Left: Gilles Nault and his son, Caleb. Right: The late Darla Nault. After over 30 years of receiving care at the QEII for his family, Gilles has recently become a QEII Legend, leaving a gift in his will to the QEII Foundation.
For Gilles Nault, giving back to local health care is about purpose and setting an example for the people who matter most.
Living in Hubley, Nova Scotia, Gilles has spent years supporting the causes closest to him. Recently, he made the decision to leave a gift in his will to the QEII Foundation, becoming a QEII Legend – a group of donors helping advance the future of health care at the QEII Health Sciences Centre for generations to come.
At the heart of that decision is his 26-year-old son, Caleb.
For Gilles, legacy is about what you show, every day, through your actions – leaving a lasting impression long after you’re gone.
A life shaped by care and compassion.
Gilles’ connection to the QEII is close to his heart, with a long history. It began more than 30 years ago with his late wife, Darla, who lived with an extraordinarily rare autoimmune disorder – so rare that she was only the third known case worldwide at the time of her diagnosis.
Over decades of care at the QEII, Darla’s condition remained a medical mystery. But the compassion she experienced was constant.
“She didn’t just treat Darla as a patient,” Gilles says of her longtime respirologist, Dr. Nancy Morrison. “She treated her as a person.”
From reassuring phone calls during flare-ups to supporting major life decisions like adoption, Darla’s care team became an extension of their family. Even after Darla was diagnosed with terminal stomach cancer, that same level of dedication never wavered.
Gilles’ connection to the QEII also extends to his own care. In 2002, he experienced a grand mal seizure lasting more than 15 minutes, leading to a diagnosis of epilepsy and ongoing care through the QEII’s neurology department.
Years later, his oldest son was also treated for epilepsy at the QEII during the COVID-19 pandemic, a time when families couldn’t always be together in care spaces.
“They're facing their own danger. They've sacrificed to do this, to help Canadians and Nova Scotians,” Gilles says of the healthcare teams who work in the depths of illness or other challenging situations. “They're not mechanical machines. If someone dies in their care, it affects them as well.”
All of these life-defining QEII care experiences resonated with Gilles, and shaped the kind of example he wanted to set for his son:
“Because [my son] has had his own healthcare journey, I show him through example, how to give back to the people that took care of him. So that way, one day when I’m gone, he can give back to the healthcare community.”
Small acts, lasting impact
In the years since Darla’s passing, Gilles has found many meaningful ways to give back.
Each year, he returns to the QEII on the anniversary of her death with homemade baking for staff, a simple gesture that carries deep gratitude. He also recently gave a $4,000 gift to the QEII’s Sunshine Room, a space that supports QEII cancer patients during treatment.
For Gilles, it’s all about the meaningful intent behind each gift.
“It doesn’t matter how much. Whatever you give will make an impact.”
That belief is something he hopes Caleb sees clearly: even small acts, done consistently, can add up to something powerful.
Over time, in Gilles’ own life, those small acts have added up. When he paused to reflect, he realized he had already helped raise more than $100,000 for charitable causes throughout his life, including through gifts to the QEII Foundation.
Becoming a QEII Legend
Gilles’ decision to leave a gift in his will to the QEII Foundation is a natural extension of his lifelong mindset of living with gratitude and a way to continue leading by example.
As a QEII Legend, he is helping ensure that future patients and families receive the same level of care that has meant so much to his own family.
Gifts in wills play a vital role in advancing health care at the QEII through funding innovation, supporting care teams, and creating spaces that put patients first. It’s a powerful way to make a lasting impact, without affecting finances today.
It’s also about perspective for Gilles and about showing his son that giving back is part of a life well lived.
“A philanthropist doesn’t have to give millions of dollars. They just have to try and develop a culture of giving back,” he says.
Carrying it forward
Through everything he has experienced, from Darla’s care journey to personal illness and even a sudden loss deeply impacting his family, Gilles has remained grounded in the belief that we all have a role to play in supporting one another.
“To me, it's just how can I make a difference.”
Whether it’s delivering food to frontline healthcare staff or leaving a legacy gift through his will for future families and patients, Gilles is showing Caleb what it means to care, to contribute, and to lead with compassion.
“It’s about how you can you an develop attitude of giving back to those who have given to you,” Gilles says.
This lesson that Gilles leaves for his son extends far beyond his family and will continue to shape the future of health care at the QEII for years to come.
Because in the end, the most powerful legacy isn’t simply what we leave behind. It’s about who we inspire along the way.
