Staying Healthy During a Pandemic
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April 1, 2020
Dear Students,
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April 1, 2020
Dear Students,
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Music and travel are the two cornerstones of Trevor’s life. Trevor grew up on a farm in Manitoba as an only child, where music caught his attention at the age of three or four. At that time Trevor remembers being strongly influenced by watching musicians Tommy Hunter and Buddy Holly on T.V. After being mesmerized by footage of Elvis Presley when he was four or five, he knew that performing would be something he chased for the rest of his life. “Music to me is the battle between the hips and the head, between instinct and reason.”
Trevor taught himself how to play the guitar and sing. He also enjoys writing music. “I only learn enough about music to be able to write my own music.” As a musician, Trevor has produced two albums along with gigging in Toronto for three years. He has also toured across Canada with his own band, backed others, and has played overseas in the Middle East. Since moving to Powell River in August 2022, Trevor has been collaborating with local musicians and is looking forward to playing, working with, and showcasing Powell River musicians through various venues. While living in Flin Flon Manitoba, Trevor hosted over 50 showcases and livestreaming events. While in his early thirties, Trevor had a “midlife crisis.” He realized he needed to get out of his comfort zone. He decided to contact a friend who was teaching at a school in Kuwait, and within days of finishing his musical tour of Canada, he got on a plane for Kuwait. For the next five years he taught International Baccalaureate English. Kuwait was also where he met his lovely wife, Lisa. Before they knew it, they were travelling extensively to many different countries while on breaks from teaching. Trevor estimates that during their time in the Middle East, they visited 47 different countries. (Check out the map in his room for details of the countries they have visited.) His favourites were Tanzania, Iceland, and Egypt. When they returned to Canada, Trevor and Lisa taught in Flin Flon for six years (Go Bombers!) and then on a whim, they decided to come to Powell River so they both took a two-year leave of absence from their teaching jobs and bought a house in Powell River. Luckily for them things worked out as Lisa got a teaching job on Texada while Trevor landed an ELL position at Brooks. Trevor loves teaching at Brooks because he feels it is the best school he has ever worked at. “Students at Brooks have so many opportunities in academics and passions. The staff at Brooks are amazing, so dedicated and they genuinely care greatly about students. Working at Brooks has inspired me to be a better teacher.” Trevor’s suggestion for improving Brooks would be to add a school of modern music or a recording studio. His personal motto is: “If you want something done then ask a busy person.” In five years, Trevor hopes to continue to be involved with the International Program and doing gigs every chance he can. Trevor’s advice to students is: “Get out of your comfort zone, you can always go back, but you probably won’t!” We are delighted that his love of travelling has brought Trevor and wife to Powell River where they have instantly enhanced the vibrancy of our local arts scene.
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Paige started showing an interest in art from an early age. When she was four years old, she started drawing stick figures and sculpting sandcastles and mud cakes. “I have always liked doing art because it allows me to express my creativity. Allowing yourself to create something so original and personal to you, helps when you are feeling a certain way.”
Later when she was in elementary school, Paige began learning more about how to draw the human body. “A lot of the time I would use other people’s art as a learning tool.” Paige is 100% self-taught with her art projects, but likes to use other people’s art to gain knowledge for her own art. Paige is very grateful for the support she receives from her family. Since being in high-school, Paige has changed from mainly an anime type art style to one that is more cartoon-realistic. “Everyone has their own type of art style that is distinctly theirs. It doesn’t matter whether it is a subcategory of being a cartoon or realistic in nature, it is still their specific art style.” Looking ahead to her future in art, Paige hopes to learn more about lighting and shading. She is not interested in pursuing art as a specific career but would like art to be either a hobby or part of her job. Paige is a Grade 10 student who enjoys taking Media Arts with Mr. Bennett. “I like Media Arts because it also includes things like photography and computer type drawings. Mr. Bennett allows you to create stuff that you will enjoy doing.” At school Paige sometimes attends the Gender Sexuality Alliance Group as she likes that she can bring ideas to the group that help others. Her greatest struggle at school is her motivation. “It is hard to come to school some days because I don’t always have the best light on teachers and school.” Art is a means for Paige to get through some of her struggles attending school. Paige has advice for people who say they can’t do art or were not born with any artistic talent. “It takes a lot of practice and patience and slumps to get where you feel that your art is good enough. Even then you will continue building on those skills.” Her dream job is to open an art-café in Powell River and sell her own art along with work from other local artists. The above picture was recently drawn by Paige and later transferred into digital form where she added the coloring and shading. As Paige continues to develop her own unique style of art, we look forward to seeing more of it at school and hopefully one day in her art-café. At the tender age of 12, Ty Hatch started his own business, which continues to grow and prosper. Ty has detailed hundreds of vehicles over the past four years in his business called ‘Ty’s Auto Detailing’. “I have always been very energetic when it comes to taking something old and making it look new again.”
