Finding her voice with WE
Shreya Anand and her classmates earn their way to WE Day
Shreya Anand was an early bloomer.
She was only in Grade 4 when she first learned about her school’s WE club. It was new and limited to Grade 6 students. Still, she was determined to join.
That night she rushed home and parked herself in front of the family computer, researching everything she could about WE. She remembers learning about the five Pillars of Impact and development projects around the world, the millions of young people like her who wanted to give back to their communities, and about the excitement of WE Day.
“That’s how everything started,” the Grade 9 student says, reflecting on that night five years ago and the beginning of her journey with WE.
She’s a different person today, and quick to point out how much she’s grown. Now confident and outspoken, Grade 4 Shreya was drawn to WE precisely because she was shy and withdrawn.
“I was bullied a lot and picked on. I was dealing with a lot of body-weight issues,” she recalls. “I felt like I didn’t have a voice.”
That quickly changed with WE. The only Grade 4 student in the club, she made space for herself among the older students. Year after year she came back, becoming a mentor for others. As she led her school’s WE campaigns— collecting non-perishables for local food banks, raising awareness about global issues and encouraging compassion and kindness in the halls—she found her confidence.
“With WE, I was able to speak up for others and, eventually, for myself,” she explains.
By the time she joined Earl of March School, she’d been transformed.
For Jennifer Pirri, her teacher and current WE club leader, there’s little evidence left of that shy young girl. “Shreya was having a difficult time for a bit, I know,” she says steadily, “but this has been an avenue for her to feel positive and empowered.”
Soon Shreya assumed a leadership role in Earl of March’s 100-person WE club, helping organize the school’s wildly successful WE Are Rafikis campaign, going door-to-door in her neighbourhood, making morning announcements and selling the bracelets at lunch.
In all, the WE club raised thousands of dollars to support agriculture and food security projects in Haiti, changing thousands of lives and earning their way to WE Day.
On November 15, Earl of March students will join thousands of youth from across the province who have taken action on local and global issues at WE Day Ottawa. There, they’ll hear from influential thinkers, inspiring celebrities and powerful performers—all celebrating young people who are leading change.
Inspired by the passion of WE Day, Shreya decided to bring the energy to her school last year by hosting Earl of March’s very own WE DayX.
The entire WE club helped plan the event. With music and dancing, decorations throughout the auditorium, and videos in between inspiring speeches about giving back and women’s empowerment, it felt like a real WE Day, says Jennifer.
“Watching [my students] become inspired, watching them start to believe they can make a difference, was the most powerful part.”
For Shreya, the highlight was taking the stage herself.
Her hands were shaking, she recalls, her stomach in knots as she stepped to the microphone.
“I was so nervous, so stressed that maybe no one would pay attention or care,” she explains.
But as she began to speak, sharing her story of being bullied and the community she found through WE, her voice steadied, and a funny thing happened. People cheered for her. The young woman who, years ago, would never have been able to stand in front of a crowd—let alone open herself up and share her passion—was stopped in the halls for days by classmates and fellow students telling her how much her story meant to them. Her social media, which in years gone by had been an avenue for hate and bullying, was flooded with positivity.
That is the transformation WE has led in Shreya.
“WE made me believe I had a voice to speak about issues,” she reflects. “It also taught me that I had a voice to speak up for myself.”