Laura Bustani, a major supporter of AUB and the widow of the late Emile Bustani -- one of the most influential businessmen, philanthropists and leading political figures in the region -- died at the AUB Medical Center on February 6, 2012 after a struggle with illness.
The Bustani family has a long and rich history with AUB, interwoven with romance.
Emile Bustani, who earned both his bachelor’s and master’s degrees from AUB and later became a trustee, also funded the Laura Boustany Dormitory Hall and the Emile Bustani Physics Hall here. At some point, he also headed the AUB Alumni Association.
Their daughter, Myrna, who is an AUB trustee and a renowned patron of the arts, is also a major donor of the University; she also heads the annual Al-Bustan Festival which brings top international musicians and artists to Lebanon.
But AUB is more than just an alma mater for Emile Bustani. It also played Cupid in his love story with his wife: It was former AUB President Bayard Dodge who recommended Emile Bustani as a talented English instructor to Laura’s mother, who was looking for a private teacher for her two teenage children. The minute Emile Bustani set eyes on young Laura, his love blossomed and he pledged to himself he would marry her no matter how long he needed to wait.
Later, in 1962, one year before his death and almost 36 years after he married Laura, Emile Bustani would fund the Boustany women’s dorm as a wedding anniversary gift to his wife and as a tribute of his love for her.
Emile Bustani, who was one of the founders of Contracting And Trading Group (C.A.T) in Lebanon, also served as a Member of Parliament in Lebanon in 1951, an office he held until his death. During the civil strife which plagued Lebanon in 1958, and led to the deployment of United States marines in the country, he played a crucial role in overcoming the crisis. He was one of the few eminent figures in the Middle East to remain on good terms with almost all the Arab leaders of his day, his counsel much valued throughout the region.
After Emile died in a plane crash in 1963, Laura moved bravely on to become chairperson of Emile's construction company C.A.T, president of a bank, builder of the five-star Al-Bustan hotel, and author of the book: A Marriage Out of Time: My Life With and Without Emile Bustani.
In June 2002, in celebration of the 40th anniversary of the Boustany Hall, then-AUB President John Waterbury presented Laura Bustani with an original David Kurani water-color depicting Laura Boustany Hall as it is today.
Laura herself, with unfailing dignity and grace, thanked AUB and all her friends, adding, "If Emile added my name to the dorm, it was so I could be even closer to the University which he so loved."
At the end of the brief ceremony Laura Bustani stood before the AUB choir as they sang conductor Paul Meers' music for Shakespeare's Sonnet 18, "Shall I Compare Thee to a Summer's Day," cited by Emile in his anniversary tribute to Laura some fifty years ago.
At that ceremony, Myrna Bustani recounted how her father would station bouzouki-playing colleagues in a tree near the Lee Observatory when he was courting Laura. Both Waterbury and Myrna Bustani recalled Emile's penchant for singing the AUB Alma Mater as well as Ya Laura Uhubbuki in the shower.