Founding RAY’s Place scholars on solid career paths
The first RAY’s Place Scholarships were awarded in 2012 to three Creemore high school graduates. Each scholarship was for $5,000 per year for four years. These students have now completed successful under-graduate programs and are now pursuing their passions in unique ways. They took the time to reflect on their post-secondary journeys and the role RAY’s Place played in their success.
Katie Deslippe began her studies in the Food Sciences and Nutrition Program at Carleton University. After her first year, she chose to change course and entered the Culinary Management and Nutrition Program at George Brown College for two years and then finished her four years with a Bookkeeping Diploma from Georgian College. She credits the RAY’s Place scholarship with providing her two important degrees of freedom: it, “allowed me to focus on school without financial stress weighing on my mind”, and “allowed me to discover what I really wanted to do and explore the programs that I needed to take to get me there”. She will soon be starting her career as a Meat Hygiene Officer for the Ontario Ministry of Agriculture, Food and Rural Affairs.
Michelle Nuttley graduated with distinction from McMaster University with a degree in Honours Life Sciences. She is thankful for the financial support from RAY’s Place stating that “the financial assistance was fundamental in paying my way through school and relieving the stress that accompanied the worries of university debt.” While the money was important, Michelle also highlights the other benefits offered by the RAY’s Place connection: I gained a network to people who introduced me to professionals in the medical field, helped guide me through decisions with valuable advice, and overwhelmed me with constant support and encouragement. Michelle is now looking to continue her education and has applied for graduate studies including medical school and other health-based programs with an interest in health policy and management.
Galen Yates has graduated from Engineering at University of Toronto with a BASc in Mechanical Engineering with focused on mechatronics and manufacturing. Prior to receiving the scholarship, he was an active participant in the RAY’s Place youth programs including the youth centre and work program. As a result of this, Galen considers the scholarship “as the culmination of an extremely rewarding journey with the amazing community of Creemore, especially all the wonderful people involved with RAY’s Place.” He credits his association with RAY’s Place with “teaching him the value of community and putting yourself out there” and encourages “anyone reading this who is considering any kind of post-secondary education to apply for a RAY’s Place scholarship or bursary.” Galen is currently working at Emond Publishing and wants to develop a career in software engineering with the longer-term goal of becoming an entrepreneur or working in artificial intelligence.
These student reflections fully reflect the spirit of the RAY’s Place initiative to assist local students. The goal is to connect students to a network of resources, including financial assistance, to help them experience and realize the benefits of continuing their educational journey through post-secondary education. The scholarship program is directed to students entering university and the bursary program supports students attending community college.
Currently, RAY’s Place has ten scholars attending various Canadian universities and has another 4 students who have received bursaries. In all, RAY’s sponsors have committed or expended $300,000 to support local students. All donations are tax deductible.
RAY’s Place will be accepting scholarship and bursary applications again in 2018. Details and applications can be found at www.raysplaceyrc.com.
