This is the 23^rd in our series of stories celebrating the outstanding accomplishments of youth in our community. These inspirational young adults are enriching our lives with their passion and commitment to the betterment of society.

Nathan Kuehne

It seems like just yesterday that I met Nathan as a young lad in Mr. Brooks’ Grade 5 boys class on the beach campus of Glenlyon Norfolk. In what feels like a blink of the eye, he’s 18 and now graduating from Grade 12 in a few months. Nathan is what’s termed a “lifer”, having attended Glenlyon Norfolk ever since Kindergarten. He’s an exceptional student with a passion for science and since Grade 9 he has competed at a very high level in Science Fairs. Nathan presently serves as Head Boy of the school this year and so serves as a role model and an ambassador for the school. He is also involved in the organization of numerous student activities including co-organizing weekly assemblies.

Nathan has had a love of science for as long as he can remember. In Grade 9, he qualified for the National Science Fair after placing 6^th in the Regional Science Fair, where his project involved the use of charcoal in soil to help plants grow. It was at the Regional Science Fair that he met a Grade 12 student who inspired and “wowed” him with his university level research. The Grade 12 student captivated Nathan and made him feel empowered, wondering to himself “how far can I go with this?” And indeed he has gone a very long way already.

After his inspirational experience at the competition in Grade 9, Nathan undertook a science project in Grade 10 that looked at detecting multiple types of cancer though a urine sample. His goal was to make testing for cancer easier and cheaper.

Nathan noted that he has had the benefit of an outstanding teacher mentor, Ms. Dallin, at Glenlyon Norfolk. Ms. Dallin has put in countless volunteer hours to support Nathan, including time during the summer months when Nathan consulted with a professor at the University of Victoria on his research. His Grade 10 science project landed him a spot on Team BC and a Gold Medal at the Canada wide Science Fair (in the Top 10 nationally).

In Grade 11, Nathan carried his research further with a project on Phenylketonuria (PKU), a rare inherited disorder that causes an amino acid to build up in the body. He presented a platform for disease detection that is inexpensive, accessible and will screen for many diseases. He presented a chemical protocol in looking for amino acids (which are elevated with diseases). The title of his project was “pH-Dependent Colorimetric Assays for Biomarking Amino Acids”. He received the President’s Award for 1^st Place Overall at the Vancouver Island Regional Science Fair and a Gold Medal at the National Science Fair. Nathan was a TedX Victoria speaker in 2015 called “DIY Diagnostic: A Life-Changing Test for PKU Patients”.

Nathan is one of two students from BC who was selected to compete at the recently held Intel International Science and Engineering Fair in Phoenix, Arizona.

Nathan has been the recipient of many academic awards and scholarships, including top academic awards in Grades 9 to 11, the Glenlyon Norfolk Alumni Association Scholarship for academic success and contribution to the school and a Recognition Award for Excellence in International Baccalaureate Personal Project.

It did not surprise us to learn that Nathan has a long term goal of undertaking medical research. He has won a variety of scholarships, including the prestigious Chancellor’s Scholarship at Queen’s University and a National Scholarship at the University of Toronto, offered annually to approximately ten students from across Canada.

In addition to his passion for science, Nathan has other interests. He speaks five languages: English, Russian, German, Spanish and French (at varying levels of proficiency, he notes). He played basketball on the school team this year and he enjoys movies and hiking with friends. He loves working as a volunteer with younger students who love science. His hope is to inspire them the same way he was inspired by an older student when he was in Grade 9. Another of Nathan’s passions is Ukrainian dance – he has been dancing and competing since age 10. Now, he also teaches Ukrainian dance to 8 to 10 year olds at Victoria’s Veselka Dance group.

Nathan is a very engaging young man who has already accomplished a great deal and will no doubt go on to do ground-breaking medical research. His love of science, his intelligence and high degree of motivation will carry him far and we look forward to hearing a lot more about Nathan’s accomplishments in the future.

