'I like seeing people happy.'

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'I like seeing people happy.'

Details: Published on Tuesday, November 29, 2016

(Submitted) Craig Kielburger, founder of WE (Free the Children), presenting the Sovereign’s Medal for Volunteerism to Michelle Pottinger.

By Kate Jackman-Atkinson

The Neepawa Press/Neepawa Banner

While 16,000 people packed the MTS Centre for WE Day on Nov. 18, the previous evening’s event was a little more intimate. Prior to WE Day, 150 students and teachers were invited to special dinner honouring the province’s most giving schools and students. NACI’s HOPE group, which has donated $25,000 to global projects and another $10,000 to local projects in recent year, was invited.

Three NACI students attended and one, Michelle Pottinger, was one of 10 students in the province honoured with the Sovereign’s Medal for Volunteers. Pottinger was presented her away by WE (formerly Free the Children) co-founder Craig Kielburger.

A Grade 12 student, Pottinger was nominated by HOPE’s teacher advisors. Michele Young, of the advisors, explained that while there were many deserving students, they choose Pottinger for her long-standing volunteerism in the community and the school.

Among her many volunteer activities, Pottinger has been a volunteer gymnastics coach since Grade 6, helping younger students two nights a week and is a teen volunteer at the hospital. Within the school, she was chosen by her peers as the grad co-chair and has participated in numerous HOPE activities in her three years as part of the group, including Winnipeg Harvest trips, food and toy drives, Rotary Park clean up and the chill night in support of the Empty Bowls project.

Pottinger explains her motivation for volunteering, saying, “I like helping people and seeing them happy, I know change can be made.” She added that she always tries to help people and be kind.

Upon hearing that she was being recognized with the award, Pottinger said she was really surprised. “It’s really cool to be recognized,” she commented. She added that the event was also good opportunity to talk to other similarly-minded students from across the province, find out about the work and projects they have done and how they have been similar and different to those done by HOPE.

Pottinger, who plans to enter the University of Manitoba’s Ag diploma program and ultimately earn an Agronomy degree, summed up her volunteer work with one sentence, “I like seeing people happy.”