Student receives bursary named after teammate
The Tristan Morrissette-Perkins Award honours Dorval teenager killed in 2017
The first Tristan MorrissettePerkins Award was presented to Quinn Kennedy, one of Tristan’s former hockey teammates at John Rennie High School in PointeClaire.
Kennedy was presented with a bursary of $500 from Tristan’s parents, Julie Morrissette and Jay Perkins of Dorval, at the JRHS Convocation ceremony that was held last week at John Abbott College.
Kennedy, a Pointe Claire resident, also played community hockey with the Morrissette-Perkins in Hockey West Island.
The scholarship award is named after the Dorval teenager who was tragically killed July 3, 2017, when he was struck by a VIA Rail passenger train on a rail bridge near Lancaster, Ont.
His tragic death at age 16 came just weeks after high school graduation.
The Morrissette-Perkins family set up the bursary to help the John Rennie community and keep alive the memory of Tristan, who was a standout athlete and popular student at the school.
A two-day hockey tournament in Tristan’s honour was held over the Christmas holidays to raise funds for the scholarship through the Lester B. Pearson School Board.
John Rennie principal Cristina Prata said the community was deeply impacted by the tragic death of Morrissette-Perkins last summer.
“Tristan was a great John Rennie citizen who devoted much of his time to contributing to school life at John Rennie,” she said.
“This scholarship was created in loving memory of Tristan and is awarded to the students who best exemplify the spirit of volunteerism and leadership in multiple aspects of school life.”
We will continue to remember him and remind everyone at convocation every year on what a great kid he was. CRISTINA PRATA, principal, John Rennie High School
Principal Prata said Tristan Morrissette-Perkins will never be forgotten at John Rennie.
His John Rennie hockey sweater and a commemorative plaque are on display in the school’s Great Hall.
“We will continue to remember him and remind everyone at convocation every year on what a great kid he was,” Prata said.
A total of 224 students were part of John Rennie’s graduating class of 2018.
The school has a population of more than 1,300.
This year’s Class Valedictorian was Casey Dobson of PierrefondsRoxboro.