Today I had the privilege of attending the 9^th annual Oak Bay Young Exceptional Star (Y.E.S) awards ceremony at the Oak Bay Recreation Centre where 12 exceptionally talented youth in grades 6 to 10 were honoured for their achievements.

As noted by the YES Awards Committee, Chaired by Hazel Braithwaite, that administers the awards, “The goal of the awards is to emphasize the positive achievements of Oak Bay’s young people by recognizing those who have distinguished themselves in such areas as volunteerism, arts, citizenship, academics, athletics and/or who have overcome obstacles to achieve their goals.”

Congratulations to this year’s award winners: Cara Butler, Vanilia Chotou, Kaden Cortini, Annabelle Fieltsch, Rose Hanneson-Schwenger, Rebecca Hartley, Sidney Hurst, Jasmine Lambert, Aiden Leibel, Nicole Quast, Elmer Thomas and Jack Walmsley.

I had the pleasure of presenting the award to Cara Butler. Below is the text of my speech.

Text of Speech

In the words of her nominator, Nichelle Soetaert, Cara Butler is an outstanding young woman – driven, kind, diligent, reliable, creative and dedicated to all of her endeavours. She inspires her peers to become more engaged in the community and consistently emerges as a leader both inside and outside of the classroom. Her teachers consider it a genuine pleasure to have her in class, her peers seek her out for advice and guidance, and the influence of her generosity and dedication is felt from the Oak Bay Community all the way to Vicente Guerrero, Mexico.

Cara’s academic prowess is extremely impressive and she achieved at or above 93% in each of her 8 classes. She also competes with the senior field hockey team, has achieved a provincial level competing in track and field and is a leader on the junior girls’ Oak Bay soccer team. You would imagine that maintaining grades above 90% would be no easy feat with all of these things on her plate, yet Cara continues to excel academically and in all others areas of her busy life.

As a grade ten student, Cara has become deeply ensconced in the Oak Bay Community. She was involved in two major events that took place through Oak Bay High this year. The first of these events is very close to the heart of the school – Cops for Cancer. Cara worked tirelessly during her summer and throughout the month of September to organize fundraisers and to plan the arrival of the Tour de Rock participants at the school. At every event, she wore a smile and encouraged others to be engaged in the process, leading by example.

Another important achievement for Cara this year is her involvement in the Live Different program. Every second year, a group of 36 Oak Bay students travel to Vicente Guerrero, Mexico to build a home for a deserving family in a very impoverished area. The dedication and commitment required by this program is intensive, including a year and a half of preparation. Cara was committed from the first moment, working hard to raise money for the “Jail or Bail” event, spending countless hours preparing for the dance, and building new connections with all group members. During the trip, she was always actively involved. She helped others understand and cope with intense emotions (while certainly experiencing those same emotions herself), and was able to connect with the larger world at a very deep level.

Cara really embodies all of the attributes of a Young Exceptional Star not only in her school, but in her community too and it gives me great pleasure to present her with an award this year.

One of the joys of being an MLA is welcoming students of all ages to the Legislature, showing them some of the history and beauty of the building and on occasion introducing them in the House. Today was one of those pleasurable days.

I had the distinct pleasure of meeting a class of special needs students from the South Island Distance Education School (SIDES). These are young adults transitioning from high school who are learning life and social skills, increasing their reading and math levels and learning about the community. SIDES offers a wide range of courses and classes, often through the internet, to students throughout the province with a teaching and support staff dedicated to ensuring school children and young adults of all abilities can obtain the education credits to graduate, and skills to enter the work force or post-secondary courses.

Thank you to the teachers Elaine Ethier and Dana (pronounced as in banana) Crow for bringing the students Becky Hansen, Joel Wright, Ben Vanlierop and Emily Medwid. It was a delight to be able to introduce all of you in the House today.

This is the 22^nd in our series of stories celebrating the outstanding accomplishments of youth in our community. These inspirational young adults are enriching our lives with their passion and commitment to the betterment of society.

