I was in Grade 7 and everyone in high school was enormous. But in the first few weeks I came up with this idea for Duffels of Love, filling knapsacks for foster kids. My idea was that each knapsack would have one stuffed animal, one warm blanket, a toothbrush, toothpaste and a hat. This would give foster kids something to take with them when they are taken suddenly from their homes to go to a foster family.

It was scary. I had to get up in front of the students at assembly to talk about the project. When it came down to it, I was expecting to get four knapsacks back and I got more than 50.

Everyone here is very supportive of all my community service ideas and I get lots of feedback on how to make them work. Now I realize that it doesn’t matter if kids I work with are older than me. I learned that I could just be myself and people will accept me. We’re all goofy — but at Greenwood that’s okay!

Best Greenwood experience: The Grade 10 canoe trip. I was really nervous but I soon found out I was with an amazing group of people. We went north of Sudbury. It was so beautiful there. It poured rain nearly every day. I climbed one of the highest peaks in Ontario. I portaged a canoe by myself next to a waterfall. We slept beside a lake and all night we heard wolves howling. We sang every song imaginable. It didn’t matter if people were friends or not, if people were younger or older.

How you learned at Greenwood: I have dyslexia. I’ve worked a lot one-on-one with teachers and they’ve taught me strategies to deal with it. There have been hard times and stressful times and lots of work, but I have set my goals and I keep at it. My teachers are always there for me.

What inspires you most at Greenwood?
Everything is stepping stones. Everything adds up. Friends, teachers, the student body, the community — each one is a different shape and size and they all add up to be part of the whole process. That’s what inspires me.