This issue of Reflections on Water (ROW) will give first
publication to the winners of the Fourth Annual SD No.
57 (SD57) Writing Contest, 2002-2003, and more. Three
key changes were made to this issue of ROW to highlight
student work. First, more work is featured: more artwork,
more poetry, and more short fiction. Second, the review
section is not included. Third, biographies have not been
included for all students published in this issue. The
privacy policy of some schools allows only the student’s
name and school to be identified. Other students did not
submit a biography.
Featuring selected young artists and writers from SD57,
this issue showcases the talent nurtured by teachers and
established local writers. Lynda Williams (Throne Price),
UNBC CTL Project Leader and managing editor of ROW, has
the imagination and courage to recognize the value of
giving exposure to outstanding young people.
Teachers, parents, and community members have made the
SD57 writing contest happen. Chris Thornhill (then President
of Parent Advisory Council for Blackburn Jr. Secondary)
originated the idea of a writing contest, 1997-1998. The
school contest was a success, and the first district-wide
contest was held, 1998 - 1999, with two phases: First,
six winners are selected in a school wide contest. The
second phase provides an assessment from a larger context
of the writing world. Volunteers from the Prince George
writing community have acted as judges since 1997. George
Sipos of Mosquito Books has been involved as
a judge and consultant since the first contest. Stephen
St. Laurent and Anita Ewert, both of the Federation of
BC Writers, were judges for several years. Cam McAlpine
of The PG Free Press has judged all four school
district contests. This year, Betsy Trumpener of CBC
Radio judged senior entries. For more information
about the Fifth Annual SD57 Writing Contest 2003-2004,
consult the SD57
website.
Two PGSS students worked with one consummately capable
and indispensable UNBC technical advisor, John Paul Lee,
to prepare this issue. Amber-Dawn Metz and Mike MacDonald
worked with John Paul on the conversion of the text and
images from Dreamweaver into the ROW website. They built
the site, selected graphics, and designed all page layouts,
capturing the images of student artwork as well as text.
Work began in April and continued with weekly meeting
through the summer.
Photographs were taken by Brigette Block and Mike. The
Gallery features two artists: Kara Biles and Amber-Dawn
Metz. Additionally, the Gallery offers an abbreviated
retrospective of the exhibition “Dreams: Escaping
Reality,” displayed at the Twin Rivers Art Gallery,
April, 2003.
In addition to student work, SD57 teachers were invited
to contribute. Not surprisingly, when asked to submit
their work, most teachers responded, “Who has time?”
Fortunately, however, a few came forward. Susan Herzog
and Michael Armstrong have previously been published by
ROW; Michael Carson and I are first time contributors.
Vanity versus virtue was my battle with the question of
self publication: Vanity won.
This issue of ROW has provided a means to honor with the
public recognition they deserve only a very few of the
many artists and writers in SD57. The opportunity to share
this wealth with a wider audience has been my pleasure
and privilege.
Elizabeth McInerney Woods, M.Ed.
Prince George Secondary School