Ruby Tang

Ruby was one of a group of students who visited my MLA office in April of this year. Across BC similar groups were visiting MLA offices asking MLAs to commit to do what they can to stop attempts to increase thermal (as opposed to metallurgical) coal exports through BC ports (I‘ve written extensively about this in the past). It was the first time I had the opportunity to meet and chat with Ruby and I was delighted to sign the pledge (and subsequently mount it and hang it in my constituency office). I was also profoundly impressed by her commitment and passion.

Ruby is a multi-talented young woman who excels at school and is working towards the betterment of her community in so many ways. She was born in Victoria, attended Willows Elementary School and Monterey Middle School before attending Oak Bay High School. This week Ruby starts her final year in the newly built Oak Bay High School.

Ruby loves languages and learning about diverse cultures. Her parents immigrated to Canada from mainland China (near Guangzhou in Canton Province) when they were young adults. Ruby has studied at the Victoria Chinese Public School and speaks Mandarin and Cantonese. She received academic awards every year from 2009 to 2014 and a Chinese Painting Award in 2011. She remains closely affiliated to the school through acting as a grade one teacher’s assistant and (starting this fall) as an assistant in the Chinese water colour painting class. In addition, Ruby helps teach and rehearse Chinese cultural dance to younger students, aiding them to prepare for performances including the Chinese New Year celebrations and the Victoria Day parade.

At the Victoria Chinese Public School, Ruby has taken a great interest in the history of Victoria’s Chinese community. She has been able to transcribe or transliterate from Chinese (Cantonese) to English and she helps out as a volunteer at the Royal BC Museum. Her volunteer duties have included doing research for the human history department at the Royal BC Museum.

Ruby is a very accomplished musician. A student with the Victoria Conservatory of Music (VCM) since 2005, she has achieved the Royal Conservatory of Music (RCM) Grade 10 level in piano. She is currently working on achieving an Associate of the Royal Conservatory (ARCT) Diploma in piano performance. This is the highest academic standing for performance awarded by the Royal Conservatory. Included in her list of awards are the VCM Millicent Lavoy Piano Award (2014); the Hilda King RCM Theory Award (2013) and the VCM David Foster Piano Award (2011).

Ruby started learning to play the violin in Grade 5 and was in the School Districts’ Strings Program until Grade 10, enjoying many opportunities to perform at school concerts, during school tours, community performances and arts festivals.

An exceptional student academically, Ruby has achieved a Grade Point Average of 5.0 with Distinction in Grades 9, 10 and 11 (averages above 90% each year). When we interviewed Ruby for this article, it was during the summer and she was attending summer school to complete English 12 – to get it done so there would be more time for the many activities Ruby will pursue in her graduating year. For example, she will be co-leading the Environment Club, participating in the Debate Club and continuing a project she is working on (and co-founded) with students from two other high schools called Victoria Youth Matters. The aim of Victoria Youth Matters is to “engage youth in politics and engage politicians in youth”. With a federal election coming in October, Ruby and the other co-founders will be holding all candidates forums for their local electoral ridings. The topics chosen would be based on a survey of youth’s understanding, interest and opinions on politics.

Ruby has received many awards and accolades for her achievements at school and for her leadership and service to the broader community. In 2015, these have so far included being the Community Leadership and Philanthropy Pillar Representative at the Old School Farewell Ceremony, receiving the Oak Bay High Difference Maker Award, Best Overall Leadership Student Award and the Most Involved in the Community Award. In the community, Ruby received a District of Oak Bay Young Exceptional Star Award in 2014 and in 2015 she was the keynote speaker at the Young Exceptional Stars annual event.

Ruby was Student Council Community Leader Representative in Grade 10 and Student Council Treasurer in Grade 11. Other school involvement includes the Cops for Cancer Campaign, Peer Tutoring and helping new students settle in at Oak Bay High. She has assisted the school counsellor by translating between English and Chinese (Cantonese and Mandarin) for new students (and their parents) from China. In Grade 12, Ruby will also lead the Amnesty International Club at her school.