Ty has access to a workshop at his dad’s house where he works his magic in making any vehicle sparkle. “I really like doing research and learning new skills on how to make things look nice. I do lots of product research and make sure the products last a long time and are affordable.” Ty normally works full days every weekend making vehicles look new. “My customer base is mostly obtained through word of mouth, as I have many satisfied customers.” More information on Ty’s auto detailing business can be found on Facebook and Instagram or by calling him on his cell phone at 604-223-1984. Next year Ty hopes to start a mobile detailing service for vehicles in Powell River. “There are quite a few other detailers in town, but as far as I know, none of them offer a mobile service.” Next year when he is in Grade 12, in addition to running his business, Ty plans to enroll in the Dual Credit Auto Program. Ty’s ultimate goal is to build custom cars here in Powell River. Ty likes attending Brooks, as he particularly enjoys his metalwork class with Mr. McKendrick. “Mr. McKendrick has a good sense of humor and knows a lot about many different topics.” Ty credits his PIE teacher, Kerri Carlson for inspiring and helping him to grow his detailing business. “Mrs. Carlson is a great teacher who made my online courses fun and enjoyable. She assigned interesting projects based on my interests.” He is most grateful to his mom and dad for the support they have provided him with his business endeavors. One thing Ty looks forward to everyday is learning more about how to make vehicles look and run better. In the next five years he hopes to own his own house in Powell River and run a successful business. His advice to other students who would like to run their own business is: “Always do what you love but don’t work too hard. If you feel like you are overworking yourself, take a step back and figure out another way to do it.” Ty sometimes gets out of his comfort zone when he is building new vehicles and taking risks. His strategy when feeling challenged is to tell himself to just keep going and to try his best. In his young life Ty has achieved remarkable success as an entrepreneur. Ty Hatch is an easy-going, yet a very gifted, hardworking businessman who has a bright future in whatever he decides to do. Jacquie Dawson has many years of professional experience both managing theatres and coordinating artistic events. “I like making the path for artists to be comfortable so they can use their full creativity.”
When Jacquie was a Grade 10 student at Sutton District High School in Keswick Ontario, she was introduced to live professional theatre through the Red Barn Theatre Company. She volunteered to help backstage for a summer of productions. “My volunteer introduction turned into a life-long passion.” The summer of grade 11, Jacquie attended drama and musical theatre programs at the Banff Centre/ School of Fine Arts. Later in life she returned to Banff, first as a Stage Manager and ultimately fulltime as Production Manager. Jacquie completed a Bachelor of Fine Arts degree in Theatre from the University of Calgary. Since her university graduation in the 1970’s she has worked in a variety of artistic endeavours which include opera, ballet, music, and theatre. Highlights of Jacquie’s career in theatre and coordinating events include: Sterling Theatre Productions, Unforgettable “The Nat King Cole Story” -1995, World Expo Vancouver-1986 and Manitoba Royal Visits Events in Winnipeg Manitoba - 1984 & 1987. (And yes, she met the all the Royal family - including Princess Dianna who was charming and very generous with her praise for the young performing artists.) For the past 15 years, Jacquie has managed the District’s Max Cameron Theatre “I love managing the theatre because I get to work with students discovering their abilities and developing their talents. They are so creative. Watching the students participating - both in the audience and on the stage is energizing and confirms that the creative arts are very much alive. The biggest challenge for Jacquie is balancing the protocols between a school district and a theatre environment. If Jacquie could improve one thing at Brooks, she would like to see more use of the theatre by local up and coming artists. “I would like to see more collaboration between our students and local performing artists outside of regular school hours. Jacquie especially enjoys programming ArtStarts for K-7 students in our district. “I like to bring in performing artists that I think will resonate as well as challenge the students in our community.” Jacquie credits her Grade 10 teacher Mr. Luka for teaching her how to read and appreciate musical compositions…” from the page to the stage”. In five years, Jacquie hopes to be retired and spending more time with the St. John Ambulance Therapy Dog Program with her faithful Shih tzu sidekick Zucci. Her advice to students is: “With passion, hard work and dedication anything is possible”. Over the years Jacquie’s dedication to the arts has provided many opportunities for our students and for local artists to showcase their talents. Our community is grateful for her commitment and expertise. Ethan started cross-country running when he was in Grade 3 at James Thomson School. At that time, he was the fastest runner in his class! He developed an immediate liking for the sport and placed in the top three in the district in most cross-country events that year. “When I run, I enjoy the feelings of freedom and openness.” Since Grade 3, Ethan has been a member of the Powell River Track Club where he has honed his running skills. During his beginning years in track, Dean Thorsell was instrumental in coaching him. “Mr. Thorsell was super fun to be around as he encouraged and motivated me to do well in my sport. I am excited to be using his track spikes that he lent me.”
