Is it Spring where you are?

Notes from the British Columbia Youth Parliament Alumni Society

From snowy Saskatchewan to the cherry blossoms in BC the weather is in a constant state of flux. The BCYP is an ever evolving organism as well with constant change occuring at all levels of the organization. Read on to learn about some history being made and updates from the House!

The Alumni Award for Outstanding Leadership went to Dan Burnett in recognition of his 11 years on Senate and his dedication to Parliament and the Alumni Society. After his years as a member of BCYP, Dan served as Speaker of the House and as a clerk. Dan was part of the clerking team that was able to produce the first Journal to be distributed at Session. Dan served as CRO for three years when the job included both the CRO and Registrar duties combined. He even found a way to make the â€œrat-tailed comb speechâ€ a highlight of Session. Dan later went on to become the Vice-Chair of Senate. Dan was also an avid supporter of Camp Phoenix, and served as Camp Director.

This Session marked a special anniversary for BCYPâ€™s Partnership with Beta Sigma Phi, a womenâ€™s service organization from Victoria. It was the 40^th year in a row that Beta Sigma Phi provided a lunch for the members and organizers at Session. The partnership began when the Older Boysâ€™ Parliament became BC Youth Parliament by letting in the first female members 40 years ago. Before that time, a Victoria law firm had been sponsoring a lunch. That firm dropped their support when women were allowed in. Beta Sigma Phi stepped in and has been supporting BCYP ever since. Over the years it has been a delight to get to know Sue Fournier and all the other women in the organization. Many of the members donâ€™t have the finances to purchase all of their meals at Session, and the contribution by Beta Sigma Phi is appreciated. They have also recently started providing a bursary to sponsor a female member to BCYPâ€™s Session.

As Chair of the Awards Committee it is my pleasure to introduce alumni to all the deserving recipients of awards at the 86^th Parliament. The committee received many nominations and all of BCYPâ€™s major awards were presented this year.

The Bond Shield went to Ambrose Yung who was last yearâ€™s Paynter Award recipient. Ambrose showed exceptional dedication to BCYP by raising $665.

This year saw the Inspiring New Member Award renamed the BC Speakerâ€™s Inspiring New Member Award, thanks to Linda Reid who provided a donation from the Speakerâ€™s office in order to replace the previously damaged award that is kept in the display case at the Legislature. Linda also generously provided a special keeper gift for this yearâ€™s recipient, Morgan Weir. Morgan was the first of four members from Prince Rupert representing the Skeena riding. Morgan did an outstanding job of recruitment for the Northern British Columbia Youth Parliament. The success of that event lead to a large delegation from Prince Rupert and Terrace to this yearâ€™s BCYP session. Morgan organized several successful service and social events for members in the North. She was also in 2^nd place for bond sales last year.

The Fisi Award for Service went to Tony Zhao, a very deserving Parliamentarian. In addition to his Cabinet responsibilities and busy university schedule, Tony volunteered for the UBC Relay for Life which raised funds for the Canadian Cancer Society as well as Burnaby Hospital. He was also very active in student leadership volunteering for UBC Orientations and UBC Sciences. As Minister of Service, Tony was responsible for Project Phoenix, which was a day camp activity for children at a park in Burnaby.

The Paynter Award for Leadership went to Darya Ali. As the Deputy Speaker of last yearâ€™s session, Darya could have taken a back seat on Cabinet throughout the year, especially considering that Darya and her family went through the loss of her grandfather last year. Instead, she stepped up as a leader championing many of Parliamentâ€™s projects. She showed exceptional leadership through her support of Regional Youth Parliaments by mentoring and supporting the RYP minister and by helping to organize and run all six Regional Youth Parliaments. Darya also played a large role in the success of last yearâ€™s Project Phoenix, together with Tony Zhao.

Rhonda Vanderfluit, Awards Committee Chair

Dear Alumni,

Thank you for your continued support of the BC Youth Parliament! The 86^th Session, following in the steps of the Sessions before it, was incredibly successfully and has surely pushed another ninety-five individuals towards programs of community engagement and parliamentary education.

Two months into the Sessional year, and weâ€™ve had plenty of events and opportunities to keep our Membership busy! All of the regional ministries set out to find incredible deputies, all of who have now been appointed. A multitude of service projects, fundraisers, and socials have also been hosted by our regional Ministers and within the Membership themselves. Additionally, the first regional of the Sessional year, the Vancouver Youth Parliament recently came to a close with an astounding fifty-five Members. In two weeks, the Vancouver Islands will take their swing at the game of Regionals with the Vancouver Island Youth Parliament, which is being hosted on Salt Spring Island.

In the weeks to come, we will be starting to plan Project Phoenix, which is a summer drop-in program for youth across BC. Similarly to Camp Phoenix before it, it aims to provide youth with not only an opportunity to be creative, but also a positive connection to the community. Although currently small-scale, we hope that Project Phoenix will lay the groundwork for bigger-scaled projects in the years to come.

If you have any questions about Parliamentâ€™s activities or are curious about how you could possibly get re-involved with either Parliament or Senate, do not hesitate to contact me at darya.ali@bcyp.org! We would appreciate the help.

Darya Ali

Thanks to Pacific Coach Lines for their support in bringing BCYP participants to Victoria and home again, year after year.

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