Quesnel is about to get its next pair of ambassadors with the crowning ceremony being held Saturday (July 6th).
The current ambassadors, and self-described ambassa-besties, Jamie-Lynn Fedoruk and Avery Cassidy took a leading role with the candidates to help them learn and grow as they did as candidates.
"We strive to grow our youths' confidence and bring them an ability to speak in front of those they don't know," Cassidy said. "I was this shy, embarrassed girl before I did this, and then this year in February I spoke at the biggest medal ceremony at the BC Winter Games."
"It's just an amazing program, it teaches us so much. It breaks the shells off of everyone," Fedoruk said. "It's amazing to see the growth in every one of our candidates so far and each other in the last year."
While the ambassa-besties couldn't agree which of them was the better public speaker, they did agree the program helped them learn and grow and they would recommend it to anyone.
This year’s candidates (their sponsors in brackets) are: Jayla Wheeler (Mama C’s Gifts & Giggles), Aryanna Langan (Six Diamond Real Estate), Jane Cronkhite (South Quesnel Business Association), Lacey Anderson (Bouchie Lake Country Store), Aubrey Williams (Bliss), Aiyana Doern (William Lacy Real Estate) and Taylor Wilwand (Reid Street Pharmacy).
Jayla Wheeler got involved in the program after seeing posters around school and was encouraged by Cassidy to join the program. One of her favourite moments of the program was being involved with the BC Winter Games, especially meeting the competitors and finding out where they were from and what events they did. She enjoys spending time with her family and at their over 100 year-old ranch. She also enjoys travel and hopes to explore the world after completing university.
Aryanna Langan's favourite part of the program has been learning all of the different skills it has taught her and she appreciates all of the learning opportunities she's had. The biggest highlight of the program was the sleepover at Moose Meadows Farm. She enjoyed spending the evening with her fellow candidates and the ambassadors playing games and getting to know each other more. Langan was also recruited into the program by Cassidy and she's glad she did. She enjoys ringette, belly dancing and spending time with her friends.
Jane Cronkhite got involved with the program after Cassidy told her how fun it was so she attended a meeting at school. Between Cassidy's endorsement of the program and what she heard in the meeting, Cronkhite was excited to join. Her highlights were Moose Meadows and the Royal Ball. She enjoyed bonding with her fellow candidates at the farm and entertaining the kids at the Royal Ball. She's a passionate ringette player, having spent a decade in the sport. Cronkhite also enjoys writing and has participated in the Quesnel Short Story Contest in the past.
Lacey Anderson got involved after having the program recommended by Fedoruk. She said she's gained new skills and gained lots of confidence from the program as well as making new friends. Her favourite experience was the campout at Moose Meadows and enjoyed bonding with the other candidates, making trail mix and going on nature walks at the farm. One of her hobbies is welding and making art out of scrap metal, turning garbage into art. She also enjoys all things outdoors including hiking, fishing and biking.
Aubrey Williams was inspired by her older sister, Sydney Williams, who was a Quesnel ambassador in 2019. She said getting involved with the program has helped her grow and build connections with her fellow candidates. Her highlights from the program was volunteering with the Music Mix at 6 at Spirit Square. She's also enjoyed getting to know her fellow candidates. She enjoys track, making last year's provincials for hurdles and theatre where she was in the lead role of the school production of Newsies.
Aiyana Doern learned about the program from one of the peer tutors at school and thought it might help her get out of her shell. She said it definitely did help her achieve that goal. She enjoyed meeting new people from her fellow candidates to people in the community she otherwise wouldn't have met from the program. She said her public speaking abilities have grown with her confidence through the program. Doern enjoys art in all forms, one of her favourite paintings she's done was of the band Alice in Chains.
Taylor Wilwand joined the program because her mother thought it would be good for her, something Wilwand said she was right about. She said the best part of the program has been getting to know the other candidates and ambassadors. Her biggest highlight of the program was the Royal Ball because she loves to dance and enjoyed spending time with the children and other candidates. Wilwand is passionate about poetry and enjoys analyzing the meaning and emotion behind written and spoken poems.
The speech and talent event will be held on Friday (July 4th) and the new ambassadors will be selected Friday (July 5th). Candidates have been learning, volunteering and growing while taking part in the program since January. The two selected ambassadors will continue to represent Quesnel throughout 2024 and help prepare next year's candidates.