Early in his running career Ethan focused on long distance running. Now he enjoys short and middle distance running in addition to hurdles. Ethan’s regular schedule includes training three times a week for about one and a half hours each time. Leading up to the B.C. Summer Games, he upped his training to four times a week. Since coming to Brooks, this Grade 10 student has been coached by Scott Glaspey and Connie Polman-Tuin. “Both Connie and Scott are so good at coaching. I am very grateful to be coached by them and acknowledge that I wouldn’t have gotten this far in my running career without them.” During COVID Ethan went on a lot of runs with his step-dad Joel, who he credits with being very supportive of his running career as well. At the B.C. Summer Games in Prince George last year, Ethan ran three events and competed in triple jump. He received two silver medals and two bronze medals for his stellar efforts. “After so much work and training it was great to hold all those medals in my hand.” Future goals in running for Ethan include aiming for gold at this year's provincials and trying to get a university scholarship in track and field. Ethan enjoys coming to school. His favorite course this year is P.E. with Mr. Rice. “Mr. Rice is fun to talk with and has a good sense of humor.” If Ethan could improve the school, he would like to see more students participating in different sports. Ethan’s personal motto or philosophy of life is; “You can achieve anything if you are determined enough. It is all about discipline.” In the next five years he hopes to be attending university on a track scholarship. Although Ethan is unsure of his career plans at this time, he is interested in learning more about how to become an engineer or lawyer. Timberlane track is his favorite spot in Powell River as he spends so much time there. His advice to younger students is: “If you want to actually succeed in a sport you have to give it your all.” Through his hard work and dedication to his sport, Ethan models his philosophy of life. An Islander at heart, Sarah was born in Comox, BC, she spent her formative years in Port Hardy and Sooke on Vancouver Island. Sarah graduated from Edward Milne Community School in Sooke in 1999. After graduating from high school, she attended Camosun College for two and a half years where she took elementary education courses. Since the age of ten, Sarah knew that she wanted to be a teacher as she enjoyed not only teaching her younger brother, but her stuffies too!
After 2.5 years at Camosun, Sarah transferred to Simon Fraser University where she graduated with a Bachelor of Arts in History and Geography in 2005. She completed her teacher education program the following year at SFU, followed by her Special Education Diploma in 2020 from Queens University. Sarah turned her teaching practicum experience at Sullivan Heights Secondary School into a real job when she was hired as Special Education teacher. She spent 12 years working at Queen Elizabeth and Lord Tweedsmuir in Surrey. Never wanting to live in a big city for ever, Sarah and her family decided to move to small town Powell River where her husband Robert is from. “We wanted a life change to do some of the things we wanted to do as a family.” Sarah was hired at Brooks in 2021 to facilitate the Junior Explore Program which targeted youth experiencing challenging behaviours. This year Sarah is a Student Support Teacher working with students with I.E.P.’s. Sarah loves working at Brooks and hopes to work the rest of her career here. “As a Student Support Teacher, I like seeing the growth and development of the students I work with.” Highlights of her career so far includes implementing life skills programming and becoming a department head. In five years, Sarah hopefully plans to still be teaching at Brooks. Sarah credits one of her Grade 12 teachers at Edward Milne Community School as someone who made students feel cared about. “Mr. Kolada inspired me to be who I wanted to be and to try new things.” Sarah’s personal motto is you get out of life what you put into it. “If you want more kindness in the world you have to begin with yourself.” Her favorite quote is: “The Beautiful thing about learning is that no one can take it away from you.”-B.B. King Outside of school Sarah enjoys being the mother of three boys aged fourteen, eleven and ten. As a family they enjoy camping, fishing, paddleboarding and walking on the beach. Sarah likes to unwind by reading crime mystery novels. Her favourite being Lee Child’s, Jack Reacher series In dealing with stressful situations, Sarah likes to take a deep breath and do what she can in the moment to move forward. “ I like to make a list of things to do and come up with a plan of how to do it. Sarah loves living in Powell River where she can be close to beaches and walk on the seawall. We are lucky to have such a caring and professional colleague on our Brooks staff. When asked to describe herself, Sarah said “I’m quiet at first…then a little crazy.” Here at Brooks we appreciate both the quiet and the crazy Sarah! Brooks EA, Charlene Behan has enjoyed early morning runs since she was an elementary student. For many years, Charlene has believed that motivation is what gets you started. Habit is what keeps you going. This has built a strict discipline of running three to four times a week, year-round.
