Two Squamish Grade 12 students have each been awarded $5,000 to help with their post-secondary education.
Jada King-Drake and Sebastian Hable both won the Horatio Alger Association Canada scholarships.
The funds are awarded annually to deserving students in financial need who demonstrate, “strength of character, strong academics, a commitment to pursuing higher education as well as a desire to contribute to society,” according to a press release announcing the winners.
The Squamish pair were two of 85 students across Canada who received the scholarships.
On paper, King-Drake has every excuse not to be the success she is. Raised moving in and out of the foster-care system and diagnosed with Fetal Alcohol Syndrome (FAS), she did struggle as a pre-teen, she says, but that is well behind her now.
Originally from Campbell River and a member of Wei Wai Kum First Nation, King-Drake acknowledges she has overcome adversity.
“I didn’t think I would be able to make it this far with the grades that I have,” she said.
She said she noticed that when she started to communicate with people what was going on for her, things started to improve.
FAS can make it hard to concentrate, she said, but medication helps her focus.
She worked really hard to get good grades, she added.
“It is awesome that I got it,” she said of winning the scholarship. “There are so many deserving students who would also love to have this scholarship.”
She has several plans to further her education. First, she wants to move to Alberta to live with her mom, who she has reconnected with.
But she also wants to go to university.
She is considering studies in marine biology, teaching, corrections or even journalism.
“I have a range of different things I would like to do,” she said.
Fellow scholarship Hable attends the Sea to Sky Alternative School, in fact he is the school’s Prime Minister.
He also participated in the British Columbia Youth Parliament in Victoria over the winter break.
The Austria native moved to Squamish permanently in 2015.
He says he thinks he won the scholarship because he demonstrates leadership and academic excellence.
“And they think I can carry out my goals and be successful,” he said.
After graduation he hopes to major in mechatronics or genetic engineering at UBC.
Mechatronics is technology combining electronics and mechanical engineering, Hable explained.
For more on the scholarships go to horatioalger.ca/en/scholarships/.
