New West resident and grad student Naomi Small wants to better the health care system in Canada — a dream that now seems within reach, thanks to a province-wide scholarship.
Small was among the 116 Grade 12 students (from 67 high schools in 29 communities) to receive the annual Beedie Luminaries scholarship which awards each student up to $44,000 for their post-secondary education, besides access to mentors, student coaches, paid internships and more.
Launched in 2018 by philanthropist Ryan Beedie, the scholarship has helped a total of 625 Grade 12, single parent, refugee and graduate students so far, as per a press release.
For Small, the award means not having to worry about any financial obstacles while taking the next small step towards her big dream: addressing the health care worker shortage in the country.
“One moment that I remember from my childhood is when I was at a pool, and I broke my finger because I was too scared to go off a diving board. I slipped on the stairs and when I went to the hospital emergency room, it took me six hours to get an X-ray for a tiny fracture,” recalled Small.
“I remember liking science so much then that I wanted to one day help people with it (in situations such as hers). I think little moments like that are what propelled me to want to make a change because there are people in the waiting rooms with worse injuries and what I had; and I believe they need to receive the care they need,” she said.
With the scholarship support, Small is now gearing up for the University of British Columbia to pursue “something related to biology.” This will set the course for Small to practice her ideal profession one day — as a surgeon (“cardio or anesthesia”).
Love for science
Small, whose parents are teachers, has always had a love for science — so much so that what she remembers playing with as a child are not toys but two microscopes that she got as gifts.
This love stayed with Small through her elementary school years at Blessed Sacrament School, and St. Francis of Assisi Elementary in Vancouver, and even as she jumped from elementary to Little Flower Academy in Vancouver — where her favourite subjects included pre-calculus, calculus, physics, chemistry, biology and English.
Small had her eyes set on a post-secondary education in science; which is why when she first heard of the Beedie Luminaries Scholarship for Grade 12 students on Instagram, she applied to it — giving a detailed description of what she was passionate about, how she planned to contribute to the world, her strengths and weaknesses, financial situation and more — a few weeks before the deadline in March.
At the end of May, on an evening while returning from school, Small found out that she, in fact, got the scholarship.
For Small, the news was “exciting” and “relieving” at the same time.
More importantly, it taught her to always believe in herself.
Now, her sole advice to other students such as her is this: “Whenever you see an opportunity, do not doubt yourself. Go for it, even if you think you won’t get it. Because if you get it, you will have the possibility to change the momentum of your future.”
“It’s very important to try in the first place,” she said.
“Because that resembles courageousness in the face of adversity.”
Learn more about the Beedie Luminaries Scholarship at beedieluminaries.ca.