Another interest Charlene is developing is using acrylics to paint landscapes and animals. She has no plans to give up her day job to become an artist though, and she thoroughly enjoys the creative process. “For me painting is a way for me to free my mind and find some peace and enjoyment.” Charlene stepped out of her comfort zone recently when she started square dancing with the Timberlane Stardusters. She has surprised herself with how much she likes this new activity. Charlene’s three granddaughters, all under the age of two also keep her busy and provide her with delight and pleasure. After graduating from Max Cameron Secondary School in 1986, Charlene travelled to Tahiti with her best friend Judy Castagnoli for a holiday. Charlene stayed for five months before returning to Victoria, BC where she worked in a variety of jobs, such as retail, tourism, marketing and the Royal Jubilee Hospital for five years. During her time in Victoria, Charlene studied to be an education assistant at Camosun College. She returned to Powell River in 1993 where she took an EA position at Oceanview School. Since that time Charlene has worked at every school in the district except for Westview Elementary. Charlene has worked at Brooks since 2010. She absolutely loves her job as it is fun, and she finds something to laugh about every day. “Every day is a new day at Brooks and there is always a new challenge.” Charlene loves visiting and socializing with people. Her passion is to help students in any way she can. “Some people think I am quiet or an introvert, but I am actually a lot more outgoing than what people think.” Charlene credits her dad, Tommy Behan for motivating her to follow her dreams. “My dad had a great sense of humor which taught me to get through challenging situations. Her advice to students is, “Don’t be afraid to say, “yes” when exciting opportunities or adventures present themselves.” “All progress takes place outside of your comfort zone” In five years, Charlene hopes to be spending more time with her grandchildren and experience more travelling. She would like to go anywhere hot, like Costa Rica. Charlene’s incredible enthusiasm along with her kind and caring attitude makes her a perfect fit for her support role with students at Brooks. Lisa May is a Grade 12 student who loves talking with people about Bobby Field, Coast FM radio and music in general. Although Lisa May loves being around people it takes a lot of effort for her to keep things appropriate because of having autism. She is very curious about what is happening at school and what other people are doing. Lisa May has a real desire to be friendly and to make friends.
As a result of having autism, she likes having things a certain way; that means when schedules change, or things don’t go her way she finds it difficult. Some things that upset her are: technology glitches (when the internet is slow), loud noises, dogs barking, videos that are noisy or showing bad behavior, unexpected changes. Lisa May works hard at trying different strategies to stay calm. For instance, her EA’s try their best to keep her schedule predictable or if there is a change, they tell her ahead of time. EA’s also help her practice accepting situations that don’t go her way. They also keep track of triggers and her behaviors and help her leave the classroom when she is struggling. Lisa May also has a quiet place to go when she needs some time to herself. Lisa May is enjoying her year in Grade 12. Her favourite teacher is Mr. Biasutti because he is always calm and collected. “Mr. Biasutti always tries to help me.” Mr. Biasutti commented: “One of the great things about Lisa is her confidence, memory and socializing with new people. It is inspiring to watch her build new connections with people she has never met before. Lisa will also continue to build on those connections the next time she sees that person” Her EA, Kylie is lots of fun and very understanding. Her favourite activity is going for rides south of town with Kylie. Lisa May has an awesome room with wide open space, butterflies, make-up tools and an old stereo. Lisa May feels that things are going well for her as she is practicing APP. (Appropriate, Positive and Professional). After Lisa May graduates from high school her main goal is to be more independent. She plans to live at home for a little bit and read lots of books. She would like to meet lots of people in the community and host lots of get-togethers. She hopes to exercise every day, have a healthy diet and attend Knew Crew. She is thinking of adopting a cat! Lisa May is working hard to be independent, positive and professional. It took Saliya two days to fly from Namibia Africa to Powell River. In 2018, Saliya and her family moved a world away from all that they knew to come to Canada. Despite her looking forward to a new life in a new country, the transition to Canada was very difficult. At first Saliya struggled to adapt to her new life: cultural differences, English language, school adjustments and mostly the change to a colder climate presented the most difficulties. She also missed the family and friends she left behind. Making new friends at school and volunteering in the community helped her become more comfortable in her new community. It took Saliya three years until her life got better and she accepted Canada as her new home. “I still miss my home in Africa but am very appreciative of the many opportunities I have in Canada.”
