Ceilidh Millar has garnered all sorts of accolades and awards in her young life, including being named one of Canada’s top 20 Under 20 and receiving a Queen’s Diamond Jubilee medal in 2013. The New Westminster Secondary School graduate was recently named one of the 2016 B.C. Community Achievers by the British Columbia Achievement Foundation, which recognizes individuals who have made significant contributions to their community as volunteers or through their work. Here’s an edited version of her interview with Record reporter Theresa McManus.
Tell me about the B.C. Community Achievement award.
“There are 32 recipients that receive the award from all over British Columbia. It was pretty neat – all different ages, life experiences and social causes, but we all shared a common goal of wanting to make our community a better place and ultimately make British Columbia the best province that it can be. That was a really neat thing we all shared, despite all our differences.”
You’ve been featured in the Record in the past for volunteering on a number of different fronts, including We Day and with the YMCA Collectively Canadian program – are you still actively volunteering?
“I am - this will be my eighth year of volunteering. When I was 16 years old I was selected to be a student reporter for CBC News Day. That really sparked my passion for broadcasting and I realized I had a voice and a platform as a journalist to bring awareness to issues that matter. Some of the causes that I have been working on most recently are in the area of anti-bullying education, as well as youth leadership and youth empowerment. That’s really where my focus has been in the last couple of years.”
After taking part in CBC News Day, you were considering an apprenticeship in hairdressing. What type of work are you doing these days?
“I did do the hairdressing apprenticeship. I’ve kind of been all over the place, but I did go to BCIT and I have my broadcasting diploma. Currently I am working as a reporter for City Lights on Novus TV – it’s a station based out of downtown Vancouver. I also do some writing for B.C. Business. But I have some exciting news. I actually just started my own business – it’s called PreOccupation. Essentially it’s a practical career exploration and planning guide for students and their parents on post-secondary options. I’ll be publishing a book soon that teaches students how to research and plan a purposeful path through post-secondary, which can lead to a rewarding career. That’s where my focus has been in the past few months. I’m just getting that up and started.”
Where did that idea come from?
“I worked as a post-secondary recruiter for two years. I spoke to tens of thousands of students. I realized that young people really needed practical advice on how to choose a post-secondary education and training program. There just seems to be a lot of misconceptions among young people, particularly related to the current job market, about what’s available. I felt that it was really important for young people to have a resource or a guide that basically had everything they needed to know about transitioning into post-secondary so they can plan for their future and set a path for success for themselves.”
Do you have any advice for people who aren’t volunteering but are considering it?
“I would say to anyone who isn’t volunteering to definitely find a cause or something they are passionate about and just get out and start doing it. I can say, looking back eight years, volunteering has completely changed my life, it’s changed my perspective on others. We only know our own experiences and our own perceptions of things so when you get out into the community and start learning about others, it really can change your perspective. To those who aren’t volunteering, get out there and do it. It will change your life. It will change who you are as a person too.”
Finally, what are your thoughts on getting the B.C. Community Achievement Award?
“It’s really such an honour just to be recognized. Like I said, it was amazing to hear what other British Columbians are doing. As one of the youngest recipients, it really inspires me to become a lifelong volunteer. A lot of the recipients have been volunteering for their entire lives. It was quite interesting. The Lieutenant Governor Judith Guichon said that she was counting the years we had in volunteer experience – our group represented over 600 years of volunteering experience. It’s pretty incredible to see that and it shows one person can make a difference. If every person spent an hour a week volunteering, imagine how many lives could be changed just from one hour of volunteer work. It was pretty incredible to be part of that.”
