PROFILE KINGSTON 41have been playing sports for
as long as I can remember.
There was always a rink in the
backyard and a game going on pretty
much constantly.” No wonder Alyssa
Labrie developed enthusiasm for all
sports and applied her skills in high
school varsity, Ice Wolves hockey and
Impact basketball. But it’s not only
athletically where she shows her
talent for team play; Alyssa takes on
activities and roles exercising her
ability to delegate, build support,
accept responsibility and celebrate
achievement.
As co-president of the La Salle
Student Council for two years, she
emphasizes the cooperative spirit
of the members who are in the game
as much as she is, running many
school and community events.
“It will be tough when we leave
after this year,” she reflects, “but
there’ll be enough momentum to
keep things going.” Doubling as
president of La Salle’s Interact Club
— coordinating charitable initiatives
like the Halloween for Hunger Food
Drive, collecting Christmas Care
Packages for residents of Fairmont
Home, socks and mitts for local
elementary schools and food bags for
northern Indigenous communities
— she anticipates needs and
assembles teams to resolve them.
Teacher and coach Rom Severino
describes Alyssa as a leadership role
model. “Alyssa always seems to be
in the mix, and despite her full plate,
she has found the time to complete
her Duke of Edinburgh Gold Medal
Award.” The award represents “a
global program with the goal of
challenging, empowering and
recognizing young people.”
Of all her volunteer commitments,
she feels most attached to the school’s
Nicaragua interchange. Working with
Outreach360,La Salle Interact Club
members visit developing countries.
Following the organization’s vision,
“impoverished children with limited
opportunities progress through
education programs driven by our
creative and enthusiastic volunteers.”
For the past eight years, La Salle
students have travelled to Jinotega
to teach English to children in this
less economically developed and
politically unstable country. Conflict
interrupts their efforts in Nicaragua,
but fundraising and encouragement
have offered alternatives to the
community. La Salle students
support the school throughout the
year and recently, through the Thirty
Hour Famine and other events,
raised $2,200 for the Literacy Centre,
an amount then matched by an
anonymous donor. Alyssa has played
her part over three years, organizing
golf tournaments, dances and music
nights.
Distressed by the social conditions
she saw in Nicaragua, she appreciates
access to education, among other
qualities of Canadian life. She says,
“They grow enough food for
themselves, but they live in poverty;
the houses are made of concrete, and
there is no plumbing. The last day is
sad. It’s hard to leave wishing there
could be more for them. But it is
better than nothing at all, and there
are rotations of volunteers and local
teachers to continue the program.”
The initiative succeeds through
Outreach360’s volunteers’ partnership
with local community leaders.
Apart from hours volunteering,
Alyssa belongs to a band called
SHAK. These girls have played
together since Grade 4 and are a
frequent feature of La Salle
assemblies, coffee houses and charity
events. With her cousin Kate
Anderson, Alyssa and two other
musicians perform covers of classic
favourites. Alyssa credits Jasmine
King with teaching guitar and piano
all those years ago and sticking with
them, developing their instrument
skills. Last year, Alyssa and other
members of SHAK were chosen to
perform at the Limestone Learning
Foundation Crystal Gala.Never apart from some team or
another, Alyssa practised at Calabogie
with La Salle’s alpine skiers. The team
won OFSAA Gold twice, travelling to
Blue Mountain in Collingwood to
compete. Rom Severino says, “Alyssa
is the full package as an athlete. She is
a ferocious competitor who leads her
teammates through example, and she
is the first to praise good play. The
standards that Alyssa has for herself
supersede the expectations others
have of her. She was a standout player
on last year’s OFSAA Silver medal-
winning rugby team as the all-
important outside centre, and she
was the point guard for the KASSAA
champion La Salle Black Knights
senior girls’ basketball team.” She also
played high school volleyball and
won KASSAA as a member of the
Black Knights hockey team. During
her years with the Ice Wolves, her
team won league championships, and
her Impact basketball team had many
successful seasons. Alyssa has been
honoured as La Salle’s Athlete of the
Year for the past three years. Long-
time friend Alex Hook adds, “Alyssa
cares for everyone around her and
constantly exudes this trait on the
court, in the classroom and outside
school.”
These characteristics have
contributed to significant
accomplishments: winning the
Limestone Achievers Award and the
Queen’s Chancellor’s Scholarship.
Her grades, consistently in the 95
percent range, reflect her competence
in sciences. Having been accepted at
McGill, McMaster and Queen’s, she
has chosen Queen’s Health Science
Program, planning a career as a doctor
or dentist. Although Alyssa is sad to
be leaving La Salle, she is looking
forward to university life and, rest
assured, will continue playing sports
through intramurals.“I
Meet our youngest motivators by Joan Heaton
Continuing a career in education, Joan Heaton
celebrates the potential of local young people.