Saliya is a Grade 12 student who works hard in school and at her job in the community. Her favorite class this year is Anatomy and Physiology 12. “ I find learning about the human body fascinating and my teacher Ms. Bryant, helps to make it so interesting. She is an amazing teacher who is very kind and helpful.” Mr. Bennett is another teacher who Saliya admires for the way he connects with students. “Mr. Bennett is a teacher who cares more about our wellbeing than our marks.” If Saliya could improve Brooks, she would have the all the walls in the school painted more colorfully. Outside of school, Saliya has previously volunteered at MCC where she organized clothing for sale and worked as a cashier. “Volunteering by helping others gives me a sense of purpose and value.” Saliya also volunteers at the Seniors Centre in Cranberry. Future plans for Saliya include attending college or university next year to study psychology or business. She eventually would like to work either as a social worker/counsellor or as a small business owner. Her dream career though would be working in the mental health field. Her dream vacation would be to visit Zanzibar in Tanzania Africa. Her favorite spot in Powell River is the sea walk because she loves looking at the waves in the ocean. Saliya’s advice to younger students is: “Believe in yourself and your abilities. Work hard and join lots of clubs. Most importantly don’t forget to ask for help if you need it.” With her sense of humor and her many talents and gifts, Saliya is a young woman eager to use her life experience and education to make the world a better place. Aaron grew up a few blocks away from Brooks School in the Powell River Townsite. He describes his childhood as being somewhat idyllic as he had many friends who he played a variety of sports with. “As soon as I could ride a bike from about the age of eight or nine, I could go anywhere in the Townsite whether it was fishing at the boat houses on Powell Lake or building forts at the old golf course above the Mill.”
As Aaron was one of the younger kids in the neighborhood, he wanted to be like everyone else so he started playing a lot of sports like soccer, baseball, hockey, tennis and golf. “Sports were a big part of my early life but I couldn’t continue playing all of them, so when I was in high-school I concentrated on hockey and golf.” Today Aaron is a competitive, two handicap golfer at the local club where he plays twice a week in men’s day competitions. He has previously won the prestigious Malaspina Open Golf Tournament three times. “I love the solitude of being on your own when you golf. Other than tennis, golf is one of the few sports where you have to rely entirely on your own skills and patience.” In addition to golfing, Aaron enjoys gardening at his Townsite home. After graduating from Max Cameron Secondary School in 1993, he earned his red seal in meat cutting and worked for Safeway for the next 25 years. When Safeway morphed into Freshco, Aaron decided to make a career change and was hired by School District 47 as a casual custodian in 2019. He recently received a permanent position as full -time custodian at Brooks. “From what I had previously heard, I was a bit apprehensive about working at Brooks. Since being on the job I have enjoyed it more than I thought, the students I come into contact with are more respectful than I thought they would be. I have managed to develop a relationship or connection with a lot of them, so I keep encouraging them to stay in school and do well.” Aaron credits his wife Terri for being his rock. “She says once you start believing in yourself you can do anything you want. Terri has always been there to support me and our three children.” George Chambers is one of his elementary school teachers he acknowledges for being a positive force in his life. “He encouraged me to play sports and do well in school.” Aaron’s personal motto is: “Whatever you want to do, keep working at it and it will pay off in the end.” Aaron would like people to know that he is a kind and approachable guy who knows a bit of Townsite history. Aaron’s advice to students is: “If you tell someone you are going to do or say something, make sure you follow through” In five years, Aaron hopes to be a part of the school district’s grounds crew. Whether trying to sink a ten foot downhill put, or cleaning the hallways, Aaron brings focus and hard-work to everything he does. We are happy to have Aaron as part of our school team and appreciate the extra efforts he puts into making genuine and kind-hearted connections with students and staff. |