We are not sure where a person would find the time and energy to do more, but there is much more on Ruby’s plate. She has been very active in the Rotary Club’s International Action Club (known as Interact Club) at Oak Bay High. In Grade 11, as Interact Club President, she conducted meetings, organized events and worked on projects that benefited the school as well as projects that promote international goodwill. She was fortunate to attend a Rotary Youth Leadership Conference in Tacoma Washington in Grade 10, where she further developed leadership skills. In May 2015, Ruby took part in “Adventures in Citizenship”, an annual Interact program where 200 youth from across Canada travel to Ottawa to learn about the history of politics, explore Canadian identity and learn about our democratic institutions.

Ruby has been active in the community as a volunteer in many ways, including the Oak Bay Lodge “Memory Café”, where youth discuss topics of interest and share memories with senior citizens; the Victoria Dragon Boat Festival and the Oak Bay Tea Party. As I noted earlier, she has participated in the youth-led “Defend Our Future” action and she was part of the organizing team for the YesBC (Youth for Environmental Stewardship) 2015 Youth Climate Action Summit & Off the Grid Music Festival.

To challenge herself, Ruby joined the girl’s school rugby team last year and found out that she loves the sport and she hopes to play in Grade 12. She has also been on the school’s badminton and cross country teams. She has a Bronze Cross in Lifeguard and Lifesaving from the Canadian Red Cross, including standard first aid and CPR training.

In looking 10 years ahead, Ruby will have completed her post-secondary education and she hopes to be working on social justice issues in some way, possibly as a diplomat. When asked what makes her happy, she said “making a difference in people’s lives makes me happy”. She has been inspired by many people, including Mr. Alan York (recently retired as a counsellor at Oak Bay High) and Mr. Tim Bradshaw, Oak Bay High teacher, debate coach and sponsor of the school’s Rotary Interact club. Another person who has been an inspiration to Ruby is Winnifred Scott Wood, her past piano teacher.

Ruby is an outstanding ambassador for youth in so many ways. She’s highly motivated and organized and she takes on new challenges willingly. While she may accomplish so much and help so many, you would never know it from her quiet, modest and unassuming manner. Thank you, Ruby for all your contributions and hard work in your school and community. Oak Bay is a better place because of all that you do.

This is the 20th in our series of stories celebrating the outstanding accomplishments of youth in our community. These inspirational young adults are enriching our lives with their passion and commitment to the betterment of society.

Erin Attwell

In 1929 the Hungarian writer Frigyes Karinthy put forth the notion that each and every person is only six degrees of separation from  one another. But anyone who has lived in Victoria for a few years knows that it’s more like one degree of separation, or two degrees at most, within our community. And in the case of Erin, it is no different.

I first met Erin when she was three years old. She was a year younger than my son and both were attending Lambrick Park Preschool. Twenty years earlier, her father and I played rugby together at UVic and I was a TA for his Calculus class. While I periodically saw her father on the Tyndall turf coaching his son’s (and Erin’s twin brother’s) soccer team, I had no idea what Erin had been up to since preschool. So you can imagine my surprise when I learned on social media that the Erin Attwell recently won the overall General Classification cycling Yellow Jersey and Gold Medal at the Tour de la Rèleve de Rimouski.

Erin was born in Victoria and attended Frank Hobbs Elementary School from kindergarten to Grade 5. In Grade six she enrolled in Maria Montessori Academy where she is currently entering Grade 11. Maria Montessori Academy is a small school with 300 students from kindergarten to Grade 12. Erin loves the small school and sense of community there. She describes it as a supportive learning environment with self-directed learning and a focus on independence. Students in grades 9 through 12 work together on projects in a common area. Her grade 10 class had 10 students and there were 7 students in the grad class of 2015. The Montessori philosophy teaches students to manage their own community and teachers facilitate learning through coaching and mentoring. Erin notes that there is no bullying at the school and learning is a very positive experience where students learn self-discipline and how to work together.

