater private support for student awards and upgrades to the campus. In 2003, the University of Winnipeg Foundation was formed with Dr. Riley at the helm of its newly minted Board of Directors—which included the likes of former MP and UWinnipeg President, Dr. Lloyd Axworthy, hotelier and alumna, Dr. Ida Albo, and fellow businessman, Bob Kozminski—who have all since been celebrated as Duff Roblin Award recipients.
Together with the Board and a dedicated team of fundraisers, Dr. Riley helped build not only an Endowment Fund that recently passed the $100 million mark, but also a culture of philanthropy on campus that continues to support the Foundation each year. Under Dr. Riley’s chairmanship, UWinnipeg and its Foundation conducted the institution's first broad capital campaign which raised over $135 million for campus revitalization.
As a donor, Dr. Riley has generously supported a number of University of Winnipeg projects for nearly three decades. Since making his first gift to the Marsha Hanen Award for Excellence in Creating Community Awareness in 1999, Dr. Riley and his wife Deborah have given over $1.2 million in donations to countless awards, initiatives, and campaigns including the H. Sanford Riley Fellowships in Canadian History, the H. Sanford Riley Centre for Canadian History in Bryce Hall, and the Oral History Centre.
Meet the Past recipients of the Duff Roblin Award
Learn more about advertising opportunities and sponsoring the Duff Roblin Award Dinner
Visit the Foundation Website
Duff Roblin Dinner Photo Gallery
Student Thank You Video
Since the Duff Roblin Dinner’s inception, guests and sponsors of the annual event have supported hundreds of students pursuing postsecondary education. The video below is their message of gratitude.