A Tofino wunderkind’s academic drive and artistic passion has yielded a massive and well-deserved financial boost towards her post-secondary pursuits.
Koyah Morgan-Banke is the Pacific Rim Foundation’s 2023 Dick Close Scholarship recipient.
The $40,000 scholarship is given to one Ucluelet Secondary School graduate each year and Morgan-Banke is the 15th young champion to receive the prize.
“It’s definitely a little bit of motivational coal on the fire of academics,” the 17-year-old told the Westerly News. “It feels amazing. It’s a lot of pressure, but it’s a lot of really good pressure. I don’t want to let anybody down. It’s a lot to live up to, but it’s something that I’m super excited to work on.”
She explained she was told she had received the award by foundation president Gary Marks, her former Kindergarten teacher.
“It was completely unreal. It was crazy to me. I didn’t believe it at first. I just sat down and called my mom and told her all about it and tried to process it,” she said.
She is now heading to Vancouver in the fall to get to work on her Bachelors of Science degree at the University of British Columbia with an eye on medical school and a career as a surgeon.
“I feel like if you can pursue a degree in med, you probably should at this point. I think we learned from the COVID-19 pandemic that we’re very low on doctors,” she said.
She said the scholarship will allow her to focus on her studies without worrying about putting in enough work hours to keep up with tuition and bills.
“I can put 100 per cent of my effort into my studies because I’m supported by this,” she said. “It’s going to be awesome. I’m super excited for school now.”
She attributed much of her success to the passion she inherited from the community members she was inspired by growing up on the West Coast.
“It’s been my number one support system. I don’t think I would have done as well or performed as well in my academics had I not had such close relations with my teachers, with my friends and with my community,” she said. “I do a lot for this community and this community does a lot for me and it’s a place I look forward to returning to when I get older. I’m definitely excited for that…Thank you so, so much. I look forward to seeing you all in the future.”
The scholarship recipient has traditionally been announced at a municipal council meeting in Tofino or Ucluelet, depending on which town the recipient is from, but this year’s honour was bestowed during a special ceremony held at Tofino Resort and Marina on July 16.
Marks swelled with pride as he spoke about Morgan-Banke’s accomplishments in front of the celebration’s audience, which included family members, supporters and foundation board members as well as a handful of past scholarship recipients.
“She has already accomplished much by dint of her self motivation,” he said.
He explained that Morgan-Banke, a member of the Toquaht First Nation, was the president of the local Surfrider Youth Club, served on the USS Student Council and Clayoquot Biosphere Trust Youth Advisory Committee and developed a free art program for elementary school students.
Marks also noted that Morgan-Banke was recognized nationally when her design featuring two hands holding a heart and the words ‘Be kind’ was chosen by Pink Shirt Day Canada for its nation-wide anti-bullying campaign.
“That’s what we used to say in Kindergarten,” he beamed, teary-eyed.
He added that Morgan-Banke signed with a modelling agency when she was 15, seeing it as an opportunity for Indigenous representation in the very competitive field and was also a USS lab technician, prepping and organizing experiments for biology and chemistry classes.
“All of these accomplishments clearly show Koyah’s maturity, understanding and diligence to realize a future that will not only allow her to give back, but to be a force for good in the world,” Marks said.
He said there were many solid applicants for the scholarship this year and that the strength of USS’ Class of 2023 was a testament to the West Coast.
“Central to the scholarship was this idea that the recipient would be a person who was invested in making the world a better place through a life lived with purpose and a desire to make a positive difference in the world,” he said. “In making this gift available, we see the unconditional love and support that parents and teachers and the community at large give to our children. These young adults are a reflection of us and their hard work and their earnest efforts are a tribute to the best in all of us…All Tofinons and Ucluetians can be proud of these young citizens and their determination to make a difference in the world that is faced with increasing and complex challenges. We don’t know what the future holds, but we know who holds the future.”
Read more about the scholarship, including Gary Marks retiring as the foundation’s president, in Wednesday’s print edition of the Westerly News.
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