It’s typical for the Junior Citizen of the Year award to go to a high-achieving young person who can juggle several different roles at once.
Such is the case for Kiley Elmer of North Battleford. The Grade 12 student at North Battleford Comprehensive High School is the Junior Citizen of the Year.
“I was kind of caught off-guard, but so excited and honoured to be chosen,” said Kiley about hearing the news.
She is active both inside the high school and outside. At NBCHS Kiley has a leadership role.
“My biggest thing this year is Senior Pin right now and leading the SRC [Student Representative Council],” said Kiley . She says her goal in that role is “trying to make the year exciting and fun.”
Kiley stays busy by trying to organize “an activity a week, with pep rallies.” They try to do fundraising every month, so they raised money for Movember, did some fundraising for the Terry Fox Run and did other fundraising activities as well.
Kiley is active in sports such as soccer and badminton, and she started curling this year. She was involved in cross-country, track and basketball as well.
She took part in drama last year and received the Saskatchewan Drama Association Cheer Award, which she describes as “kind of a spirit award.”
This year, she is helping get off the ground the new Students Against Drinking and Driving club at the high school, of which she is president.
She also has been in clubs such as the Travel Club, the Yearbook Club, Cake Decorating, the Comp in Action Club and this year is getting involved in Me to We.
Kiley said her volunteer activity has mainly been school-based for a long time.
“Just recently, I’ve kind of tried to branch out and my first step in that is I’ve been helping lead Girl Guides,” she said. She just started that this fall.
She’s also helped with food drives and fundraisers like carnivals, haunted houses and talent shows to raise money. She also volunteered at Fort Battleford.
Kiley has attended leadership camps, “which have been great experiences,” she said. Those include the Saskatchwean Student Leadership Conference, Outward Bound Canada Experience, Encounters With Canada and Rotary Youth Leadership Experience.
All of this has been achieved while maintaining her place on the honour roll with distinction in 2014 and 2015. She had also received the Bready School Highest Average Award in 2012.
Other honours Kiley has received include the Brett Wilson Outward Bound Scholarship in 2015, the Living Sky Hall of Fame Award, the Soccer Viking Spirit Award and Spirit of Youth Award.
On a personal level, Kiley has lived in North Battleford most of her life. She was born in China and came to Canada at one year of age. Her adoptive parents are Garnet Elmer and Linda Poole, and she also has a sister, Ashlyn.
As far as the classes are concerned, Kiley says she likes the sciences a lot, pointing to biology in particular.
Her NBCHS English teacher June Cubbon describes Kiley as a “warm, spirited young woman, who works respectfully and energetically with students of all ages. She has impressed me with her organizational skills and her dedication to leading the student body. She strives to involve students in fun activities, which make them feel welcome in our large school with a population of approximately 1,000 students. Kiley is worthy of recognition and celebration as she positively enhances every program with which she becomes involved.”
Her prime motivation in getting involved in so many activities in high school, said Kiley, is helping out people and making her high school “the best experience it can be for people.”
As for the community, “I want to spread kindness and be helpful and that just motivates me.”
Kiley says she is able to maintain good grades while keeping up with all her various activities, by “finding that fine balance,” she said, but “I know I’m only human so prioritizing doesn’t always work.”
However, she seems to have no problem juggling all her various commitments.
“If you’re really passionate about something you can find the time to make everything happen,” Kiley said.
Kiley says she hopes to go into health care. She wants to study nursing, whether it is at the University of Saskatchewan or University of Regina.
This path appeals to Kiley because she believes she can make a difference in helping those who are most vulnerable, where “a bit of kindness and helpfulness can get them a long way.”
