It has been a little over two years since my graduation from Serve Canada and I don’t regret a single minute of it, even the ‘barely there’ living stipend. I’m now at Carleton University in Ottawa studying English Literature and TSE (technology, society interactions, and Environmental studies) and pursuing a career in publishing.

Serve gave me so many skills and advantages that I have been applying to my life. Even though I joined the organization a little after it had started in 1998, It didn’t take me long to click with my own Parkdale team, other team members as well as the staff.

Even the things that I hated doing while I was at Serve seem to be coming in handy for me. I remember dreading the feedback circles on Thursdays, but it’s now an asset for me to be able to give some constructive as well as positive feedback in a professional setting. Believe it or not, those pesky points did teach me some discipline as well as punctuality, two things that come in handy for any student.

I will always value my internship at Reluctant Hero magazine in March of 1999 which I got through Serve. The internship made my university application to journalism programs really stand out and I was admitted to all three that I applied to. My resume looked impressive as well because of all the work I had done at my various projects. While some employers were just impressed with the diversity of my experience, some were more impressed with the specifics like the St. John’s First Aid course, my ability to facilitate meetings, and supervising children at a public school.

I still have my Serve Canada T-shirt, and it’s always funny how most people think it has something to do with the army or boot camp. I’m always happy to go down memory lane when I do explain to the curious that Serve is really about realizing your potential and goals.

I remember the last retreat in the Ottawa valley when everyone convinced me, the non- swimmer that I was to go down some very terrifying rapids in a whitewater raft and I smile every time. I also remember when my fourth-grade class at Queen Victoria Public school threw me a surprise farewell party complete with my favourite cookies when my time there was over. I can’t imagine trading those memories for anything.