In September, Lanaya Goreil will be off to Mohawk College to study policing, armed with financial support from the Ray’s Place Scholarship fund.
Lanaya, 18, graduated from Collingwood Collegiate Institute in 2013, intending to study psychology or criminology.
However, she returned to school for another year after deciding to pursue her Police Foundations Diploma instead.
“I decided that I wanted to work on the force to help others and protect our country,” Lanaya explained. “I was in the army cadets as a kid, so that influenced me.”
Her post-secondary school goals include getting on to the Dean’s Honours List, playing sports (she loves football, basketball and volleyball) and transferring to a Tim Hortons in Hamilton from where she works in Wasaga Beach.
This would-be police officer is also looking forward to fending for herself in the world, when she moves to Hamilton to go to Mohawk.
Lanaya found out about the scholarship from her boyfriend, who heard about it from a family member who saw it posted on Facebook.
“[Applying for the scholarship] was an opportunity for me to express my financial need and not have to be in debt,” said Lanaya, who was selected by a committee out of 13 applicants.
Now in its third year, the scholarship provides recipients with $5,000 per year of study for up to four years.
This year’s scholarship was donated by Rowland and Kate Fleming, who say they are “thrilled” to be able to help Lanaya.
The Flemings are pleased to have made a personal connection with Lanaya through Ray’s. In recent email exchanges and one in-person meeting, this student has already made quite an impression on them.
“I think she has a 30-year-old brain inside her head,” said Kate, who calls her “very determined.”
The Flemings have already put her in touch with a family friend who is going into the Ontario Provincial Police force.
“I never went to university,” added Rowland. “But I’d like to help encourage others who can’t afford to go.”
Kate and Rowland are also hoping to inspire others to donate to the community.
“Ray’s Place is doing such a tremendous job in various avenues,” says Rowland. “If people can’t support a scholarship, maybe they can support in some other way.”
