What set Cynthia and Yves Bled, parents to Claudette and grandparents to Sapphira, apart was not only their remarkable generosity, but the distinctive way they anticipated challenges and solutions before they were widely recognized. “I think both my grandparents, but especially my grandmother, were visionary,” says Sapphira. “They were always thinking of the future and looking at trends, areas where they saw interest developing, as well as where there was a lack of involvement.”
Born in Jamaica, Cynthia was an educator, scholar and community leader whose life’s work was rooted in a powerful belief: education is empowerment. A graduate of Howard University in the U.S., she pursued studies in library science and economics after immigrating to Canada, and met Yves while both were graduate students at the University of Toronto. From 1965 to 2005, she taught at Concordia University, Carleton University, the University of Ottawa and Algonquin College, shaping generations of students.
The couple’s vision was singular and fully shared, with Yves the strongest supporter of his wife’s dreams. After retiring, the couple founded the Bled Canadian Future Achievers Leadership Program in 2008, to support high-achieving marginalized youth with scholarships and leadership opportunities in Canada and internationally. Each year, the initiative brings 10 students to an all expense paid forum at uOttawa.
Both the University and the city of Ottawa were near and dear to the couple’s hearts and deeply meaningful. Cynthia and Yves were recognized by uOttawa for their contributions to higher education and community leadership and became honorary members of the Alumni Association.
The couple’s foresight extended beyond their forum. Both recognized the underrepresentation of women, particularly women of colour, in engineering. They identified the need for STEM equity before it came to the forefront and, in 2017, established the Yves and Cynthia Bled Future Achievers Scholarships for Women in Engineering. Since 2018, 53 students have received the scholarship (12 in 2025 alone).
The couple’s goal was about much more than societal impact. Sapphira recalls students writing to her grandmother, sharing their stories and seeking advice because she served as a mentor. Claudette says, “I think the individual impact was empowering. They saw a lot of systemic challenges and they wanted to help mitigate some of the financial obstacles that are huge barriers for some youth to be able to pursue their dreams.”
Both mother and daughter recall that Cynthia made sure nobody was pigeonholed. “I think that’s at the forefront of her pushing education, because both my parents felt, especially my mother, that education is your power that nobody can take away. She was not going to have anybody define who she was. That’s something that she’s instilled in myself and definitely in Sapphira,” says Claudette.
“When we talk about them being visionary, that’s exactly what my mother and father wanted: to not have people limit your vision. When I was young, my mom would tell me about looking at your horizon and having dreams. And the minute you reach a dream, you need to continue having bigger dreams and making sure you strive for them,” Claudette adds.
This is the philosophy that guides the couple’s eponymous foundation.
The Yves and Cynthia Bled Future Achiever Foundation, managed through TD Bank’s Private Giving Foundation, was established by the couple in 2020. Encouraged by a longtime financial adviser who had experienced first hand the transformative power of Cynthia’s mentorship and wanted to ensure the couple’s vision and legacy continued, the family formalized their philanthropic efforts so the impact would extend for decades. The foundation made it possible for Cynthia and Yves to leave a meaningful estate gift in support of the funds they established at the University of Ottawa.
“Looking at how they could make the world a better place for the future was very important to Cynthia and Yves, and that’s essential to the foundation going forward.”
Claudette Bled
Today, Claudette and Sapphira are identifying new gaps for the foundation to fill in the legal profession for women and people of colour, and in financial literacy education, an area where access and knowledge deficits persist. “We have a vision for the foundation and the work has just started. We need to continue being visionary the same way my parents were,” reflects Claudette.
The duo is fulfilling with passion this visionary role: that of solving today’s challenges, while also scanning the horizon for tomorrow’s inequities and addressing them early. And when they think they’ve reached the horizon, Cynthia’s words will remind them to look further.
Many University of Ottawa alumni have included a gift to the University and its students in their estate plans. It’s important to inform the University of your intentions, so that our planned giving team can validate the designation of your future gift with you. To learn more about this type of philanthropic project, email us at [email protected].