From a very young age, Erin learned to ride a bike. Her Dad, a competitive cycling racer himself, got her on a bike “as soon as I could walk” and it was the beginning of her passion for cycling. She remembers having so much fun on rides with her Dad and many great times mountain biking at Hartland, a popular riding area at Mount Work Regional Park in Victoria.

Less than a year ago, Erin began cycling competitively when she joined the youth program of Tripleshot Cycling Club. She has done remarkably well in competition. As a rookie cyclist and member of the Tripleshot development team, Erin recently attended the Canadian National Junior (racing “up” in the age category U19 as a U17) Championship followed by the Tour de la Rèleve de Rimouski. At the Global Relay Canadian National Junior Cycling Championships, Erin won bronze in the individual time trial over a very difficult hilly course. Erin then went on to win 4^th place in both the Road Race and the Criterium (a criterium is a bike race held on a short course, often run on closed-off city streets). This was not Erin’s first national experience as she won silver in the omnium at the Canadian Cycling’s national junior track championship in November 2014 in Burnaby, BC.

After the excitement of nationals, Erin went on to Rimouski, Quebec for the 5 stage Rimouski Internationale Tour de la Releve, where she was a guest rider with ‘Team NCCH p/b DEC Express’ coached by Rick Lee. Erin was on the Cadet team of four young ladies who won silver in the Team Time Trial. Erin went on to win the first long 78 km race, the 15 km Individual Time Trial, the 35 km Criterium and a brutally hilly and windy 76 km Road Race – these impressive wins gave Erin the overall General Classification Yellow Jersey and Gold Medal.

Next on Erin’s agenda is racing against adult women at BC Superweek, followed by the Rapha Pacific Northwest Juniors Classic Stage Race in Elma Washington, then onto the Western Canada Summer Games in Wood Buffalo, Alberta as a member of Team BC. Her season will continue with Track Provincials in Victoria in August and then Nationals in October at the newly-built Pan-Am velodrome in Milton, Ontario.

All this achievement has required a high dedication to training and considerable sacrifice. As Erin says, “doing something you love, you make sacrifices”. Her goal is to represent Canada at the World Championships and the Olympics. She says that her determination as a competitor has been inspired by her father. Others who have inspired and supported Erin are her personal coach Lister Farrar who has taught her to “never give up” and Peter Lawless, an accomplished lawyer and coach, who has been appointed Team Canada’s Ombudsperson for the Toronto 2015 Parapan American Games and the Rio 2016 Paralympic Games.

Erin has also received inspiration from Pro Rider Mical Dyck, who likes to ride with and mentor junior riders. Mical has been a role model for many and champions equity for girls and women in sport. Erin has recognized that the sport of cycling does not provide equal opportunities for males and females – and she believes (as do we) that needs to change. There are fewer opportunities for women and the prize money for winning a race is substantially less (sometimes 50% less than prizes for male winners). Erin will champion and support the Ride Like a Girl initiative to get more women and girls into mountain biking so they can experience the joy of the sport.

Starting in September, Erin is very excited to be entering the prestigious and highly competitive Pacific Institute for Sport Excellence (PISE) program. PISE’s mission is to ‘enhance the development of sport and physical activity excellence through a partnership approach delivering world class programs, education, innovation and facilities’. She will spend half-days at PISE four days a week, including 2.5 hours daily in the gym. The program at PISE is for athletes in all range of sports, where cross training and nutrition are emphasized. PISE has a teacher on site to assist students with their academic studies. Speaking of academics, Erin loves science and wants to enter the medical field to become a physician (like her father).

Erin is an incredibly impressive young woman with a brilliant future ahead of her. She has the determination and drive necessary to succeed at the highest level. Her enthusiasm for the sport and dedication to ensure that girls and women are provided with equal opportunities bode well for the future of  women’s cycling in Canada. Erin will make a terrific mentor herself someday and young girls will look up to her as an exceptional role model. She is mature beyond her years and we wish her every success on her journey.