On Monday, Canada’s walk of fame’s oldest living inductee, Montrealer doctor Brenda Milner, was honoured on her 106th birthday during a special Hometown Stars event at the Neuro. Students, former students and Montrealers came out to honour the psychoneuroscience pioneer.
“Very influential with her work on memory with the patient H.M. [Henry Gustav Molaison] and also just memory systems in general. It’s just really really great to see somebody like that be honored nationally,” says Jennifer Novek, PhD student in neuroscience.
Milner revolutionized our understanding of the human brain.
“The World is better, Canada is better because of this incredible woman who I had no idea who she was until we started to do this research on some of the great Canadians,” says Jeffrey Latimer, CEO of Canada’s Walk of Fame.
“Celebrity does not need to be Hollywood or YouTube now that as we start to look at the mental health crisis that we are having in the world.”
For her former student Marilyn Jones-Gotman, Dr. Brenda Milner is not only an inspiration to follow a healthy lifestyle thanks to her impressive 106 years-old, but also to be hardworking.
“She worked very hard, she was very focused. It’s important to be focused. To find what you are interested in and you don’t spread yourself thin all over,” says Jones-Gotman.
Canada’s Walk of fame donated $10,000 to Montreal Neurological Institute-Hospital, the Neuro.
As a birthday wish, the world renowned scientist emphasized the importance of using this donation to improve the well-being of The Neuro’s staff, highlighting the significant impact it would have on fostering a supportive and productive work environment.
“Famous people come in a bunch of different varieties shapes and forms and you have actors that can be famous you also have famous scientists. I do feel that scientists don’t always get enough recognition relative to maybe some of their contributions. I think it’s really nice to have scientists be acknowledged for some very influential work that they do and, in her case, she essentially started an entire field of science, which is neuropsychology. I think that’s kind of a big deal”, adds Novek.