FLYING INTO THE FUTURE

The students of W.L. McLeod School in the small rural town of Vanderhoof, BC, haven’t been to a WE Day event in two years.

Each year, the school enthusiastically participates in several WE campaigns. There’s the silent sit-in at the local mall to raise money and awareness for children’s rights as part of WE Are Silent, a campaign where participants take a vow of silence in solidarity with those who often go unheard. Or the hundreds of Queues de Castors (Beaver Tails), a local treat, made and sold during Carnaval for the WE Bake for Change campaign, a bake sale to raise money for clean water projects in Kenya.

But getting to WE Day to celebrate their year of doing good usually means a gruelling 10-hour bus ride to Vancouver. During one epic journey in 2015, the bus, carrying 26 primary and high school students, broke down half an hour outside of town. They were able to switch buses, but halfway there, in a small town called Clinton, their second bus broke down. They were lucky to find a nearby mechanic who was able to make some quick repairs. They made it to Vancouver, but it took 17 hours.

“By the time we got there, even the pizza joints were closed,” recalls Michelle Miller-Gautier, a support teacher at the school. “We got to bed by one o’clock but had to be up again by six for the WE Day celebration.”

This year promises to be different. Fourteen McLeod students have been chosen to be part of this year’s WestJet Experience, a partnership that helps young people living in remote communities attend WE Days around the country. WestJet will fly the lucky students to WE Day Alberta, which will be held in Edmonton on October 12.

“I was in a meeting and I just about fell out of my chair,” laughs Michelle, remembering when she heard the news. “It was all I could do not to run out of there screaming.”

Despite the challenges, McLeod school intends to keep attending WE Day. It makes all the difference in her kids’ lives, says Michelle.

“I think that our learners will come away with a greater sense of purpose that they can make a difference,” she says. “And I’m hoping that’ll lead to a sense of leadership as they grow up and become adults in charge of the world.”

Photo courtesy of W.l. Mcleod school Noah Gilbert, a student at W.L. McLeod School in Vanderhoof, BC, dips fried Queues de Castors (Beaver Tails), a local treat, in cinnamon and sugar for the WE Bake for Change campaign in February 2018.

Photo courtesy of W.l. Mcleod school Students from W.L. McLeod School in Vanderhoof, BC, stage a silent sit-in in April 2018 at the Vanderhoof Co-op Mall for their WE Are Silent Campaign.

Photo courtesy of W.l. Mcleod school Students and adult helpers from W.L. McLeod School in Vanderhoof, BC, help bake hundreds of Queues de Castors (Beaver Tails), a local treat, for the WE Bake for Change campaign in February 2018.