Handmade Poppies Invite Engineering Students to Stop and Remember

Linda and Rob Adams, longtime supporters of the University of Guelph and its College of Engineering, want today’s students to remember that many who served in wartime were once students like them.

Students walking into the Adams Atrium this month pass under hundreds of handmade red poppies strung along its beams.

The display is part of the Poppy Project, led by Linda and Rob Adams, longtime supporters of the University of Guelph’s College of Engineering. This year, almost 6,000 crocheted poppies hang across campus, up from more than 4,000 last year. You’ll find them in the Albert A. Thornbrough Building, the Gordon S. Lang School of Business and Economics, the Ontario Agricultural College, the Ontario Veterinary College and War Memorial Hall. They will stay up through Remembrance Day.

“For university students, it is important to understand the significance of Remembrance Day since the young people that died were the same age as the current students at the University of Guelph,” Rob, B.Sc. (Eng.) ’83 said.

The Adams Atrium is the busiest space in the Thornbrough Building, and it carries the couple’s name. Every day, engineering students study and work together there.

For Linda Adams (B.A.Sc. ’83, MA ’19), remembrance is personal. Both of her parents joined the air force as teenagers during the Second World War. In retirement, they spoke to classrooms about their experiences. Her father contributed to and edited the book Canadians on Radar, and Veterans Affairs Canada interviewed her mother on camera about her unusual role as a woman in the forces.

“Both wore their poppies proudly and attended Remembrance Day annually — a poignant reminder of the friends they lost during the war,” Linda said.

The family’s service continues with their son who is a former Canadian Armed Forces infantry officer, and their son-in-law is a serving artillery officer.

Rob hopes students see themselves in those who served. “I think it is important for today’s students to realize that in a different time, they might have been asked to make this sacrifice,” he said.

“Wearing a poppy is a statement of respect, gratitude and honour for those who died to make our lives better.”

Linda has crocheted lapel poppies for several years. After she gave one to Chancellor Mary Anne Chambers, Chancellor Chambers introduced Linda to Prof. John Walsh and Lt. Darren Sargent, who founded U of G’s Serving Scholar Program. The program, which includes current mechanical and food engineering student, Elaine Xu (pictured above) who has served five years in the Royal Canadian Naval Reserves, helps students who are serving members of the Canadian Armed Forces balance their studies with military duties. Together, they agreed a poppy installation could have a real visual impact on campus.

Linda then shared the idea with Melissa Woo, then senior development manager for the College of Engineering, who was planning a staff and student wellness initiative. The two efforts became the Poppies of Remembrance, Community and Unity project — the Poppy Project for short. Cross-campus lunch-and-learn workshops, held with help from the John F. Wood Centre and the College of Engineering, taught participants to crochet poppies and gave them a chance to get to know each other.

Asked who made the poppies, Linda said, “So many hands.” Workshop participants, members of the U of G community and Guelph residents all contributed, and poppies arrived from as far away as Calgary. Alumni House served as the central drop-off. Donors gave yarn and netting, and Linda’s friends and neighbours helped attach the poppies to the netting. In all more than 100 people took part.

The project also supports the Royal Canadian Legion. Linda, a Legion member, applies each year for the Legion’s permission to put on the display. She and Rob have bought and donated thousands of Legion poppy centres for the project’s lapel poppies. About 2,500 lapel poppies have been made and given away so far.

The Adams Atrium and the new Adams Collaborative Engineering (ACE) Studio, both in the Thornbrough Building, give students room to gather and learn together.

Rob sees the Poppy Project as part of the same commitment to students. “The College of Engineering and the University of Guelph as a whole are known for their well-rounded graduates with a strong social conscience,” he said. “Remembering and honouring our veterans for the contribution they made to make the University a place of free action, free thought and free speech is an important part of student development and the student experience.”

On the morning of Nov. 11, poppies will also line the Walk of Remembrance from Branion Plaza to War Memorial Hall.

“I welcome all interested staff and students to come to Branion Plaza at 10:30 a.m. on Nov. 11 to join the ceremony,” Linda said.

Details: University of Guelph Remembrance Day ceremony, November 11, 2026.