Malcolm and Marilyn Leggett have donated $1 million to the Vaccine and Infectious Disease Organization, or VIDO, on the USask Campus to enhance its vaccine research.
The money is to help establish VIDO as Canada’s Centre for Pandemic Research and advance its ground-breaking research on infectious diseases, including COVID-19.
Malcolm is the co-founder of NSC Minerals, a Saskatoon-based provider of salt for de-icing, industrial and agricultural applications. In 2014, he stepped down as president and CEO. He was executive chair of the board of NSC Minerals until the fall of 2016, when he retired. Marilyn is a former teacher for Saskatoon Public Schools.

It was the far-reaching global impact of the research conducted at VIDO that caught the Leggetts’ attention.
Malcolm says, “I think this is far bigger than one vaccine. This is whole different category on its own.”
The university says, with support from the Leggetts, other private donors, and all levels of government, Canada’s Centre for Pandemic Research will soon be established at VIDO. This expansion to VIDO’s capacity is expected to be completed over the next three years.