RSGC: Jack is only in Grade 3. Have you seen the benefits already?

Andrew Mitchell: We’re blown away by RSGC and humbled to have him here. Jack talks about school with excitement and wants to get involved in everything. When kids are that positively motivated, it says all you need to know.

RSGC: Why did your family chose to give a bursary as part of the Great School, Great Boys campaign?

AM: We admire the school’s efforts to offer an inclusive atmosphere. The boys’ benefit immensely by having kids from a broader set of circumstances find a place at the school. We’re doing ourselves as much of a service as the recipients! Giving bursaries is also our favourite way to give back because we’ve learned by example from similar blessings endowed on us. There are many amazing kids who deserve this opportunity, but an economic barrier often stands in their way.

RSGC: Do you have any personal experience with scholarships or bursaries?

AM: I owe a great deal of thanks to my grandparents, who got me started by funding some fantastic schooling. Along the way, I got motivated to play a bigger role in making it happen myself. The one that particularly paved the way for our thinking on bursaries was a full scholarship to university. The benefactor had long since died when I received it, so I never got to thank him. We started thinking the best way to thank them all was to pay it forward.

RSGC: What message would you care to send fellow Georgian parents to encourage them to give?

AM: We greatly respect that giving is very personal, so if what’s in our minds makes sense for you, great! We’re trying to increasingly appreciate that we’re just short-term stewards of all that is given to us. It seems to us that fertilizing positive school environments is one of the best uses of capital. Other Georgian families already made this apparent when they paid it forward to our boys, and in so doing, to our families. The question we challenge ourselves to consider… Have you ever met a generous spirited person who did not become truly fulfilled and joyful in life through giving? I have yet to. It appears there’s some magic in it for all of us if we can identify a purpose that’s truly meaningful to each of us.